Patrick Dignan (1814 – 20 October 1894) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament in

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 ...

, New Zealand. He was born in

Loughrea Loughrea ( ; ) is a town in County Galway, Ireland. The town lies to the north of a range of wooded hills, the Slieve Aughty Mountains, and the lake from which it takes its name. The town's cathedral, St Brendan's, dominates the town's skyline ...

, County Galway, Ireland. He emigrated to

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

in 1839 and came to Auckland on the ''Sophia Pate'' in 1841. He was a leading Catholic layman in Auckland and was a member of the board of governors of St Peter's School.

Politics

Dignan was a member of the

Auckland Provincial Council The Auckland Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Area The province covered roughly half of the North Island of New Zealand. It was the largest of the six initial provinces, both ...

for most of the years of its existence. At the inaugural

1853 New Zealand provincial elections The 1853 New Zealand provincial elections were the first elections in New Zealand to elect members and superintendents to the newly created Provinces of New Zealand. The elections were held between July and September 1853, at the same time as th ...

, he was elected for the Northern Division and he represented it until 1857. From 1857 to 1861, he represented the City of Auckland electorate on the provincial council. From 1865 until the end of provincial government in October 1876, he was a member of the Auckland West electorate. Dignan represented the

Auckland West The former New Zealand parliamentary New Zealand electorates, electorate on the western inner city of Auckland, was known as City of Auckland West from 1861 to 1890, and then Auckland West from 1905 to 1946. Population centres From 1861 to 18 ...

electorate in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

from 1867 to 1870 when he was defeated, and from 1875 to 1879 when he resigned. He was appointed a member of the Legislative Council in 1879, until he died in 1894. His eldest son,

Peter Dignan Peter Fraser Dignan (6 March 1955 – 20 June 2013) was a New Zealand rower. Biography Dignan was born in Gibraltar in 1955, to a former Berlin airlift pilot. His father later entered the diplomatic corps and, as a result, Dignan spent a ...

, was

Mayor of Auckland The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amal ...

in 1897 and 1898.

References

1814 births 1894 deaths New Zealand Roman Catholics Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Members of the New Zealand Legislative Council Unsuccessful candidates in the 1871 New Zealand general election New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates People from Loughrea Irish emigrants to New Zealand (before 1923) Members of the Auckland Provincial Council St Peter's College, Auckland faculty {{NewZealand-politician-stub