John Luke (politician)
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The Honourable Sir John-Pearce Luke CMG |
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File:John-Pearce Luke (cropped).jpg | |
20th Mayor of Wellington | |
In office 1913–1921 |
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Preceded by | David McLaren |
Succeeded by | Robert Alexander Wright |
Personal details | |
Born | 16 July 1858 Penzance, Cornwall, United Kingdom |
Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Wellington, New Zealand |
Political party | Liberal (1908–1918) Reform (1918–1928) |
Spouse(s) | Jacobina McGregor (m. 1880) |
Relations | Charles Luke (brother) |
Sir John-Pearce Luke CMG (16 July 1858 – 7 December 1931) was a New Zealand politician. Luke was Mayor of Wellington from 1913–1921 and Member of Parliament for Wellington Suburbs 1908–1911 and Wellington North 1918–1928. His brother Charles Manley Luke had previously also been Mayor of Wellington in 1895. Sir John Pearce was nicknamed Peanut because he was short.
Contents
Early life
Born at St Just, near Penzance, Cornwall, England, to Samuel and Ann Luke, John Luke came to New Zealand with his parents in July 1874 after the Cornish tin industry failed. He completed two years of an apprenticeship as an engineer before leaving for Fielding, New Zealand where, the family were informed, they would be able to take up engineering work, however, "When the Luke's landed at Wellington they discovered that Foxton was merely a paper township; it was a name on the map and the only industry there was the extraction of pipis from the beach by Maoris.".[1] Luke completed his engineering apprenticeship with the Lion Foundry, and worked on various projects before joining his father's newly established Te Aro Engineering Works in 1879.[1] After initially struggling the business was successful and constructed several steamships. In June 1886 his oldest brother William died "after a short and painful illness in his 34th year"[2] followed by his next oldest brother, Samuel, at 32 years of age, in December.[3]
City council and mayor
Luke was first elected to the city council in 1898 and served between that year and 1911.[citation needed] He was responsible for the expansion of the Wellington tramway system.[citation needed] For many years he was president of the New Zealand Engineers and Iron Masters Association, and was actively associated with the Wellington Industrial Association, the Wellington District Hospital Board, the Wellington Technical Education Board, and the Navy League. The Returned Soldiers Association conferred upon them the honour of life membership of the organisation.[citation needed] Luke contested the 1905 Wellington City mayoral election and of the six candidates, he came fourth, with Thomas William Hislop elected.[4]
Member of Parliament
Parliament of New Zealand | ||||
Years | Term | Electorate | Party | |
1908–1911 | 17th | Wellington Suburbs | Liberal | |
1918–1919 | 19th | Wellington North | Reform | |
1919–1922 | 20th | Wellington North | Reform | |
1922–1925 | 21st | Wellington North | Reform | |
1925–1928 | 22nd | Wellington North | Reform |
His political career began in 1908 with his election as member for Wellington Suburbs for the Liberal Party, but he lost his seat at the 1911 general election to Reform candidate William Henry Dillon Bell.[5] From 1911 until 1918 he was not a member of Parliament, and was re-elected to Parliament in the 1918 by-election as a member of the Reform Party and again 1919, in the Wellington North electorate. He held this electorate continuously until the general election of 1928, when he was defeated by the Labour candidate, by a margin of 47 votes.[5]
Luke was married in 1880 to Jacobina McGregor. He was knighted in the 1921 Birthday Honours for his work in combatting the 1918 flu pandemic,[6] having previously been made a CMG. He was leader of the New Zealand delegation which visited South Africa in 1924 in connection with the Empire Parliamentary Association. He died suddenly on 7 December 1931, and was survived by his wife, four sons, and one daughter.[7] His funeral service was held at St. Paul's Cathedral in Wellington,[8] followed by a private cremation,[7] with his ashes buried at Karori Cemetery.[9][10]
Miscellanea
- Lukes Lane in the Wellington CBD is named after the family business, Lukes' Foundry, which was sited there; years later, Sir John Pearce's sons set up Luke Bros foundry near Chaffers Street. Lukes' Foundry built New Zealand's first steel ship, and several lighthouses.
- Sir John Pearce and his wife, Lady Luke, donated the decorative iron gates at the entrance to Central Park, in Brooklyn, Wellington.
- Lady Luke was President of the Victoria League Wellington Branch from 1920 to 1922[11]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Evening Post, Volume LXXXV, Issue 122, 24 May 1913, Page 9
- ↑ Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 30, 22 June 1886, Page 2
- ↑ Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 187, 23 December 1886, Page 2
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- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ The Edinburgh Gazette: no. 13745. p. 1568. 23 September 1921. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Stokes, Brian (1979) A History of Victoria League for Commonwealth Friendship in New Zealand
Further reading
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External links
New Zealand Parliament | ||
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In abeyance
Title last held by
Thomas Wilford |
Member of Parliament for Wellington Suburbs 1908–1911 |
In abeyance
Title next held by
Robert Alexander Wright |
Political offices | ||
Preceded by | Mayor of Wellington 1913–1921 |
Succeeded by Robert Alexander Wright |
- Use dmy dates from October 2011
- Pages with broken file links
- Articles with unsourced statements from March 2016
- 1858 births
- 1931 deaths
- Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George
- English emigrants to New Zealand
- Knights Bachelor
- Mayors of Wellington
- New Zealand businesspeople
- New Zealand knights
- New Zealand Liberal Party MPs
- People from St Just in Penwith
- Unsuccessful candidates in the New Zealand general election, 1911
- Unsuccessful candidates in the New Zealand general election, 1928
- Unsuccessful candidates in the New Zealand general election, 1914
- Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives
- New Zealand MPs for Wellington electorates
- New Zealand Reform Party MPs
- Wellington City Councillors