John Edward McManus (14 February 1875 – 1950), often known as "Big John" due to his large stature, was a New Zealand politician, trade unionist and farmer.

Early life

Born in Caven,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1875, McManus immigrated to

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 ...

and was the organizer of the Australian Workers' Union from 1900 to 1905. He then shifted to New Zealand in 1906, joining the

New Zealand Socialist Party The New Zealand Socialist Party was founded in 1901, promoting the works of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. The group, despite being relatively moderate when compared with many other socialists, met with little tangible success, but it neverthe ...

and becoming the Secretary of the

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 ...

General Labourers Union. By trade he was a tunneller, working for the Public Works Department in Kahnika. McManus changed from the Socialist Party to join the more moderate Labour Party at the behest of his good friend Tom Paul who was a leading figure in the party.

Political activity

During the factional bickering amongst the early Labour movement in New Zealand, McManus sided with Paul and

David McLaren David McLaren may refer to: * David McLaren (colonial manager) (1785–1850), colonial manager (CEO) of the colony of South Australia (1837–1841) * David McLaren (politician) David McLaren (1872 – 3 November 1939) was a Mayor of Wellington ...

. McManus was the Labour Party candidate for in , narrowly losing to

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

incumbent

Thomas Sidey Sir Thomas Kay Sidey (27 May 1863 – 20 May 1933) was a New Zealand politician from the Otago region, remembered for his successful advocacy of daylight saving time. Early life Sidey was born on 27 May 1863, to John and Johan Murray Sidey, i ...

in a two-horse race. Had an Independent Liberal or Reform Party candidate also contested and forced a second ballot, McManus may well have been elected to Parliament. Despite, like Paul, thinking the

Waihi miners' strike The Waihi miners' strike was a major strike action in 1912 by gold miners in the New Zealand town of Waihi. It is widely regarded as the most significant industrial action in the history of New Zealand's labour movement. It resulted in one strike ...

was futile, McManus was one of the United Labour Party members who favoured the establishment of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

(SDP) in 1913. The SDP was strongly opposed by Paul, though the pair remained on speaking terms with one another. In 1915, McManus enlisted to serve in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He saw action in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

as a sapper with the New Zealand Engineers Tunnelling Company. McManus was the Labour Party's candidate for in and for Dunedin South again in . He was unsuccessful on both occasions. However, he was later elected as a

Dunedin City Council The Dunedin City Council ( mi, Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Ōtepoti) is the local government authority for Dunedin in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Dunedin. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Dunedin is Jules ...

lor in 1923 before suffering a stroke in 1926. He then became a farmer from 1926 to 1938. He attempted a political comeback in

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

standing for the Dunedin City Council again, but was unsuccessful. MacManus died 1950.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McManus, John 1875 births 1950 deaths New Zealand military personnel of World War I New Zealand trade unionists New Zealand farmers New Zealand people of Irish descent New Zealand Labour Party politicians Dunedin City Councillors Unsuccessful candidates in the 1911 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 1922 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 1925 New Zealand general election