Sir Woolf Fisher (20 May 1912 – 12 January 1975) was a New Zealand businessman and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

who along with Maurice Paykel co-founded Fisher & Paykel, a major appliance manufacturing company, and the Ra Ora Stud, an important Thoroughbred

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

breeding operation.

Biography

Born in Wellington, his family moved to Auckland where he studied at

Mount Albert Grammar School Mount Albert Grammar School, commonly known as MAGS, is a co-educational state secondary school in Mount Albert in Auckland, New Zealand. It teaches students in year levels 9 to 13. , Mount Albert Grammar School is the second largest school in ...

. Woolf is the oldest brother of renowned fashion entrepreneur and philanthropist,

Gus Fisher August Harris Fisher (October 21, 1885 – April 8, 1972) was a Major League Baseball catcher who played in and with the Cleveland Naps and the New York Highlanders. He batted left and threw right-handed. Fisher had a .254 career batting av ...

. A salesman turned businessman, Fisher was involved in a number of successful New Zealand enterprises. He served as the first chairman of New Zealand Steel. In 1960, he established the Woolf Fisher Trust to provide funding that maintained the salaries of post-primary schoolteachers and principals while sending them overseas to further their education. Fisher also supported the Outward Bound Trust of New Zealand and in 1961 became its first president. In the

1964 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1964 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1964 to celebrat ...

, Fisher was appointed a Knight Bachelor for public services, particularly in connection with the development of industry. He died in 1975 while at his bach on the lake at

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

. In 1994, Fisher was an inaugural inductee into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame.

Thoroughbred racing

polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

enthusiast who was responsible for the revival of the

Auckland Polo Club The Auckland Polo Club is a historic polo club in Auckland, New Zealand. Founded in 1888, it hosts many national and international tournaments, including the annual BMW Polo Open. Location It is located in Clevedon, a suburb of Auckland, New Zea ...

in 1955, Fisher became a major figure in the sport of Thoroughbred racing. In 1950 he established Ra Ora Stud at Mount Wellington whose success led to new facilities being constructed in 1962 on 71.6 hectares at East Tamaki, just out of Auckland. The breeding farm stood important stallions such as

Sovereign Edition (Ire) ''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'. The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...

Soviet Star Soviet Star (20 April 1984 – 7 October 2014) was an American-bred French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was bred in Kentucky, sold as a yearling for $310,000 and sent to race in Europe where he proved to be an outstanding sprinter ...

(USA),

Nassipour Nassipour (1980 – 7 May 1994) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and a Leading sire in Australia. He was bred in Kentucky by the Aga Khan. His sire, Blushing Groom, was the 1977 European Champion Three-Year-old and the 1989 Leading sire ...

(USA),

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, and Marju among others. Ra Ora Stud continued in operation after Fisher's death in 1975. Run by a Board of Trustees for his estate, it closed in 2001 and its bloodstock sold at auction. Fisher served on the

Board of Directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

of the Auckland Racing Club for 17 years, with two years as its president.

References

External links

* Mackie, William. ''A Noble Breed: Auckland Racing Club 1874–1974'', pages 49, 249, 299 (1974) (AWMM NZ Coll, SF 335).
Biography of Woolf Fisher at the Auckland MuseumSir Woolf Fisher at the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fisher, Woolf 1912 births 1975 deaths 20th-century New Zealand businesspeople New Zealand racehorse owners and breeders New Zealand philanthropists New Zealand Jews People educated at Mount Albert Grammar School People from Wellington City New Zealand Knights Bachelor Businesspeople awarded knighthoods 20th-century philanthropists New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame inductees