Thomas Kynnersley Explained

Thomas Kynnersley
Birth Name:Thomas Alfred Sneyd Kynnersley
Birth Date:14 June 1839
Birth Place:Uttoxeter, England
Death Place:Nelson, New Zealand
Death Cause:tuberculosis
Resting Place:Wakapuaka Cemetery
Known For:Gold field warden on the West Coast

Thomas Alfred Sneyd Kynnersley (14 June 1839 – 1 February 1874), who signed as T. A. Sneyd Kynnersley, was a 19th-century Member of Parliament from the West Coast, New Zealand.

Early life

He was born in Uttoxeter in the West Midlands region of England, the son of Birmingham magistrate Thomas Clement Sneyd-Kynnersley and his wife, Eliza.[1] Mary Palmer Kynnersley was his twin sister and Loxley Hall was the country house of the family.

Goldfield warden

He retired from the navy due to ill health and settled in New Zealand at Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere in the early 1860s. He was appointed warden for Pelorus gold fields in late 1864 and soon transferred to the West Coast during the West Coast gold rush. He was based at Cobden and controlled the area from the Grey River to Karamea in the north. On an exploration journey in early 1865 with Bill Fox and others, they found gold at the mouth of the Potikohua River (now known as Fox River). Kynnersley moved his residence north to Brighton (now known as Tirimoana at the mouth of the Fox River), then to Charleston at the Waitakere (Nile) River, and then to Westport. Kynnersley is described as a capable administrator, as popular and also daring. The Nelson provincial government appointed him chief warden and commissioner of the Nelson South West goldfield in January 1867.

Kynnersley had tuberculosis and because of ongoing sickness, he resigned from his positions at the end of 1868, going to Melbourne in January 1869. He spent some time in England and in a letter published in The London Times, he commented on Earl Granville's despatch (as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs to Sir George Bowen as Governor of New Zealand).[2] He returned on the Lincolnshire to Melbourne in November 1869[3] and arrived in New Zealand in February 1870 on the Tararua.[4] He was offered and accepted the role as goldfield warden in the Wangapeka, where he was favourably received.[5] [6]

Political career

At the same time as becoming warden for Wangapeka, Kynnersley (alongside Arthur Collins) was appointed to the Executive of the Nelson Provincial Council by the province's Superintendent, John Perry Robinson.[7] Collins and Kynnersley held their executive appointments from 15 March to 4 June 1870. Kynnersley's appointment proved controversial and Robinson was threatened with censure and a vote of no confidence. In this situation, Kynnersley chose to resign with effect of 4 June.[8]

Simultaneously, a vacancy occurred in the Westland North parliamentary electorate through Timothy Gallagher's resignation and on 1 June 1860, Kynnersley advertised his candidacy.[9] He stood as an independent, but supporting the Fox Ministry in their stance on the New Zealand War. He also advocated for the abolition of the provincial government system.[10] Kynnersley was unopposed in the resulting 2 July by-election[11] and represented the electorate until the dissolution of the 4th Parliament on 30 December, when he retired.

References

. Guy Scholefield . New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 . 3rd . First published in 1913 . 1950 . Govt. Printer . Wellington.

External links

Notes and References

  1. England Births & Baptisms 1538–1975, Baptism 10 July 1839
  2. News: Mr. Kynnersley on New Zealand affairs . 7 October 2019 . . IV . 757 . 17 January 1870 . 2.
  3. News: Anniversary Richmond Wesleyan Church . 7 October 2019 . . V . V . 6 January 1870 . 2.
  4. News: Untitled . 6 October 2019 . West Coast Times . 1371 . 16 February 1870 . 2.
  5. News: News of the Day . 7 October 2019 . Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle . XXIX . 15 . 19 February 1870 . 3.
  6. News: News of the Day . 7 October 2019 . Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle . XXIX . 19 . 5 March 1870 . 3.
  7. News: Executive Appointments . 7 October 2019 . Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle . XXIX . 22 . 16 March 1870 . 3.
  8. News: Southern Telegrams . 7 October 2019 . . XXVI . 3984 . 30 May 1870 . 3.
  9. News: To the electors of Westland North . 7 October 2019 . Westport Times . IV . 670 . 11 June 1870 . 3.
  10. News: Latest Telegrams . 8 October 2019 . Grey River Argus . IX . 683 . 4 June 1870 . 2.
  11. News: Nomination and election . 7 October 2019 . The Westport Times . IV . 664 . 28 May 1870 . 2.