Bob White (mayor)

(Redirected from Robert Howard White)

Robert Howard White QSO CStJ JP (25 December 1914 – 4 January 2006) was a New Zealand local-body politician.

Bob White
Mayor of Papatoetoe
In office
1965–1986
Preceded byLee Murdoch
Succeeded byAllan Brewster
Personal details
Born
Robert Howard White

(1914-12-25)25 December 1914
Auckland, New Zealand
Died4 January 2006(2006-01-04) (aged 91)

Biography edit

Born in Auckland on 25 December 1914, White was the son of Amy Charlotte and Alfred Horace White.[1] He was educated at Seddon Memorial Technical College from 1927 to 1930.[1] In 1941, he married Kitty Gwendolyn Mawkes, and the couple went on to have three children.[1]

White served in the Royal New Zealand Air Force.[2]

White was mayor of Papatoetoe from 1965 to 1986.[3] During his tenure in the 1970s, he advocated for a rapid-rail system connecting South Auckland with Auckland City. In 1981 he successfully called for the inclusion of photographs on drivers licenses in an effort to reduce fraud.[4]

In 1977, White received the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal.[5] In the 1982 New Year Honours, he was made a Queen's Service Order for public services.[6] In 1975, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of St John,[7] and in 1985 he was promoted to Commander of the Order of St John.[8] In 1990, White was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[1]

Robert White Park in Papatoetoe is named after White.[9]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 391. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
  2. ^ "Robert Howard White". Online Cenotaph. Auckland War Memorial Museum. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
  3. ^ Barber, Fiona (14 January 2006). "Obituary: Robert White". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  4. ^ "Obituary: Robert White". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  5. ^ Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 434. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
  6. ^ "No. 48839". The London Gazette (3rd supplement). 31 December 1981. p. 40.
  7. ^ London Gazette, No. 46574, 16 May 1975. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  8. ^ London Gazette, No. 50023, 31 January 1985. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  9. ^ "Robert White Park - Places New Zealand". places.nz. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Papatoetoe
1965–1986
Succeeded by