Francis James Garrick (1833 – 7 June 1890), was a barrister and politician from

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, New Zealand.

Early years

Garrick was the oldest of ten children of James Francis Garrick (b. 1803 in

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, within the London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century to the late 19th it was home to Deptford Dock ...

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; d. 1874 in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

) and Catherine Eliza Garrick (née Branson, b. 1811 in

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

; d. 1900 in

Woollahra Woollahra is a suburb in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Woollahra is located 5 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Municipality of Woollahra. W ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

). His parents were married on 10 June 1832 in

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, England. They subsequently emigrated to Sydney to manage a flour milling business. Garrick was born in 1833. There are conflicting reports whether this was at sea or when his parents had already arrived in Sydney. He was educated at Sydney College.

Legal career

Both Garrick and his younger brother

James Francis James Goodall Francis (9 January 1819 – 25 January 1884), Australian colonial politician, was the 9th Premier of Victoria. Francis was born in London, and emigrated to Van Diemen's Land (later Tasmania) in 1847, where he became a busines ...

(born 10 January 1836) were sent to Sydney solicitors to learn the legal trade. The older brother spent time at Andrew McCulloch's office, and after that he worked for Robert Nicholls. After being admitted to the New South Wales' bar, he became a partner with Rowley and Holdsworth. James Francis moved to

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in 1861 where only four attorneys were in practice at that time, whilst Francis James emigrated to New Zealand in February 1864. He found a partner and set up the firm of Garrick and Cowlishaw, with their initial office fronting

Cathedral Square, Christchurch Cathedral Square, locally known simply as the Square, is the geographical centre and heart of Christchurch, New Zealand, where the city's Anglican cathedral, ChristChurch Cathedral is located. The square stands at the theoretical crossing of ...

. In 1883, they took on another partner and the practice was then known as Garrick, Cowlishaw and

Fisher Fisher is an archaic term for a fisherman, revived as gender-neutral. Fisher, Fishers or The Fisher may also refer to: Places Australia *Division of Fisher, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives, in Queensland *Elect ...

. Garrick was highly respected in the New Zealand bar for his speaking talent.

Political career

Garrick was a member of the

Canterbury Provincial Council The Canterbury Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Its capital was Christchurch. History Canterbury was founded in December 1850 by the Canterbury Association of influential Eng ...

for three years. He was elected onto the council on 11 June 1866 for the City of Christchurch electorate. Immediately following his election, he was appointed Provincial Solicitor and thus became a member of the Executive Council; he remained on the Executive Council until 27 November of that year. On 3 June 1869, a by-election was held, as Garrick had resigned his seat the previous month. The election was won by J. Inglis unopposed. In the

1884 New Zealand general election The 1884 New Zealand general election was held on 22 July to elect a total of 95 MPs to the 9th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Māori vote was held on 21 July. A total number of 137,686 (60.6%) voters turned out to vote. In 11 seats ...

, he successfully stood for the St Albans electorate. He stood against two other candidates, Joseph Jebson and Thornhill Cooper, and gained a comfortable victory, gaining 396 out of 477 votes. Garrick stood again in the electorate in the 1887 election, against

William Pember Reeves William Pember Reeves (10 February 1857 – 16 May 1932) was a New Zealand politician, cricketer, historian and poet who promoted social reform. Early life and career Reeves's parents were William Reeves, who was a journalist and politician ...

. At the election on 26 September, Reeves and Garrick received 802 and 634 votes, respectively. With a majority of 164 votes, Reeves was the successful candidate.

Private life

Garrick was very involved with the

Wesleyan Church The Wesleyan Church, also known as the Wesleyan Methodist Church and Wesleyan Holiness Church depending on the region, is a Methodist Christian denomination in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Namibia, Sierra Leone, L ...

, both in Sydney and in Christchurch. He had acted as a preacher and supported the church financially. Soon after his arrival in Christchurch, he had Samuel Farr design him a house on Papanui Road. He married Elizabeth (née Peacock), the oldest sister of the

Hon Hon or HON may refer to: People * Han (surname) (Chinese: 韩/韓), also romanized Hon * Louis Hon (1924–2008), French footballer * Priscilla Hon (born 1998), Australian tennis player Other uses * Hon (Baltimore), a cultural stereotype of ...

John Thomas Peacock John Thomas Peacock MLC JP (1827 – 20 October 1905) was a New Zealand businessman, philanthropist and politician. He came to Canterbury in 1844, several years before organised settlement started. Early life Peacock was born in 1827 in the H ...

(1827–1905). Peacock's mother Maria (1804/05–1884) shares a grave at

Barbadoes Street Cemetery The Barbadoes Street Cemetery is the oldest cemetery in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was set up with three discrete areas for different denominations. Description The cemetery was included in the original survey of Christchurch that was carrie ...

with many family members, including two Garrick children who died young: Kate (d. 27 March 1865 aged nine months) and Alfred Sydney (d. 17 March 1877 aged 6.5 years). Garrick died on 7 June 1890 of bronchitis. He was survived by his wife Elizabeth, five sons, and two daughters. Together with the two children who died early, they thus had (at least) nine children. He was buried at the St Paul's Anglican Church Cemetery.see photo of gravestone

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Garrick, Francis James 1833 births 1890 deaths Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives 19th-century New Zealand lawyers Politicians from Sydney Members of the Canterbury Provincial Council People educated at Sydney Grammar School New Zealand MPs for Christchurch electorates Burials at St Paul's Cemetery, Christchurch Members of Canterbury provincial executive councils Unsuccessful candidates in the 1887 New Zealand general election 19th-century New Zealand politicians