Francis Lawry (1839 – 19 January 1921) was a conservative then Liberal Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.

Frank Lawry
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Parnell
In office
1890–1911
Preceded byFrederick Moss
Succeeded byJames Dickson
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Franklin North
In office
1887–1890
Preceded byFrank Buckland
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Personal details
Born1839
Bleadon, Somerset, England
Died (aged 81)
Auckland, New Zealand
Political partyLiberal
Spouse
Sarah Davies
(m. 1868)

Biography

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Early life

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Lawry was born in Bleadon, Somerset, England, in 1839, the son of William Lawry, a farmer and Methodist minister. He was educated at the British school at Weston-super-Mare, and then entered a career in farming. Lawry emigrated to New Zealand in 1863 aboard the ship Ulcoates.[1] At Epsom on 21 October 1868 he married Sarah Davies.[2] The couple went on to have one daughter.[1]

Lawry entered public life as a member of the North Auckland Cattle Boards and was later president of the Auckland Agricultural and Pastoral Association. He was the chairman of the Epsom Road Board for thirteen consecutive years and spent two years as a member of the Board of Education. He was also a Freemason.[1]

Political career

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New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate Party
1887–1890 10th Franklin North Independent
1890–1891 11th Parnell Independent
1891–1893 Changed allegiance to: Liberal
1893–1896 12th Parnell Liberal
1896–1899 13th Parnell Liberal
1899–1902 14th Parnell Liberal
1902–1905 15th Parnell Liberal
1905–1908 16th Parnell Liberal
1908–1911 17th Parnell Liberal

In the 1881 general election he contested the Franklin South electorate. He was beaten by Ebenezer Hamlin, by the mere majority of 40 votes.[3] In 1884 he stood against Maurice O'Rorke in Manukau, but was again defeated by 127 votes.[1] He won the Franklin North electorate in 1887, and then the Parnell electorate in 1890 which he represented until he retired in 1911.[4]

In the 1890 election, he was listed as a supporter of the conservative Atkinson Ministry, led by Harry Atkinson.[5] Following the election, he did change his allegiance to the Liberal Party and became Senior Whip for the Liberal Government from 1891 until his resignation from the role on 29 October 1894.[6]

Throughout his long Parliamentary career he was a member of many committees, chiefly the Agricultural and Pastoral Committee, which for several years he was its chairman.[1]

Death

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Lawry died in Auckland in 1921,[1] and was buried at St Matthias' Church, Panmure.[7]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Obituary: Mr. Frank Lawry". New Zealand Herald. 20 January 1921. p. 8. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  2. ^ "Marriage". New Zealand Herald. 31 October 1868. p. 4. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  3. ^ Wilson 1985, p. 202.
  4. ^ Wilson 1985, p. 212.
  5. ^ "Parliamentary candidates". The Press. Vol. XLVIL, no. 7722. 29 November 1890. p. 5. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  6. ^ Wilson 1985, p. 279.
  7. ^ "New Zealand, cemetery records, 1800–2007". Ancestry.com Operations Inc. 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2015.

References

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  • Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
New Zealand Parliament
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Franklin North
1887–1890
Constituency abolished
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Parnell
1890–1911
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Senior Whip of the Liberal Party
1891–1894
Succeeded by