Crosbie Ward (10 February 1832 – 10 November 1867) was a 19th-century member of parliament in New Zealand.

Early life

Ward was born in

Killinchy Killinchy () is a townland and small village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is two miles inland from the western shores of Strangford Lough in the Borough of Ards and North Down. It is situated in the townland of the same name, the civil p ...

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

, Ireland, in 1832. His father was Rev. Henry Ward. His paternal grandfather was Edward Ward (1753–1812), who was a member of the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...

for 14 years. His grandfather's father-in-law was William Crosbie, 1st Earl of Glandore (1716–1781); from this part of the family came Crosbie Ward's given name. Ward received his education at

Castletown, Isle of Man Castletown ( gv, Balley Chashtal, pronounced ) is a town in the Isle of Man, geographically within the historical parish of Malew but administered separately. Lying at the south of the island, it was the Manx capital until 1869. The centre of ...

and at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

. Two elder (Edward and Henry) and one younger brother (

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

) were encouraged by their father to join the emigration to

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

in New Zealand. They travelled to Lyttelton on the ''

Charlotte Jane ''Charlotte Jane'' was one of the First Four Ships in 1850 to carry emigrants from England to the new colony of Canterbury, New Zealand, Canterbury in New Zealand. Maiden voyage The ''Charlotte Jane'' departed from England in 1848, bound for Sy ...

'', one of the

First Four Ships The First Four Ships refers to the four sailing vessels chartered by the Canterbury Association which left Plymouth, England, in September 1850 to transport the first English settlers to new homes in Canterbury, New Zealand. The colonists or se ...

to arrive in December 1850. They chose Quail Island in

Lyttelton Harbour Lyttelton Harbour / Whakaraupō is one of two major inlets in Banks Peninsula, on the coast of Canterbury, New Zealand; the other is Akaroa Harbour on the southern coast. It enters from the northern coast of the peninsula, heading in a pred ...

as their farm settlement, but the two elder brothers drowned in June 1851. Hamilton Ward, who had just turned 16, was taken in by

Charlotte Godley Charlotte Godley (14 November 1821 – 3 January 1907) was a New Zealand letter-writer and community leader. Family She was born as Charlotte Griffith-Wynne in Voelas House (subsequently demolished) in Denbighshire, Wales in 1821. She was the ...

, the wife of the founder of Canterbury,

John Robert Godley John Robert Godley (29 May 1814 – 17 November 1861) was an Anglo-Irish statesman and bureaucrat. Godley is considered to be the founder of Canterbury, New Zealand, although he lived there for only two years. Early life Godley was born in Dubli ...

. She wrote to the Ward family in Ireland, requesting that somebody come out to take care of Hamilton. Crosbie Ward was sent out; he arrived on the ''Stag'' on 17 May 1852. They found Quail Island uneconomic to farm and bought land north of

Rangiora Rangiora is the largest town and seat of the Waimakariri District, in Canterbury, New Zealand. It is north of Christchurch, and is part of the Christchurch metropolitan area. With an estimated population of Rangiora is the 30th largest urba ...

instead. The two brothers bought part of the Racecourse Hill run near Darfield; this was managed by Hamilton Ward.

Political career

He represented the Town of Lyttelton electorate from to 1866. He was a cabinet minister, Postmaster-General and Secretary for Crown Lands. He then represented the Avon electorate from to 1867, when he resigned. He was a prominent Christchurch journalist, editing the ''

Lyttelton Times The ''Lyttelton Times'' was the first newspaper in Canterbury, New Zealand, publishing the first edition in January 1851. It was established by the Canterbury Association as part of its planned settlement of Canterbury and developed into a libera ...

''. On 13 January 1857, he married Margaret (Maggie) Townsend of

. Their only child was Harriett Louise Frances Ward. He died on 10 November 1867 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. On 18 September 1868, his widow married John George Cooke at Holy Trinity Church in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Crosbie 1832 births 1867 deaths Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand journalists Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand People from County Down New Zealand MPs for Christchurch electorates 19th-century journalists Irish emigrants to New Zealand (before 1923) Male journalists 19th-century male writers 19th-century New Zealand politicians Alumni of Trinity College Dublin