Sir Henry Francis Wigram (18 January 1857 – 6 May 1934) was a New Zealand businessman, politician and aviation promoter. He is best known for his role in developing a

public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...

system in

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 / ...

and as a key player in the establishment of the

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

Early life and business

The son of Henry Knox Wigram, a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

, and a grandson of Octavius Wigram (1794–1878), Governor of the

Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation The Royal Exchange Assurance, founded in 1720, was a British insurance company. It took its name from the location of its offices at the Royal Exchange, London. Origins The Royal Exchange Assurance emerged from a joint stock insurance enterpr ...

, Wigram was born 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 ...

and was educated at

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

. His mother was Mary Anne Pomeroy, a daughter of the 5th Viscount Harberton (1790–1862). After working for the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...

and a shipping company, ill-health led him to emigrate to New Zealand, where he arrived in 1883. He returned to England briefly in 1885 in order to marry Agnes Vernon Sullivan. They had no children, and Agnes survived Henry by 23 years, dying in 1957. Together with his brother, William Arthur Wigram, Henry bought a malthouse and brickworks business in the Heathcote Valley between Christchurch and Lyttelton. They soon took over two other brickworks and pipeworks and founded a nail factory and seed company. His prominence in business led to Wigram being invited to chair the committee for the Canterbury Jubilee celebration in 1900, and he remained heavily involved in public affairs for the next thirty years.

Mayor of Christchurch

In 1902, Wigram was nominated for the

mayoralty In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

and was elected unopposed on 23 April, and re-elected unopposed a year later on 21 April 1903. He worked on improving the tramway system, which until that time used horse-drawn trams with three independent operators. The Christchurch Tramway Board was formed in 1903, with Wigram as deputy-chairman. In order to facilitate planning and the development of infrastructure, Wigram campaigned for a reduction in the eleven separate boroughs that made up Greater Christchurch, and was successful in getting Linwood, St Albans and Sydenham to amalgamate with the city. The Tramway Board commenced electric tram services in 1905.

Legislative Council

On 22 June 1903, Wigram was appointed to the Legislative Council by the

Liberal Government Liberal government may refer to: Australia In Australian politics, a Liberal government may refer to the following governments administered by the Liberal Party of Australia: * Menzies Government (1949–66), several Australian ministries under S ...

. He retired from his business interests but retained a number of company directorships, including that of 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 ...

'' newspaper. He resigned from the Legislative Council on 12 October 1920.

Aviation

Wigram became aware of the potential of aviation during a visit to England in 1908. Unsuccessful at persuading the New Zealand Government to become involved in aviation, he formed a private flying school in Christchurch in 1915. This was the second in the country, the Walsh brothers having opened the

New Zealand Flying School The New Zealand Flying School was formed in 1915, by the Walsh Brothers, Leo and Vivian, to train pilots for the Royal Flying Corps. The school flew a fleet of home-built and imported flying boats from Mission Bay on Auckland's Waitemata Harbo ...

at Auckland a year earlier. Wigram purchased land at

Sockburn Sockburn is a village and former civil parish to the south of Darlington in County Durham, England. It is situated at the apex of a meander of the River Tees, known locally as the Sockburn Peninsula. Today, all that remains of the village is ...

for his Canterbury Aviation Company (NZ) and at his own expense purchased three Caudron biplanes from Britain. The aim of the school was to train pilots for the war, to promote aviation in local defence and to pioneer commercial aviation. By 1919, the school had built 10 aircraft and trained 182 pilots. Wigram offered the school to the government for defence purposes, but it took another four years and £10,000 donation before the government accepted. The airfield at Sockburn was renamed

Wigram Wigram is a suburb in the southwest of Christchurch, New Zealand. The suburb lies close to the industrial estates of Sockburn and the satellite retail and residential zone of Hornby, and has undergone significant growth in recent years due to h ...

in honour of its founder. Wigram was also one of the founders of the Canterbury Aero Club and was the first patron of the New Zealand Aero Club in 1930. He was appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

in the 1926 New Year Honours, in recognition of his public services. In 1949, his widow Agnes presented the

Lady Wigram Trophy The Lady Wigram Trophy is a New Zealand motorsport race trophy formerly awarded to the winner of the Wigram Airfield race. It made up part of the Tasman Series and classes like Formula Holden, Formula 5000, Formula Pacific and Formula Three. The ...

, and an annual motor race was established at the Wigram airbase.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wigram, Henry 1857 births 1934 deaths Royal New Zealand Air Force New Zealand businesspeople Members of the New Zealand Legislative Council New Zealand aviators People educated at Harrow School Bankers from London English emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand Knights Bachelor Mayors of Christchurch New Zealand Liberal Party MLCs Burials at St Peter's Church Cemetery, Upper Riccarton