John Stallworthy (1854 – 10 November 1923) was a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

Member of Parliament in New Zealand. He was a teacher, newspaper editor, and sawmiller's trade union leader. He was born in Samoa in 1854; his father George was a member of the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational m ...

. He received his education at

Blackheath Proprietary School The Blackheath Proprietary School was an educational establishment founded in 1830. In the 19th century, it had a profound influence on the game of football, in both Association and Rugby codes. In 1863, the school became one of the founders of T ...

in London. He came to New Zealand in 1872 in the ship ''City of Auckland''. His first job was at a sawmill in

Whangaroa Whangaroa is a settlement on Whangaroa Harbour in the Far North District of New Zealand. It is 8 km north-west of Kaeo and 35 km north-west of Kerikeri. The harbour is almost landlocked and is popular both as a fishing spot in its o ...

. He was employed by the Auckland Education Board from 1878, and worked at a school in Newmarket. In 1880, he was placed at Aratapu School in Hobson County, Northland. Aratapu is today a small settlement on the west bank of the Wairoa River, a short distance downstream from

Dargaville Dargaville ( mi, Takiwira) is a town located in the North Island of New Zealand. It is situated on the bank of the Northern Wairoa River in the Kaipara District of the Northland region. The town is located 55 kilometres southwest of Whangāre ...

, but back then economically as important as Dargaville if not ahead. He retired from teaching in 1890 to concentrate on his newspaper. He was also postmaster at Aratapu. Stallworthy dominated the newspaper marked in the Hobson County area for 30 years. He started the ''Aratapu Gazette'' in 1884, and took over the ''Kopuru Bell'' in 1890 and changed its name to ''Wairoa Bell'', and later purchased the ''Northern Advertiser'' and combined the papers to become the ''Wairoa Bell and Northern Advertiser''. For many years, he was a preacher for the Methodist Church, and he was prominent with temperance organisations. He won the electorate in the , and held it to , when he was defeated by the then Independent Liberal (later

Reform Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement ...

) candidate

Gordon Coates Joseph Gordon Coates (3 February 1878 – 27 May 1943) served as the 21st prime minister of New Zealand from 1925 to 1928. He was the third successive Reform prime minister since 1912. Born in rural Northland, Coates grew up on a cattle run a ...

. Shortly after leaving parliament, he became blind, but this did not stop his activities, and he learned to use a typewriter for correspondence. At the time of his death, his was chairman of the Kaipara branch of the Farmers' Union, and chairman of the Kaipara Hospital Board. Stallworthy died on 10 November 1923 at

Te Kōpuru Te Kōpuru is the largest community on the Pouto Peninsula in Northland, New Zealand. The Wairoa River separates the peninsula at this point from the main North Auckland Peninsula to the east. Dargaville is to the north. History and culture ...

. He was survived by his wife, four sons, and four daughters. His eldest son, Arthur Stallworthy, represented the electorate from to 1935.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Stallworthy, John 1854 births 1923 deaths New Zealand Liberal Party MPs Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates New Zealand businesspeople New Zealand trade unionists Unsuccessful candidates in the 1902 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 1911 New Zealand general election Samoan emigrants to New Zealand