Arthur John Stallworthy (18 April 1877 – 1 August 1954) was a New Zealand politician of the United Party, and a Cabinet minister.

Biography

Early life and career

Stallworthy was born in 1877 in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, New Zealand. He was the eldest son of John Stallworthy, who had come to New Zealand in 1872, and who was Member of Parliament for the electorate from to 1911. His mother was Annie Jane Stallworthy. His father was employed by the Auckland Education Board as a teacher and in 1880, he was posted to Aratapu School in Hobson County, Northland, with the family moving there. Aratapu is today a small settlement on the west bank of the Wairoa River, a short distance downstream from

Dargaville Dargaville () is a town located in the North Island of New Zealand. It is situated on the bank of the Northern Wairoa River (Northland), Wairoa River in the Kaipara District of the Northland Region, Northland region. Dargaville is located south ...

, but back then economically as important as Dargaville if not ahead. His father became a newspaper proprietor but was blind for the last ten years of his life, and Arthur Stallworthy took over the running of the ''Wairoa Bell and Northern Advertiser''. After his father's death in November 1923, Arthur Stallworthy inherited the newspaper, which he sold soon after. He then moved to Auckland to be near his children, who attended

Auckland University College The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loca ...

Political career

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the BBC, British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, John Reith becomes the first ...

he was elected a member of the

Auckland City Council Auckland City Council was the local government authority for Auckland City, New Zealand, from 1989 to 1 November 2010, when it and Auckland's six other city and district councils were amalgamated to form the Auckland Council. It was an elec ...

. He served one two-year term before deciding not to seek re-election. In

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...

he stood for

Mayor of Auckland City The Mayor of Auckland City was the directly elected head of the Auckland City Council, the municipal government of Auckland City, New Zealand. The office existed from 1871 to 2010, when the Auckland City Council and mayoralty was abolished and ...

. He placed third out of three candidates in a tight race behind Ernest Davis and Joe Sayegh. He represented the electorate from to 1935, when he was deselected by the United/Reform Coalition. He stood in the as a Democrat losing to the Labour candidate, Bill Anderton. Stallworthy was the

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

from 1928 to 1931, first under

Joseph Ward Sir Joseph George Ward, 1st Baronet, (26 April 1856 – 8 July 1930) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 17th prime minister of New Zealand from 1906 to 1912 and from 1928 to 1930. He was a dominant figure in the New Zealand Liber ...

and then George Forbes. In 1935, he was awarded the

King George V Silver Jubilee Medal The King George V Silver Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the accession of King George V. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir by King George V to commemorate his Silver Ju ...

Later life and death

Stallworthy died in 1954. His son, John Stallworthy (1906–1993), was Nuffield Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

(1967–1973). His grandson, Jon Stallworthy (1935–2014), was Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Oxford.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stallworthy, Arthur 1877 births 1954 deaths Auckland City Councillors New Zealand Liberal Party MPs Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand United Party (New Zealand) MPs Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates Unsuccessful candidates in the 1935 New Zealand general election New Zealand Democrat Party (1934) politicians Ministers of health of New Zealand