John Williamson (New Zealand politician)
John Williamson (25 August 1815 – 16 February 1875) was a New Zealand politician, printer and newspaper proprietor. Early life. Williamson was born in 1815 in Newry, County Down, Ireland. He served his apprenticeship as a printer. He married in either 1833 or 1834 to Sarah Barre, and they were to have five children. They emigrated to Sydney in Australian in 1840, where he worked for "The Australasian Chronicle" and then "The Sydney Monitor". He moved to Auckland, New Zealand, in mid-1841. New Zealand. He purchased his own printing press in 1845 and started the "New  Zealander", which became Auckland's leading newspaper. The editorial approach of the "New Zealander", was to support the ordinary settler and the Māori. He was joined by partner W.C. Wilson in 1848, until Wilson left to found "The New Zealand Herald" in 1863. The "New Zealander" ceased in 1866. He was a member of the Auckland Provincial Council in the first council from 22 July 1853, representing the Pensioner Settlements electorate. He served until 15 November 1856 as a councillor. He was, over three periods, the fourth Superintendent of Auckland Province (1856–1862 resigned; 1867–1869 defeated; 1873–1875 died). On 28 December  1865, he became a member of the Auckland Executive Council as commissioner of waste lands under Frederick Whitaker as Superintendent, until he succeeded him in 1867 following his resignation. Williamson represented the Pensioner Settlements (consisting of the Auckland suburbs of Howick, Onehunga, Otahuhu, and Panmure) in the 2nd New Zealand Parliament from 1855 to 1860, and represented the City of Auckland West electorate in the 3rd Parliament, the 4th Parliament, and the 5th Parliament from 1861 to 1875 (in 1871 the election was declared void, but he was then re-elected). He was briefly a minister without portfolio in the  second Fox Ministry in July/August 1861. He died in 1875, while he was a Member of Parliament.