William Wilson (mayor)
| William Wilson | |
|---|---|
Painting of William "Cabbage" Wilson (probably 1867)
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| 1st Mayor of Christchurch | |
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In office 10 Jun 1868 – 16 Dec 1868 |
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| Succeeded by | John Anderson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 2 April 1819 Castle Douglas, Scotland |
| Died | 8 November 1897 (aged 78) Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Resting place |
Linwood Cemetery 43°32′19″S 172°41′11″E / 43.5385°S 172.6863°E |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth (née Williams) |
| Profession | nurseryman, businessman |
| Religion | Presbyterian |
William Barbour Wilson (2 April 1819 – 8 November 1897), also known as Cabbage Wilson, was the first Mayor of Christchurch in New Zealand in 1868. A nurseryman by profession, he had large landholdings in Christchurch. His reputation was dented by a fraud conviction, and when he was subsequently elected onto the city council once more, five councillors resigned in protest.
Wilson was born in Castle Douglas in Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland. He was the eldest child of Jane Thomson and her husband, William Wilson. He arrived in New Zealand in August 1850 at Port Chalmers on the ship Mariner, and travelled to Nelson, Wellington and Auckland before arriving in Lyttelton in late July 1851. The Mariner left London on 7 April 1850 and arrived at Port Chalmers on 6 August 1850.
He married Elizabeth Williams on 19 November 1856; she was 20 at the time of their wedding, 17 years his junior. His wife was the daughter of John Williams, who arrived in Lyttelton with his family in December 1850 on one of the First Four Ships, the Randolph. John Williams was found dead four days after arrival, having possibly died from heat exhaustion. Her mother Isabella worked as a draper and had a shop on Colombo Street, Christchurch. The Wilsons had 13 or 14 children, and Isabella Williams would later testify that he began beating her by the time she was pregnant the second time: "He beat me black and blue." Their oldest son was William John (born ca. 1856), and their second son was Charles James.
In Scotland, Wilson was an apprentice as a nurseryman and worked as an overseer on estates.
His first nursery in New Zealand, Bricks Farm, was next to The Bricks 43°31′31″S 172°38′42″E / 43.52540°S 172.64510°E, a locality on the Avon River in central Christchurch. Wilson lived at The Bricks for his first five years in Christchurch. Next, he owned the block of land bounded by Cashel, Madras, Lichfield and Manchester streets; this was later known as Bedford Row and is its name to the present day. He bought up land in sought after areas for his nurseries and then operated them until the land became too valuable, and he subdivided it for development. At its maximum, he held 18 acres in the central city. He specialised in shelter plants and hedges and became the dominant nurseryman in Christchurch. He was one of the first in New Zealand to publish product catalogues. He later held land in the suburb of Waltham. Apart from his extensive landholdings, he had a general trading company, a real estate and auctioneering business, a controlling stake in the Halswell quarries (purchased in 1876), and a half partnership in the trading vessel Rifleman.
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