Robert Macalister

Robert Macalister
26th Mayor of Wellington
In office 1950–1956
Deputy	William Stevens (1950-53) Ernest Toop (1953-56)
Preceded by	Will Appleton
Succeeded by	Frank Kitts
Personal details
Born	2 December 1890 Blenheim, New Zealand
Died	23 May 1967 Wellington, New Zealand
Alma mater	Victoria University
Profession	Lawyer
Signature

Robert Lachlan Macalister (2 December 1890 – 23 May 1967) was the Mayor of Wellington from 1950 to 1956, and had been the acting mayor for five months in 1948 during the absence overseas of Will Appleton.

Macalister was born in Blenheim and moved to Wellington in his youth to study at Victoria University where he qualified as a Lawyer. He then enlisted in the military and served during World War I and once returning he became a member of the War Relief Association. He was a barrister and solicitor by trade and worked at the same legal firm as Ossie Mazengarb. The firm of Mazengarb, Hay and Macalister was founded in 1918 and quickly became one of the largest law practices in Wellington.

In 1933 he stood for council on a Civic League ticket and was narrowly elected on the first count. However, after special votes were counted he lost his seat to the Labour Party's Peter Butler. He was elected a member of the Wellington City Council in 1938 and served until 1950 when he was elected Mayor. Macalister served as Mayor until 1956. He was also a member of the Wellington Harbour Board from 1942 to 1956.

No Mean City by Stuart Perry (1969, Wellington City Council) includes a paragraph and a portrait or photo for each mayor.

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