Richard Meredith (27 January 1843 – 20 August 1918) 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. A teacher by training, he was a farmer later in his life. He lived in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

and was a member of many public bodies.

Biography

Early life

Meredith was born at

Tullow Tullow (; , formerly ''Tulach Ó bhFéidhlim/ Tullowphelim'') is a market town in County Carlow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney where the N81 road intersects with the R725. , the population was 4,673. History There is a statue of ...

County Carlow County Carlow ( ; ga, Contae Cheatharlach) is a county located in the South-East Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Carlow is the second smallest and the third least populous of Ireland's 32 traditional counties. Carlow Cou ...

, Ireland, in 1843. He received his education at Tullow public school and was a schoolmaster for some years. Meredith emigrated to New Zealand in 1863, arriving at Lyttelton on the ''SS Accrington''. After arriving he worked as a teacher until 1889 and then became a farmer at Cust (then known as Moeraki Downs).

Political career

He won the

Ashley Ashley is a place name derived from the Old English words '' æsc'' (“ash”) and '' lēah'' (“meadow”). It may refer to: People and fictional characters * Ashley (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

electorate in the 1890 general election against

James Dupré Lance James Dupré Lance (28 January 1829 – 28 March 1897) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament from Canterbury, New Zealand. Biography Lance was born in Boulogne, France. He first came to New Zealand in 1856 to visit his brothers. He conte ...

, and was re-elected three times. In the 1902 election, he was defeated for the replacement seat of Hurunui by Andrew Rutherford (who was also of the

). Meredith was a temperance campaigner. Other elected positions that he held included North Canterbury Board of Education (from 1889, including chairman in 1892), and the Canterbury Land Board (since 1891). He was a member of the Technical School Committee in Christchurch and later a member of the Timaru High School board.

Family and death

On 10 April 1867, Meredith married Louisa Willis (1847–1929) at the Durham Street Wesleyan Church in Christchurch. She was the eldest daughter of James Willis (1824–1866) who was the proprietor of the ''Canterbury Standard''. They had four sons and five daughters before his wife left him, taking all the possessions and leaving just a portrait of him behind. Historian

George Macdonald George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. I ...

described his personality as "bombastic". He died at

Waimate Waimate is a town in Canterbury, New Zealand and the seat of Waimate District. It is situated just inland from the eastern coast of the South Island. The town is reached via a short detour west when travelling on State Highway One, the main No ...

on 20 August 1918 and was buried at Waimate Old Cemetery.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Meredith, Richard 1843 births 1918 deaths New Zealand Liberal Party MPs People from Tullow Irish emigrants to New Zealand Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for South Island electorates 19th-century New Zealand politicians Unsuccessful candidates in the 1902 New Zealand general election Burials at Waimate Cemetery Politicians from County Carlow