Logan Campbell (politician)
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Sir John Logan Campbell (3 November 1817 – 22 June 1912) was a prominent Scottish-born New Zealand
public figure A public figure is a person who has achieved notoriety, prominence or fame within a society, whether through achievement, luck, action, or in some cases through no purposeful action of their own, In the context of defamation actions (libel and ...
. He was described by his contemporaries as "the father of
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 ...
".


Early life

John Logan Campbell was born in
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, Scotland, on 3 November 1817, a son of the Edinburgh surgeon John Campbell and his wife Catherine and grandson of the 3rd baronet of Aberuchill and Kilbryde and Kilbryde castle near
Dunblane Dunblane (, gd, Dùn Bhlàthain) is a small town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links ...
, Perthshire. He had four sisters but his two elder brothers had died by the time he reached the age of two, and he became the only surviving son. Campbell graduated in medicine from the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
in 1839 and later that year sailed for Australia,
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, as a
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on the emigrant ship ''PALMYRA''.


Migration to New Zealand

Confronted with drought and constrained prospects at the time Campbell departed Australia for New Zealand in 1840 on the Lady Liford, arriving at Port Nicolson, and eventually travelling to Waiou (now called
Whanganui Island Whanganui Island is the largest of a small group of islands at the entrance to Coromandel, New Zealand, Coromandel harbour in the Hauraki Gulf, off the coast of New Zealand's North Island. The island, which is privately owned, is in area. Much ...
) on the Coromandel. Campbell and William Brown (a Scottish
lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
) who had previously met in Adelaide, Australia, formed a business partnership after purchasing
Motukorea Motukorea or Browns Island is a small New Zealand island, in the Hauraki Gulf north of Musick Point, one of the best preserved volcanoes in the Auckland volcanic field. The age of eruption is about 25,000 years ago, when the Tāmaki Estuary and ...
from Te Kanini of
Ngāti Tamaterā Ngāti Tamaterā is a Māori '' iwi'' (tribe) of the Hauraki region of New Zealand, descended from Tamaterā, the second son of Marutūāhu. It is a major tribe within the Marutūāhu confederation and its leaders have been prominent in Hauraki ...
and the sub-chiefs Katikati and Ngatai with the aim of becoming merchant traders, in the rumored new capital of New Zealand Aotearoa,
Tāmaki Makaurau Tāmaki Makaurau is a New Zealand parliamentary Māori electorate returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. It was first formed for the . The electorate covers the Auckland area and was first held by Labour ...
soon to be named
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 ...
by Captain William Hobson following a gift of land and negotiations with
Ngati Whatua ''Ngati'' is a 1987 New Zealand feature film directed by Barry Barclay, written by Tama Poata and produced by John O'Shea. Production ''Ngati'' is of historical and cultural significance in New Zealand as it is the first feature film written an ...
. They decided to abandon 'quill-driving and pill-making' and become traders in the new capital, Auckland. On 21 December 1840 they began operations as Auckland's first merchant firm, Brown and Campbell, when Campbell pitched his tent on the edge of the small bay, at the foot of present day Queen Street. Campbell and Brown built Acacia Cottage in 1841, behind their warehouse and began their business in the infant city of Auckland. Campbell quickly became prominent in Auckland, both in business circles and in public life. He was a director of the
Bank of New Zealand Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) is one of New Zealand's Big Four (banking), big four banks and has been operating in the country since the first office was opened in Auckland in October 1861 followed shortly after by the first branch in Dunedin in D ...
, the
New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company provided investments and loans for trade and commerce in New Zealand and Australia. Notable people * James Beard, the 1889 New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Building architect * John Logan Cam ...
, and the
New Zealand Insurance Company NZI or New Zealand Insurance is a major insurance company in New Zealand. NZI was formed in Auckland by 1859 as the New Zealand Insurance Company and is one of New Zealand's largest and longest-serving fire and general insurance brands. In a ...
.


Auckland Province

Campbell was elected to the
Auckland Provincial Council The Auckland Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Area The province covered roughly half of the North Island of New Zealand. It was the largest of the six initial provinces, both ...
on 20 March 1855, and he served until 15 September of that year. He was then
Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...
of Auckland Province from 25 November 1855 to 17 September 1856.


Member of Parliament

Campbell entered the
2nd New Zealand Parliament The 2nd New Zealand Parliament was a term of the New Zealand Parliament, Parliament of New Zealand. It opened on 15 April 1856, following New Zealand's 1855 New Zealand general election, 1855 election. It was dissolved on 5 November 1860 in prep ...
, representing the electorates of the
City of Auckland Auckland City was a territorial authority with city status covering the central isthmus of the urban area of Auckland, New Zealand. It was governed by the Auckland City Council from 1989 to 2010, and as a territory within the wider Auckland R ...
1855–1856 (resigned). He was elected unopposed on 4 August 1860 in the Suburbs of Auckland electorate, replacing Joseph Hargreaves. Campbell retired at the end of the 2nd Parliament in late 1860. He was a
minister without portfolio A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...
in the government of Edward Stafford between June and November 1856.


Middle years

Campbell was a successful businessman and had entered into a partnership with William Brown in 1840, beginning operations as Auckland's first merchant firm, Brown and Campbell. In May 1854, the ''Signet'' ship was purchased on behalf of Campbell in Geelong, Australia for the timber trade. By 1856 Campbell and Brown decided that their enterprises and properties, now worth £110,000, could be entrusted to a salaried manager, while they lived on the dividends as expatriates. Brown and his family left early in the year, but Campbell's departure was delayed. On 20 November 1856 he left the colony, he hoped for good. While travelling abroad, he married Emma Wilson on 25 February 1858 at
Meerut Meerut (, IAST: ''Meraṭh'') is a city in Meerut district of the western part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city lies northeast of the national capital New Delhi, within the National Capital Region and west of the state capital ...
, NWP India. She was a daughter of Sir John Cracroft Wilson, who later settled in Canterbury. They had four children: Cecily born in Auckland on 16 May 1861 died 20 November 1861 aged 6 months, Ida, born at Naples on 22 December 1859 and died in London 1880; and twins John Logan and Winifred born at Florence on 26 May 1864. John Logan died in infancy in Florence, Italy and is buried at in the English Cemetery at the Piazzale Donatello - Delgli Inglesi. 'And there lies buried in that little grave,' Campbell told his two daughters, 'the poor Papa's hopes that to him had been born a son who would be his pride and pleasure in his declining years and to whose care the name of his Firm would have been handed down to another generation. . . . And thus it is that our fondest hopes and dearest aspirations are ever and again doomed to a bitter disappointment'. With this bereavement, Campbell said, 'we felt ourselves completely unhinged', 'the brightness of that Florence home was gone'. Apart from an interlude during 1860 and 1861, when he was obliged to go to Auckland to reinvigorate the firm – now called Brown Campbell and Company – and to install a resident partner, the Campbells lived in various parts of Europe until 1871. On his return early in 1871, Campbell took over full control. Two years later he bought out Brown's partnership share for over £40,000. Becoming a part of the business community again, he became involved with the Bank of New Zealand, the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, the New Zealand Insurance Company, and related companies. Campbell had a marked philanthropic interest in the advancement of education. He donated a sum of £500 and a block of land on the corner of Pitt and Wellington Streets and a brick school building was built there to house St Peter's School (a predecessor of St Peter's College, Auckland). He founded Auckland's first school of art in 1878 and supported it for 11 years. He was a founder of
Auckland Grammar School 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 I ...
having become the third chairman of the school in 1879.. When depression overwhelmed Auckland in 1885 and the Stock Market collapsed in 1886, there began a desperate struggle for financial survival. Campbell sold several businesses and properties, concentrating his energies on Brown Campbell and Company, a brewery and liquor importer. Campbell retained his properties at One Tree Hill partly because he wanted to create a suitable residence for his family. He envisaged an Italianate mansion similar to James Williamson's at Hillsborough, surrounded by an elegant estate. He set about planting trees to create a suitable landscape garden. His wife Emma, however, had other ideas and the house, Killbryde, was eventually built in Parnell, a location much more handy to town. This property is now part of the
Parnell Rose Gardens Dove-Myer Robinson Park, more commonly known as the Parnell Rose Garden, is a park in Parnell, New Zealand, Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand. The park is named after Dove-Myer Robinson, the longest-serving mayor of Auckland, who served for 18 yea ...
and
Dove Myer Robinson Park Dove-Myer Robinson Park, more commonly known as the Parnell Rose Garden, is a park in Parnell, New Zealand, Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand. The park is named after Dove-Myer Robinson, the longest-serving mayor of Auckland, who served for 18 yea ...
. The house was demolished in 1924. In his later years, Campbell was concerned about the increasing suburban development of Auckland and decided to donate his remaining farmland at One Tree Hill to the city as a public amenity to be called Corinth Park – named after a part of Greece which Campbell had admired on his travels. Winifred the only surviving child of John and Emma Campbell married Herbert Cyril Orde Murray a lieutenant in the 1st Gloucestershire Regiment on 10 December 1889. The presentation of the park would probably have taken place after Campbell's death in the form of a bequest had not providence intervened in the form of the Royal Tour of 1901.


Cornwall Park

In early 1901, Campbell was approached to be
Mayor of Auckland The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amalga ...
for the royal visit by the
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and
Duchess of Cornwall Duchess of Cornwall is a courtesy title held by the wife of the eldest son and heir of the British monarch. The current title-holder is Catherine, wife of William, Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall. Duchesses of Cornwall Until her husband' ...
in June that year. Aged 83 and long been in retirement, Campbell agreed on the proviso that he would fulfill representative functions only and step down after the visit, with a deputy undertaken most of the mayoral tasks. In the April 1901 mayoral election, he received nearly 80% of the votes. During the royal visit, Logan Campbell donated Cornwall Park to the people of New Zealand and named it after the Duke and Duchess. Campbell resigned in July and the city councillors voted
Alfred Kidd Alfred Kidd (1851 – 24 August 1917) was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party. He was the 18th Mayor of Auckland. Early life Born at Hounslow, Middlesex, England, Alfred Kidd had arrived in New Zealand in January 1866 on the ship ''Ba ...
into the role; Kidd had acted in support of Campbell and taken on many of the mayoral tasks.


Later life

Campbell was made a
knight bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...
on 14 August 1902, after the honour had been announced in the
1902 Coronation Honours The 1902 Coronation Honours were announced on 26 June 1902, the date originally set for the coronation of King Edward VII. The coronation was postponed because the King had been taken ill two days before, but he ordered that the honours list shou ...
list published on 26 June 1902. He lived long enough to witness the erection of the bronze statue of him in Mayoral Robes at the Manukau Road entrance to Cornwall Park. He died on 22 June 1912, and is buried on the summit of Maungakiekie
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, adjacent to Cornwall Park. Auckland Grammar students formed part of the procession at Campbell’s funeral on 4 July 1912. He advised his closest advisors of his wish to erect a monument to demonstrate his love and regard for the Māori people and allocated funds for it in his will and Trust Deeds for the formation of his Residuary Estate to continue to distribute funds for charities for relief of poverty, advancement of education and support of the cultural and medical interests he supported in his life time. The Trustees of his estate sought permission from Iwi throughout the Auckland Provincial region for his burial on the tihi summit and later for the building of the obelisk, which commenced in the 1930s to be complete by 1940 as a bicentennial project supported by the Government of the day. As it was completed during World War Two, the official dedication was delayed as the Maori elders did not wish to formally dedicate it during a time of bloodshed in line with tikanga. Sir John Logan Campbell's grave is located in the middle of the flat platform which is part of a structure supporting the obelisk complex, built of local volcanic basalt, which serves as the forecourt to the monument. The epithet for Sir John Logan Campbell is taken from Christopher Wren's grave at
St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...
, London, the bronze plaque on the grave reads in Latin; ''Si monumentum requiris circumspice," - translating to ''If you would seek my monument, look around you.''


Sir John Logan Campbell Papers

The Sir John Logan Campbell Papers constitutes a record across almost all of the nineteenth century. John Logan Campbell’s personal papers and those of his business enterprises reflect both business and social history from the 1840s to 1910. The collection is fundamental to research into the earliest origins of Auckland’s European settlement and the development of the provincial economy. The papers record a range of activities, events and business across the Auckland Province, also include "Reminiscences" of his time in Europe, India, the Near East, Scotland. There is also a section containing papers of his wife Lady Emma Campbell and daughter Winifred. Campbell’s gift of land and income attest to his efforts to secure and transform his farm estate into a public park gifted to the people of New Zealand in 1901. The collection includes the Cornwall Park Trust Board developments and management of this major city asset. The Sir John Logan Campbell Papers MS-51 are held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum – Tāmaki Paenga Hira, and were added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Aotearoa New Zealand Register-Te Rēhita in 2016.


Related material

* Cornwall Park, Auckland, NZ.../ landesigned by Austin Strong, Landscape architect... all No. G9081.G46A8:O2 Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira

* Campbell and Ehrenfried Company Limited. Records. Auckland Libraries Ngā Pātaka Kōrero o Tāmaki Makaurau all No. NZMS 1423br>
* The papers of Winifred Humphreys daughter of John Logan and Emma Campbell, held at the National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa.


Notes


References

*Campbell, John Logan. (1881) ''Poenamo : sketches of the early days of New Zealand : romance and reality of antipodean life in the infancy of a new colony'' London ngland: Williams and Norgate, Early New Zealand Books: Poenamo ohn Logan Campbell, 1881

* * Stone, R.C.J (1973) – ''Makers of fortune: a colonial business community and its fall,'' uckland, N.Z. Auckland University Press, 1973. ISBN 0196477131 *Stone, R.C.J (1982) -''Young Logan Campbell'' uckland, N.Z. Auckland University Press : Oxford University Press. ISBN 0196480191 *Stone, R.C.J (1987) – ''The father and his gift: John Logan Campbell's later years''. ISBN 186940016X *Stone, R.C.J. (2007) – ''Logan Campbell's Auckland: tales from the early years''. Auckland University Press. Auckland. *Campbell, Sir John Logan Campbell – ''Reminiscences of a long life / John Logan Campbell'' ; edited and introduced by R.C.J. Stone (2017), David Ling Publishing Limited, 2017. ISBN 1927305365


External links


Cornwall Park Trust Board's biography of Logan Campbell


* *Photographs o
Sir John Logan Campbell
at
Auckland Libraries Auckland Libraries is the public library system for the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It was created when the seven separate councils in the Auckland region merged in 2010. It is currently the largest public-library network in the Southern He ...

and Kura Heritage Collections
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, John Logan 1817 births 1912 deaths Mayors of Auckland Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand Superintendents of New Zealand provincial councils Politicians from Edinburgh Scottish emigrants to New Zealand Alumni of the University of Edinburgh New Zealand Knights Bachelor New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates 19th-century New Zealand artists 20th-century New Zealand businesspeople 19th-century New Zealand politicians New Zealand politicians awarded knighthoods St Peter's College, Auckland faculty