Waimea was a parliamentary

electorate Electorate may refer to: * The people who are eligible to vote in an election, especially their number e.g. the term ''size of (the) electorate'' * The dominion of a Prince-elector in the Holy Roman Empire until 1806 * An electoral district An ...

in the

Nelson Province Nelson Province was constituted in 1853 under the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, and originally covered the entire upper South Island, including all of present-day Buller, Kaikoura, Marlborough, and Tasman districts, along with Nelson Ci ...

of New Zealand, from 1853 to 1887. Initially represented by two members, it was a single-member electorate from 1861.

Geographic coverage

Waimea was located in the northern part of the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

, facing the

Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere Tasman Bay (; officially Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere), originally known in English as Blind Bay, is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along ...

. It is the area around the town (and since 1874 city) of

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

, but excluded Nelson itself. It includes

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

Brightwater Brightwater (Māori language, Māori: ''Wairoa'') is a town southwest of Nelson, New Zealand, Nelson in Tasman Region, Tasman district in the South Island of New Zealand. It stands on the banks of the Wairoa River, Tasman, Wairoa River. Bright ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

and smaller settlements north of Nelson. It was named after the Waimea River.

History

Waimea was represented by eleven

Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

. Four members were nominated for the inaugural :

David Monro Sir David Monro (27 March 1813 – 15 February 1877) was a New Zealand politician. He served as Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 1861 to 1870. Early life Monro was born in Edinburgh. His father was Alexander Monro, ...

, William Cautley, Charles Elliott, and John Saxton. Whilst Elliott and Saxton subsequently withdrew, Monro and Cautley wanted to go ahead with the poll held on 16 August, as one had been demanded on behalf of the other candidates. There was confusion at the Waimea South polling booth and votes were cast for all four candidates there. William Travers, MP for

, and Cautley, MP for Waimea, both resigned on 26 May 1854 – the third day that the new Parliament was sitting. Travers subsequently contested the seat that Cautley had vacated, being elected in the 21 June 1854 Waimea by-election. Nomination day for the second Parliament in the Waimea electorate was Monday, 5 November 1855. Charles Elliott and Travers were the only candidates and were thus declared elected.

Alfred Saunders Alfred Saunders (12 June 1820 – 28 October 1905) was a 19th-century New Zealand politician. Early life Saunders was born in 1820 in Market Lavington, the youngest son of Mary and Amram Saunders. He was educated in Market Lavington and at a B ...

was elected on 1 February 1861 and resigned on 31 October 1864. He was succeeded by

John George Miles John George Miles (17 Jan 1838 – 20 December 1884) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament in Nelson, New Zealand. Miles was born in 1838 in Finsbury, London, the son of John Hamilton Miles and Mary Smith. He arrived in Nelson, New Zealan ...

, who was elected in the 1864 by-election, which was held on 20 November.

Arthur Robert Oliver Arthur Robert Oliver (born 1829/30) was a New Zealand politician and a 19th-century Member of Parliament from Nelson, New Zealand. He was born in London, the son of Thomas Oliver. He was admitted to Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College ...

was elected on 23 February 1866 and resigned on 9 January 1867. He was succeeded by

Edward Baigent Edward Baigent (22 June 1813 – 9 November 1892) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament from Nelson, New Zealand. He was one of the most successful saw-millers of the region, and his company existed for well over 100 years. Family Edward Baige ...

, who was elected in the 1867 by-election, which was held on 28 June.

Joseph Shephard Joseph Shephard (1822 – 25 October 1898) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament from Nelson, New Zealand. Biography Shephard arrived in Nelson in 1861 on the ''Donna Lita''. For several years, he was an editor for the Nelson newspaper ...

was elected on 13 February 1871, and re-elected on 8 December 1979, 9 December 1881 and 22 July 1884. He resigned on 15 April 1885 when he was appointed to the Legislative Council. The resulting

1885 by-election Events January–March * January 3– 4 – Sino-French War – Battle of Núi Bop: French troops under General Oscar de Négrier defeat a numerically superior Qing Chinese force, in northern Vietnam. * January 4 &nda ...

, which was held on 3 June, was contested by six candidates: John Kerr (253 votes), W. N. Franklyn (250 votes), William White (94 votes), Christian Dencker (91 votes), W. Wastney (59 votes) and

Jesse Piper Jesse Piper (1836 – 21 April 1920) was a Nelson, New Zealand city councillor and mayor. Early life Piper was born in 1836 at Hastings, Sussex, England. He went to sea as a youth. On the outbreak of the Crimean War joined the storeship and sa ...

(32 votes). Kerr was thus elected.

Members of Parliament

Key

multi-member electorate

Single-member electorate

Election results

1885 by-election

1867 by-election

1864 by-election

1854 by-election

1853 election

Notes

References

* * * {{Historic electorates of New Zealand , state=collapsed Historical electorates of New Zealand Politics of the Marlborough Region 1853 establishments in New Zealand 1887 disestablishments in New Zealand Politics of the Nelson Region