Mayor of Wanganui

The Mayor of Wanganui is the head of the Whanganui District Council. Annette Main is the current mayor.

History

Prior to 1989, when Wanganui's city charter was cancelled, the Mayor was the head of the Wanganui City Council. Local government reform of 1989 amalgamated various city and council councils - Wanganui District Council includes the old Wanganui City Council, Wanganui County Council and a part of the Waitotara County Council.

Wanganui Town Board was first formed in 1862, and its first chairman was J Handley who served in that capacity until 1864. The Board became a Borough Council in 1872 until 1924, when Wanganui was granted city status. It continued as the City Council until 1989.

The motto of the then Wanganui City, and now Wanganui District Council, is 'Sans Dieu Rien' ('Without God, we are nothing').

Michael Laws defeated longstanding mayor Chas Poynter (1986–2004) who had served on the Wanganui council from 1977. Laws did not stand again in the 2010 local elections, and Annette Main was elected, to take office in October 2010.

However, Wanganui's most controversial mayor, by far, was well regarded lawyer Charles E MacKay who was found guilty of the attempted murder of poet D'Arcy Cresswell - a charge stemming from an attempt to allegedly blackmail Mayor MacKay for homosexual advances.

MacKay was arrested, pleaded guilty and imprisoned. He was released from prison in 1927, travelled to England and became a journalist. He was killed in 1929 during riots in Munich, Germany whilst reporting the civil unrest.

List of Mayors of Wanganui

James Lockhart Stevenson (1896–97)

The following list are incomplete. In the first list, the sources don't give the year for the mayoralty:

• Gilbert Carson (mayor for three consecutive terms)^[1]
• A. J. Parsons^[1]

The following list shows the mayors where the year of mayoralty is known:

[list incomplete]

• William Hutchison (1873–1874)

[list incomplete]

• Thomas Bamber (1879–80)^[2]

[list incomplete]

• Frederick Morris Spurdle (1884–86)^[1]

[list incomplete]

• Henry Anthony Nathan (1890–91)^[3]
• Freeman R. Jackson (1892–96)^[2]
• James Lockhart Stevenson (1896–97)^[2]
• Alexander Hatrick (1897–1904)
• Arthur Bignell (1904–06)
• CE MacKay (1906–12, 1912–13, & 1915–20) – resigned & imprisoned
• E Liffiton (1912)
• TB Williams (1913–15 & 1920–24)
• H Gibbons MBE (1924–27)
• W J Rogers OBE (1927–31 & 1935–53)
• N G Armstrong (1931–35)
• E A Millward OBE (1953–62) – retired 1962
• Reg Andrews OBE (1962–74) – retired 1974
• Ron Russell QSO (1974–83) – retired 1983
• Doug Turney (1983–86) – defeated by Chas Poynter (1986)
• Chas Poynter QSO (1986–2004) – defeated by Michael Laws (2004)
• Michael Laws (2004–10) – retired 2010
• Annette Main (2010 – present)

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Borough Of Wanganui". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand - Wellington Provincial District. Wellington: The Cyclopedia Company Limited. 1897. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc01Cycl-t1-body-d4-d172-d4.html. Retrieved 26 April 2010. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Ex-Mayors". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand - Wellington Provincial District. Wellington: The Cyclopedia Company Limited. 1897. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc01Cycl-t1-body-d4-d172-d5.html. Retrieved 7 April 2010. 
3. ^ "NEW ZEALAND: Miscellaneous data on HARRIS, LOMAX, NATHAN families". family tree circles. http://www.familytreecircles.com/new-zealand-miscellaneous-data-on-harris-lomax-nathan-families-9875.html. Retrieved 17 October 2010.