Sir James George Barnes (24 September 1908 – 6 June 1995) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party.

Early life and family

Barnes was born in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

on 24 September 1908, and was educated at Andersons Bay School, and then

King Edward Technical College King Edward Technical College is a former school and technical college in Dunedin, New Zealand. The college was established in 1889 as the Dunedin Technical School when the Caledonian Society instigated night education classes. Through the 19 ...

from 1919 to 1921. In 1938, he married Elsie Mabel Clark, and the couple went on to have one child.

Military service

Barnes joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1940, and trained in Canada. He qualified as a

navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's primar ...

and bomb aimer, and joined the No. 75 (NZ) Squadron. In 1942, Barnes was shot down over France, and spent three years in German prisoner-of-war camps. He put pressure on German resources helping fellow prisoners escape, and received various punishments, including a sentencing to be shot, though later the camp brutality eased, and Barnes was not executed. In 1945, Barnes was appointed a Member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(Military Division), for distinguished service while a prisoner-of-war.

Athletics career

Competitor

Barnes was a noted athlete at the national level. He won the New Zealand men's senior cross-country title in 1932, and the national men's one mile championship in 1933, recording a time of 4:24.4 in the latter event.

Official

Later, Barnes was active as an official and leader of Otago Athletics, and was particularly supportive of women's athletics. His name has become enshrined in the Otago harrier programme in the J.G. Barnes cross-country race, first held in the early 1950s in the Chisholm Park area of Dunedin. Barnes was the New Zealand athletics team manager at the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

, and assistant manager for the New Zealand team at the 1956 Summer Olympics in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. He served as president of the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association, and was a life member of the Otago Amateur Athletic Association.

Political career

A member of the National Party, Barnes represented the St Kilda electorate from

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

, when he defeated Fred Jones until

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...

, and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

, when he was twice defeated by

Bill Fraser William Simpson Fraser (5 June 1908 – 9 September 1987) was a Scottish actor who appeared on stage, screen and television for many years. In 1986 he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance for his stage role in the play '' ...

. He served as National's junior whip during the Holland administration. From 1968 to 1977, Barnes served as

mayor of Dunedin The Mayor of Dunedin is the head of the local government, the city council of Dunedin, New Zealand. The Mayor's role is "to provide leadership to the other elected members of the territorial authority, be a leader in the community and perform c ...

. He had been on the Dunedin City Council from 1947, and deputy mayor from 1959. In the 1976 Queen's Birthday Honours, Barnes 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 th ...

, in recognition of his service as mayor of Dunedin.

Other activities

Barnes served as president of both the New Zealand Trotting Conference and the Australasian Trotting Council, and he was a life member of the Forbury Park Trotting Club in Dunedin. He was an executive member of the Order of St John, and in 1980 he was appointed a

Commander of the Order of St John The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...

. For 14 years, Barnes served as president of the Shipwreck Relief Society of New Zealand, and he was a life member of the Caledonian Society of New Zealand. He was a trustee of the Otago Savings Bank for 25 years, including four terms as president, and served on the

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate ...

Council for 10 years. In 1953, Barnes was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal, and in 1977 he received the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal. In 1990, he was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.

Death and legacy

Barnes died in Dunedin on 6 June 1995. His wife, Elsie, Lady Barnes, died in 2015, aged 100 years. The Sir James Barnes Memorial Lookout is located between

Forbury Park Forbury Park Raceway was a horseracing venue in the New Zealand city of Dunedin until its closure in 2021. It was located close to the Pacific Ocean coast in the suburb of Saint Kilda. The raceway was initially developed in 1870 on an area of ...

and the dunes of

Saint Kilda Beach In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...

(at ), and commands a view across the southern part of Dunedin.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barnes, James George 1908 births 1995 deaths New Zealand National Party MPs Mayors of Dunedin Deputy mayors of places in New Zealand New Zealand military personnel of World War II World War II prisoners of war held by Germany New Zealand prisoners of war in World War II New Zealand MPs for Dunedin electorates New Zealand Knights Bachelor New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Unsuccessful candidates in the 1957 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 1960 New Zealand general election New Zealand politicians awarded knighthoods New Zealand male middle-distance runners New Zealand sports executives and administrators Commanders of the Order of St John People educated at King Edward Technical College