Sir Thomas William Alport Barker (died 14 June 1956) was a Fijian newspaper owner and politician. He owned the ''

Fiji Times ''The Fiji Times'' is a daily English-language newspaper published in Suva, Fiji. Established in Levuka on 4 September 1869 by George Littleton Griffiths, it is Fiji's oldest newspaper still operating. ''The Fiji Times'' is owned by Motibhai ...

'' for several decades and was a member of the Legislative Council for over 20 years.

Biography

Barker was born in

Akaroa Akaroa is a small town on Banks Peninsula in the Canterbury Region of the South Island of New Zealand, situated within a harbour of the same name. The name Akaroa is Kāi Tahu Māori for "Long Harbour", which would be spelled in standa ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

.Stewart Firth & Daryl Tarte (2001) ''20th Century Fiji: People who shaped this nation'', USP Solutions, p40 His family moved to Fiji when he was young and he attended school in

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Di ...

. He worked at P.S. Solomon legal firm and was called to the bar, but did not practice law. Instead, he established a newspaper, the ''Western Pacific Herald'' in 1901.Wishart's roots in Fiji's history
Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Fiji In 1909 he married Evelyn Turner, daughter of Legislative Council member

James Burton Turner James is a common English language surname and given name: * James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambigua ...

; they subsequently had a daughter, Molly. In 1918 Barker bought the ''

'', merging it with his other newspaper to form the ''Fiji Times and Herald''. He also controlled the ''Samoa Herald'' for several years until 1936. Whilst in the newspaper business, he served as Chairman of the Suva Chamber of Commerce. Barker was also involved in sport and was President of the Suva Rugby Union for 15 years. He was made a

Commander of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the

1946 New Year Honours The 1946 New Year Honours were appointments by many of the Commonwealth Realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and to celebrate the passing of 1945 and the beginnin ...

, before being knighted in the

1951 New Year Honours The 1951 New Years Honours were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1951 for the Brit ...

. After his wife died on 27 November 1951,"Deaths of islands people", ''Pacific Islands Monthly'', December 1951, p119 he returned to New Zealand. He remarried in 1952, but died on 14 June 1956 in Auckland aged 82.

Political career

Barker ran for election to the Legislative Council in the Southern constituency in the 1923 elections and defeated John Linn Hunt. He was returned unopposed in the

1926 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1926. Africa * 1926 Egyptian parliamentary election * 1926 Lagos by-election * 1926 Northern Rhodesian general election * 1926 South West African legislative election Asia * 1926 Hong Kong sanitary b ...

and was re-elected in

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholi ...

, 1932 (unopposed),

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Febr ...

(unopposed) and

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

, before losing his seat to

Amie Ragg Amie Augustus Ragg (7 October 1878 – 5 September 1957) was a Fijian engineer, civil servant and politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Council between 1944 and 1950. Biography Ragg was born in Fiji and initially worked as a mar ...

in the 1944 elections. He ran for office again in the

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January– February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the count ...

, but failed to unseat Ragg. However, in the 1950 elections he defeated Ragg by 134 votes to return to the Legislative Council. He did not contest the

1953 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1953. Africa * 1953 Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland election * 1953 South African general election * 1953 Southern Rhodesian federation referendum * 1953 South-West African legislative election * ...

. During his time in the Legislative Council he became a member of the

Executive Council Executive Council may refer to: Government * Executive Council (Commonwealth countries), a constitutional organ that exercises executive power and advises the governor * Executive Council of Bern, the government of the Swiss canton of Bern * Ex ...

. He was also elected to Suva Town Council in January 1949, and served as Chairman of the Town Board for three years.New Town Council in Suva
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', January 1949, p7 He was mayor of the city on five occasions. Alongside

John Percy Bayly John Percival Bayly (4 January 1882 – 12 January 1963) was a Fijian businessman, politician and philanthropist. Biography Bayly was born in Levuka in 1882.Stewart Firth & Daryl Tarte (2001) ''20th Century Fiji: People who shaped this nation'', ...

, he campaigned for ethnic Fijians to be given the franchise, travelling to the UK at his own expense to make the case to the British authorities.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, Alport People from Akaroa New Zealand emigrants to Fiji Fijian newspaper publishers (people) Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Legislative Council of Fiji Members of the Executive Council of Fiji 1956 deaths