John Bitchener
| John Bitchener | |
|---|---|
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Waitaki |
|
|
In office 17 December 1919 – 1 November 1935 |
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| Preceded by | John Anstey |
| Succeeded by | David Barnes |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1864 Stagsden, Bedfordshire, England |
| Died |
(aged 87) New Zealand |
| Resting place | Old Waimate Cemetery |
| Occupation | politician |
John Bitchener OBE (1864 – 10 March 1952) was a Reform Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand. He was a cabinet minister from 1933 to 1935 in the Reform Government of New Zealand.
Bitchener was born in 1864 in Stagsden, Bedfordshire, England. His father was Alfred Bitchener, who was born in 1844 in Cranfield, Bedfordshire, England. His mother was Mary Ann Bitchener (née Welch), and his parents had married on 9 February 1864. John Bitchener had two younger sisters. After his wife's death, Alfred Bitchener decided to emigrate to New Zealand together with his sister Anne, who had married a brother of his late wife. The Bitchener and Welch families arrived in Lyttelton Harbour in January 1875 on the Lady Jocelyn and the Welchs had two infants at the time.
Alfred Bitchener moved to the Waimate District and worked as a farm labourer for three or four years, and then became a saw milling contractor. John Bitchener received his education at Waimate Public School and then joined his father as a contractor in Waimate, before moving to Southland for four years. His father bought a farm in Hook, some 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) southwest of Waimate, and John Bitchener moved to live there, too.
Like his father, John Bitchener joined many organisations and took leading roles. He was chairman of the Hook School Committee, he was a member of the Waimate County Council for eleven years, was a member of the Timaru Boys' High School Board including chairman for some time, was a member of the Timaru Harbour Board, was on the Waimate High School Board, and was president of the South Canterbury Farmers' Union. He was a member of the Advisory Board of the Farmers' Union in Wellington, was chairman of the Waimate Cooperative Flour Milling Company, and a director of the Canterbury Farmers' Cooperative Association.
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