Archibald Clark (1805 – 17 October 1875) was a Scottish 19th-century Member of Parliament in the

Auckland Region Auckland () is one of the sixteen regions of New Zealand, which takes its name from the eponymous urban area. The region encompasses the Auckland Metropolitan Area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. Containing ...

, New Zealand. He was the first

Mayor of Auckland The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amalga ...

in 1851. His company, Archibald Clark and Sons, manufactured clothing and was a wholesaler.

Early life

Clark was born in

Beith Beith is a small town in the Garnock Valley, North Ayrshire, Scotland approximately south-west of Glasgow. The town is situated on the crest of a hill and was known originally as the "''Hill o' Beith''" (hill of the birches) after its ''Court ...

, Scotland, in 1805, the son of Andrew Clark. He attended the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

to become a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

minister, but returned home to take over his ill father's business before completing his studies. His first wife was Margaret McCosh, the daughter of a wealthy coal mine owner. Their eldest son, James Clark, was born in 1833 in Beith and became a mayor of Auckland (1880–1883). Clark decided to emigrate and they left London on the barque ''Thames'' on 18 July 1849, and arrived in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

with his third wife and four children on 25 November. Clark and his family were some of the earliest European settlers of

Remuera Remuera is an affluent inner city suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located four kilometres southeast of the city centre. Remuera is characterised by many large houses, often Edwardian or mid 20th century. A prime example of a "leafy" sub ...

Professional career

Archibald Clark and Sons Ltd, Wellesley St West, 1912

Clark established a

drapery Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles (Old French , from Late Latin ). It may refer to cloth used for decorative purposes – such as around windows – or to the trade of retailing cloth, originally mostly for clothin ...

store in

Shortland Street ''Shortland Street'' is a New Zealand prime-time soap opera centring on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital, first broadcast on TVNZ 2 on 25 May 1992. It is New Zealand's longest-running drama and soap opera, being broadcast continuously ...

in 1850 and initially imported, but later manufactured clothing. In 1856 or 1857, his son James became a partner in the business, which became known as Archibald Clark and Sons. The company became quite large, at one time having 500 employees. Their building on the corner of Wellesley Street West and Elliott Street in the

Auckland CBD The Auckland Central Business District (CBD), or Auckland city centre, is the geographical and economic heart of the Auckland metropolitan area. It is the area in which Auckland was established in 1840, by William Hobson. It is New Zealand's lea ...

, built in 1910, is registered with

Heritage New Zealand Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...

as a Category II heritage structure. The company ceased trading in 1928.

Political career

In 1851, local government was inaugurated in Auckland with the establishment of the Borough of Auckland. Clark was elected as the inaugural and only mayor of the borough council, serving in 1851–1852. However the legality of Auckland's elevation as a Borough was legally contested and overturned. Auckland was placed under the care of a Board of Governors, whose Chairman was Archibald Clark. He was succeeded by Walter Lee, who was chairman in 1852–1854. It was not until 1871, that Auckland was formally incorporated and

Philip Philips Philip Aaron Philips (11 June 1831 – 3 June 1913) was a New Zealand politician who served as the first mayor of Auckland City. He held the office from 1871 to 1874 and immediately prior to that, he was chairman of the City Board. He was a memb ...

was elected as the first mayor of the city council (by the other city councillors and not by popular vote). He represented the

City of Auckland Auckland City was a territorial authority with city status covering the central isthmus of the urban area of Auckland, New Zealand. It was governed by the Auckland City Council from 1989 to 2010, and as a territory within the wider Auckland R ...

electorate in 1860, until he was defeated (for the

Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film * Newton ( ...

electorate). He then represented

Auckland East Auckland East was a New Zealand electorate, situated in the east of Auckland. It existed between 1861 and 1887, and again between 1905 and 1946. History The Auckland East electorate was established for the 1860–1861 election, when the City ...

from 1866 to 1870, and

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

from 1871 to 1874, when he resigned due to failing health. Clark was also a member of the

Auckland Provincial Council The Auckland Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Area The province covered roughly half of the North Island of New Zealand. It was the largest of the six initial provinces, both ...

, representing the Auckland East electorate in the 5th Council from January 1867 to November 1868.

Private life and death

Archibald Clark's grave in Symonds Street Cemetery

St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Auckland, between 1900-1930

Clark read widely, an interest that he obtained during his time at university. He was well liked by his friends, and was regarded by all for his integrity and conduct. He was active in St Andrew's Church and was one of the leading members of the congregation. The church is the oldest surviving church building in Auckland as of 2015, and registered with

as a Category I heritage building. Clark died on 17 October 1875 at his residence in

. For almost two years, he had not participated in public life due to failing health. He was buried three days later at

Symonds Street Cemetery Symonds Street Cemetery is a historic cemetery and park in central Auckland, New Zealand. It is in 5.8 hectares of deciduous forest on the western slope of Grafton Gully, by the corner of Symonds Street and Karangahape Road, and is crossed by th ...

. His daughter-in-law, Kate Emma McCosh Clark (wife of James McCosh Clark), wrote the first New Zealand children's story ''A southern cross fairy tale'', which she partly illustrated, published in London in 1891.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Archibald 1805 births 1875 deaths Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Independent MPs of New Zealand Scottish emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand businesspeople Mayors of Auckland Burials at Symonds Street Cemetery Unsuccessful candidates in the 1860–1861 New Zealand general election New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates 19th-century New Zealand politicians People from Beith