Thomas William Mark Ashby (23 August 1895 – 26 September 1957) was a New Zealand local body administrator and

Mayor of Auckland City The Mayor of Auckland City was the directly elected head of the Auckland City Council, the municipal government of Auckland City, New Zealand. The office existed from 1871 to 2010, when the Auckland City Council and mayoralty was abolished an ...

from 1956 to 1957.

Biography

Early life and carerr

Ashby was born 23 August 1895 in Auckland, Ashby was educated at Te Aroha High School, and later at both

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

and

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

universities. In 1911 he entered the public service, being appointed to the head office staff of the

Department of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

. After completing his university studies and qualified as a lawyer. He served in the Army in the

First World War 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 ...

, enlisting in the New Zealand Field Artillery in 1916 and was sent overseas as part of the 16th reinforcements. Serving in both

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 ...

and

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, he was wounded in a leg and, in 1919 was invalided back to New Zealand. In 1920, he joined the Census and Statistics Office and was appointed as the compiler in charge of its local government and finance section. In March 1921 he married Margaret Fox in

Petone Petone (Māori: ''Pito-one''), a large suburb of Lower Hutt, Wellington, stands at the southern end of the Hutt Valley, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour. The Māori name means "end of the sand beach". Europeans first settled in Pe ...

. In 1923, he joined the

Auckland City Council Auckland City Council was the local government authority for Auckland City, New Zealand, from 1871 to 1 November 2010, when it and Auckland's six other city and district councils were amalgamated to form the Auckland Council. It was an elected b ...

as its law and committee clerk. In 1936 he was promoted to assistant

Town Clerk A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post. In the UK, a To ...

in 1936, and the next year he was made city treasurer. In 1944 Ashby became Auckland's Town Clerk (providing administration and advice to Auckland City Council). He was a fellow of the New Zealand Society of Accountants, an associate member of the Australian Institute of Secretaries, a fellow of the Incorporated Institute of Secretaries, a member of the London Institute of Public Administration and the Standards Institute. He was also secretary of the committee for 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 ...

held at Auckland. In the 1951 King's Birthday Honours, Ashby was appointed an

Officer 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 ...

for municipal services. In 1953, he was awarded the

Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du couronnement de la Reine Élizabeth II) is a commemorative medal instituted to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953. Award This medal was awarded a ...

Political career

Having retired as Town Clerk in 1955, he remained engaged in the city's affairs, and in November 1956 successfully challenged the sitting mayor

John Luxford John Hector Luxford (28 May 1890 – 8 April 1971) was a New Zealand lawyer and Mayor of Auckland City from 1953 to 1956. Biography Born in Palmerston North, Luxford qualified as a solicitor in 1913 and then during the First World War joined t ...

, for the role. Luxford had claimed wasteful expenditure inside the council in his 1953 campaign, but (though initiating a number of reforms) had not been successful in chairing the council. On 16 May 1957 both he and his wife were injured in a car accident while on his way to welcome delegates attending a conference.

Death

Ashby died suddenly on 23 September 1957, near the end of his first year in office, aged 62 years, He collapsed and died suddenly at his home just after he had finished his dinner and was preparing to leave for the

Auckland Town Hall Auckland Town Hall is an Edwardian building on Queen Street in the Auckland CBD, New Zealand, known both for its original and ongoing use for administrative functions (such as Council meetings and hearings), as well as its famed Great Hall and ...

concert chamber to hold a medal presentation to nurses. Complaining of a headache, he collapsed minutes later. A doctor was called, but Ashby had died instantly. He was survived by his wife and five sons. He was replaced as mayor by

Keith Buttle Keith Nicholson Buttle (23 November 1900 – 15 December 1973) was a New Zealand businessman and politician. He served as mayor of Auckland City from 1957 to 1959. Biography Born 23 November 1900 in Auckland, Buttle attended Auckland Grammar S ...

in a by-election in November 1957.

References

*''Who’s Who in New Zealand'', 6th edition 1956, edited by Frank A Simpson (1956, Reed, Wellington) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashby, Thomas 1895 births 1957 deaths Mayors of Auckland 20th-century New Zealand lawyers New Zealand military personnel of World War I University of Auckland alumni Victoria University of Wellington alumni New Zealand Officers of the Order of the British Empire Independent politicians in New Zealand