Agnes Louisa Weston (née Steuart, 18 January 1879 – 8 August 1972) from Wellington was appointed a member of the

New Zealand Legislative Council The New Zealand Legislative Council was the upper house of the General Assembly of New Zealand between 1853 and 1951. An earlier arrangement of legislative councils for the colony and provinces existed from 1841 when New Zealand became a col ...

on 22 June 1950. Steuart was born on 18 January 1879 at Manutahi, the daughter of Frederick Jeffray Steuart and Alice Mary (). Her father was mayor of Stratford in 1900 and 1901. On 17 Jun 1905, Steuart married

Claude Weston Claude Horace Weston (28 December 1879 – 10 November 1946) was a New Zealand lawyer, a lieutenant-colonel in World War I, and effectively the first president of the National Party (1936–1940). Early life Weston was born in Hokitika in 18 ...

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. Her husband would later effectively be the first president of the National Party (1936–1940). Claude Weston participated in World War I and was wounded in 1916 when he had risen to the rank of major. In World War II, Agnes Louisa Weston was a member of the women's section of the Returned Servicemen's Association (RSA) and was elected chairperson of the committee that encouraged social contact between women related to men in active service. They initially lived in New Plymouth, where her husband had his law practice, but moved to

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 ...

in 1931. This was followed by a move to

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

in 1933. The Westons had one daughter and one son. Their daughter, a medical doctor, would marry

Tom Shand Thomas Philip Shand (16 April 1911 – 11 December 1969) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party. Biography Early life and career Shand was born in 1911 in Ngapara, North Otago. His parents were Gilbert Esme Tressillian Shand and Con ...

who later was a member of parliament. In the , Claude Weston was a candidate for the National Party in the electorate. He died suddenly on 10 November 1946 in Wellington, and she replaced him as a candidate. The election was won by Charles Chapman of the Labour Party. She was one of three female members of the

suicide squad The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #25 (September 1959) and the second and modern version, cre ...

, which was appointed by the

First National Government The Anniversary of the First National Government ( es, Primer gobierno patrio) is a public holiday of Argentina, commemorating the May Revolution and the creation of the Primera Junta on May 25, 1810, which is considered the first patriotic govern ...

in 1950 to vote for its abolition. The other women appointed in 1950 were Cora Louisa Burrell and Ethel Gould. Only two other women, Mary Anderson and Mary Dreaver, had ever been appointed to the Council (in 1946). Weston was the president of the Women's Auxiliary RSA in 1946. Weston died in Wellington on 8 August 1972, aged 93.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weston, Agnes 1879 births 1972 deaths Unsuccessful candidates in the 1946 New Zealand general election Members of the New Zealand Legislative Council New Zealand National Party MLCs Women members of the New Zealand Legislative Council People from Wellington City People from New Plymouth Agnes

See also

References