John Parkin Taylor | |
|---|---|
 John Parkin Taylor in 1860 | |
| 2nd Superintendent of Southland Province | |
| In office 13 March 1865 – 7 September 1869 | |
| Preceded by | James Alexander Robertson Menzies |
| Succeeded by | William Wood |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Dunedin Country | |
| In office 16 June 1858 – 5 November 1860 | |
| Preceded by | John Cargill |
| Succeeded by | electorate abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1812 Treeton, England |
| Died | 12 August 1875 (aged 63) Riverton, New Zealand |
| Resting place | Riverton Cemetery |
| Spouse | Ismene Taylor |
| Residence(s) | Waldeck, Riverton |
| Occupation | runholder, politician |
John Parkin Taylor (1812 – 12 August 1875) was a 19th-century New Zealand runholder, and a politician in Otago and Southland. In his early life, Taylor lived in various countries and studied languages in Germany. He worked as a merchant and was married when he returned to England. Taylor's family emigrated to New Zealand in 1849 and he was a sheep farmer in various parts of the South Island before finally settling on a run near Riverton in Southland, where he had his homestead 'Waldeck' built. He entered the House of Representatives for the Dunedin Country electorate through a by-election in 1858 but fell out with many of his constituents over a broken election promise, as he helped the Southland Province to break away from the Otago Province. He eventually became Southland's second Superintendent and served from 1865 to 1869, and also represented an electorate on the Southland Provincial Council for a few months. In 1865, he was appointed to the New Zealand Legislative Council and with one break in membership due to non-attendance, he remained a member until his death. He served for one year as mayor of Riverton (1872–73) but did not stand again due to poor health. Taylor had a painful illness and died in 1875.