James Gillespie Barclay
James Gillespie Barclay (24 June 1882 – 5 October 1972) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party.
Biography
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||||
| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | |
| 1935–1938 | 25th | Marsden | Labour | |
| 1938–1943 | 26th | Marsden | Labour | |
Barclay was born in Pigeon Bay on Banks Peninsula. His father was Morrison Barclay. He married Helen Betrice in 1907, but was a widower by the time he joined the army. Before WWI, he was a farmer and lived in the Christchurch suburb of Riccarton. He served with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force from 1916 to 1919.[1] He then bought a property in Pukehuia, Northland, where he owned 1,600 acres (650 ha) near the Wairoa River. He sold his farm in 1931 and retired to Whangarei. He served on several local boards in Northland.[2]
Barclay unsuccessfully stood against the Prime Minister, Gordon Coates, in the Kaipara electorate in the 1928 election.[3] In the 1931 election, he unsuccessfully challenged the incumbent in the Marsden electorate in Northland, Alfred Murdoch.[4] He beat Murdoch in the 1935 election, but was defeated in turn by Murdoch after two parliamentary terms in 1943.[5][6]
He was a cabinet minister in the First Labour Government under Peter Fraser. He was Minister of Agriculture (1941–1943), Minister of Marketing (1941–1943), Minister of Lands (1943), and Commissioner of State Forests (1943).[7] He then became High Commissioner to Australia from 1944 to 1950.[8]
A son, Bruce Barclay, was Member of Parliament for Christchurch Central from 1969 to 1979. A nephew, Ron Barclay, was MP for New Plymouth from 1966 to 1975.[5]
James Barclay died in Christchurch in 1972.[1]
Notes
- 1 2 "Personnel Records" (PDF). Archives New Zealand. 23 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
- ↑ "New Parliament". The New Zealand Herald. LXXII (22278). 28 November 1935. p. 13. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
- ↑ The General Election, 1928. Government Printer. 1929. p. 3. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
- ↑ The General Election, 1931. Government Printer. 1932. p. 3. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
- 1 2 Wilson 1985, p. 182.
- ↑ The General Election, 1943. National Library. 1944. p. 6. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
- ↑ Wilson 1985, p. 83.
- ↑ Wilson, Roland, ed. (1946). Official Year Book of the Commonwealth of Australia: No. 37--1946 and 1947. Australian Bureau of Statistics. p. 1223.
References
- Gustafson, Barry (1986). From the Cradle to the Grave: a biography of Michael Joseph Savage. Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0-474-00138-5.
- Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand parliamentary record, 1840–1984 (4 ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
External links
- Portrait photo published in The New Zealand Herald in 1931
| New Zealand Parliament | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Alfred Murdoch |
Member of Parliament for Marsden 1935–1943 |
Succeeded by Alfred Murdoch |