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Erima Harvey Northcroft was born in Hokitika on 2 December 1884, the son of Leonard Northcroft, a sharebroker, and his wife, Louisa Pellow James, who had come to New Zealand from Victoria. Erima attended Hokitika School…

Owen Woodhouse was a distinguished judge and the architect of New Zealand’s no-fault accident compensation system. After naval service in the Second World War, Woodhouse worked as a lawyer until his appointment as a…

Robert Noble Jones was born at Belfast, Ireland, on 1 August 1864, the son of Robert Jones, a painter, and his wife, Eliza Rae. Brought to New Zealand as an infant, he was educated in public schools in Auckland and…

John Bartholomew Callan was born in Dunedin on 15 August 1882, the son of Ellen Mary Brophy and her husband, John Bartholomew Callan, a solicitor. John senior had left Ireland in 1859 for Melbourne, where several of his…

William Alexander Sim achieved distinction in disparate fields of the law. He was a leading barrister in Dunedin, first full-time president of the Court of Arbitration and chairman of two royal commissions. And he…

Kenneth Macfarlane Gresson, who became the leading member of one of New Zealand’s foremost legal families, was born in Christchurch on 18 July 1891. He was the son of John Beatty Gresson, a lawyer, and his wife, Frances…

Edward Tennyson Conolly was born at Chichester, Sussex, England, probably on 31 August 1822, into a family of Irish origin. He was the only son of Elizabeth Collins and her husband, John Conolly, a professor of medicine…

Henry Samuel Chapman was born in Kennington, London, England, on 21 July 1803, the son of Henry Chapman, a civil servant in the Barrack Department, and his wife, Ann Hart Davies. He was educated in schools at Bromley,…

David Stanley Smith was born in Dunedin on 11 February 1888, the first child of John Gibson Smith, a Presbyterian minister, and his wife, Ann Gibb. His primary education began in Dunedin, but was completed at the Middle…

John Alexander Wilson was born probably on 21 April 1829 at Condé-sur-Noireau, Calvados, France, the eldest son of John Alexander Wilson, a naval officer, and his first wife, Anne Catherine Hawker. In 1832 his father…

Frederick Revans Chapman was born at Wellington, New Zealand, on 3 February 1849. He was the fifth child of Henry Samuel Chapman, puisne judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, and his wife, Catherine Brewer, the…

Alexander Kingcome Turner was born in Auckland on 18 November 1901, the son of Joseph Hurst Turner, a teacher, and his wife, Gertrude Kingcome Reid, the daughter of a leading Methodist minister. He attended Mount Eden…

Joshua Strange Williams was born at Paddington, London, England, on 19 September 1837, the eldest son of Lucy Strange and her husband, Joshua Williams, a conveyancer who became an eminent barrister and wrote…

Hugh Fraser Ayson was born in Toiro, near Balclutha, Otago, on 16 November 1884, the son of Lake Falconer Ayson, a rabbit inspector, and his wife, Alice Dabinett. Educated at Masterton School, Wellington College and…

Herbert Richard Churton Wild (known as Richard) was born in Blenheim on 20 September 1912, the son of Leonard John Wild, a teacher, and his wife, Doris Churton. The family moved to Wanganui and Christchurch before…

Frank Oswald Victor Acheson was born on 27 June 1887 at Riverton, Southland, the youngest of nine children of Robert Acheson, a merchant, and his wife, Annie Sinclair Allan. He was educated at Riverton school and…

According to family information Christopher William Richmond was born in London, England, on 12 July 1821, the son of a barrister, Christopher Richmond, and his wife, Maria (Lely) Wilson. The major influence on his…

'Tear them down boys; I will give £100 out of my pocket this minute to prevent them from marching.' Thomas O'Driscoll was said to have incited a riot with these words on 26 December 1879, as members of the local…

John Calcott St Quentin is believed to have arrived in New Zealand from the Australian goldfields about 1863. The date and place of his birth are not known. He had a wife, Sarah Anna Toll, a son, John Alfred Ernest,…

The date of birth, the parentage and even the real name of Robert Butler are matters of mystery. He may have been born James Wilson, but in New Zealand he became notorious as Robert Butler. Police records state that he…