William Buckland (politician)

For the later (1884–1893) south Auckland politician with a birth name of William Francis Buckland, see Frank Buckland (politician).

William Thorne Buckland
Portrait of W. T. Buckland
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Raglan
In office
19 April 1865 – 27 January 1866
Preceded byCharles John Taylor
Succeeded byJoseph Newman
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Franklin
In office
23 February 1871 – 6 December 1875
Preceded byWilliam Turnbull Swan; Theodore Haultain
Succeeded byHugh Lusk; Ebenezer Hamlin
Personal details
Born1819
Died17 January 1876 (aged 56)
Remuera, Auckland, New Zealand
RelationsFrank Buckland (son)
John Buckland (son)
Elizabeth Hocken (daughter)
Alfred Buckland (brother)
Thomas Morland Hocken (son-in-law)
Jessie Buckland (granddaughter)

William Thorne Buckland (1819 – 17 January 1876) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament in New Zealand.

Buckland was born in 1819 or 1820.[1] His mother was Elizabeth (née Mortimore) and his father was the broker John Buckland; they were from Devon, England. The auctioneer Alfred Buckland was a younger brother.[2]

Buckland arrived in New Zealand in 1841 from South Australia, and was a butcher in Auckland, then a farmer in the Waikato.[3] He married Susan Channing on 13 April 1843 at St Paul's Church in Auckland.

Buckland was appointed to the Auckland Executive Council of the Auckland Province in November 1856 (the source does not state and end date), and was again appointed from February to July 1857.[4] He was elected to the Auckland Provincial Council for the Raglan electorate in November 1861 and served until 1869. From 1869 to 1873, he represented the Franklin electorate.[5] He had no intention of standing for the Provincial Council again but happened to ride past the nomination meeting in Newmarket for the Eden electorate. There was only one nomination thus far for the two available positions, and Buckland was talked into being nominated. As the number of nominations matched the number of available positions, he was declared elected unopposed, and served until his death.[6][7]

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate Party
1865–1866 3rd Raglan Independent
1871–1875 5th Franklin Independent

He represented two South Auckland electorates; first the Raglan electorate from 1865 to 1866, when he retired to go overseas.[8] He then represented the Franklin electorate from 1871 to 1875.[9] He was nominated for the 1876 election and gave a speech at the nomination meeting on 10 January 1876, but withdrew his nomination before the end of the proceedings. The Auckland Star suggested that the sole purpose of his nomination was that he could make a speech in opposition to Sir George Grey.[10] Buckland left for the Waikato immediately afterwards to support Alfred Cox in his candidacy in the Waipa electorate. However, he became ill with symptoms of heat stroke and returned to his home in Remuera.[1]

He died at his home in Remuera, Auckland aged 56 years after that brief illness.[3] He was buried at St Stephen's Cemetery in Parnell.[11] His wife had died in September 1871;[12] she had committed suicide after having become depressed.[13] Their sons Frank and John Buckland were both elected to the parliament in the 1884 election;[14] their daughter Elizabeth Mary married prominent Dunedin doctor and historian Thomas Morland Hocken. Jessie Buckland was his son John's daughter.[15]

  1. ^ a b "Untitled". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. XIII, no. 4424. 18 January 1876. p. 2. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  2. ^ Stacpoole, John. "Alfred Buckland". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  3. ^ a b "Death of Mr. William T. Buckland". The Auckland Star. Vol. VII, no. 1847. 18 January 1876. p. 3. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
  4. ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 181.
  5. ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 182.
  6. ^ "Eden Election". Auckland Star. Vol. IV, no. 1191. 17 November 1873. p. 3. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  7. ^ "Nomination and Election for the District of Eden". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. X, no. 3751. 18 November 1873. p. 3. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  8. ^ "OUR LOCAL BUDGET. DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 6 April 1863. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  9. ^ Wilson 1985, p. 186.
  10. ^ "The Evening Star". Auckland Star. Vol. VII, no. 1841. 11 January 1876. p. 2. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  11. ^ "Funeral of William Thorne Buckland". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. XIII, no. 4426. 20 January 1876. p. 2. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  12. ^ "Deaths". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. VIII, no. 2376. 6 September 1871. p. 7. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  13. ^ "Suicide of Mrs Buckland". Wanganui Herald. Vol. IV, no. 1221. 11 September 1871. p. 2. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  14. ^ Scholefield 1940, p. 114.
  15. ^ Main, William. "Jessie Lillian Buckland". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 1 December 2011.