Frederick Joseph Moss (1827/1828 – 8 July 1904) was a New Zealand politician who served as a member of

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

Early life

He was born in

Longwood, Saint Helena Longwood is a settlement and a district of the British island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. Description Longwood had a population of 765 in 2021, a decrease of 195 residents when compared with a population of 960 recorded in 1998. ...

in 1827 or 1828, and moved to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. He returned to

Saint Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

in 1847. There, he married Emily Ann Carew in 1853 or 1854. In 1857, he went back to South Africa, intending to settle in

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

, but

locust Locusts (derived from the Latin ''locusta'', locust or lobster) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstances they b ...

s had destroyed agricultural prospects. He decided to emigrate to New Zealand instead and the couple and their three children arrived in Lyttelton on the ''Zealandia'' on 12 November 1859.

Life in New Zealand

In Lyttelton, Moss supported the Moorhouse tunnel railway project and established himself as a trader. He was instrumental in forming a volunteer company and became captain. With the discovery of gold in Otago, he moved to

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

in 1862. He entered various business partnerships, including with Thomas Dick. He became captain of the local rifle volunteers and founded a newspaper, the ''Otago Daily Mail'', which he sold after only a few months.

Political career

In Dunedin, he was elected to the

Otago Provincial Council The Otago Province was a Provinces of New Zealand, province of New Zealand until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. The capital of the province was Dunedin. Southland Province split from Otago in 1861, but became part of the provin ...

in 1863. He was secretary for public works and served as provincial treasurer. He and Dick, who had been elected onto the Provincial Council in 1859, were opponents of

Julius Vogel Sir Julius Vogel (24 February 1835 – 12 March 1899) was the eighth premier of New Zealand. His administration is best remembered for the issuing of bonds to fund railway construction and other public works. He was the first Jewish prime min ...

, who also entered the Provincial Council in 1863. When Vogel became leader of the provincial executive in 1866 and then treasurer, Moss resigned the following year. He represented the Parnell electorate from

1878 Events January * January 5 – Russo-Turkish War: Battle of Shipka Pass IV – Russian and Bulgarian forces defeat the Ottoman Empire. * January 9 – Umberto I becomes King of Italy. * January 17 – Russo-Turkish War: ...

to 1890, when he retired. He was a liberal and a supporter of Sir

George Grey Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Gov ...

and provincialism. In 1889 he published 'Through atolls and islands in the Great South Sea', Sampson Low,Marston, Searle & Rivington, London. In 1890, he was appointed British Resident of the

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

; he served from April 1891 to September 1898. His son Edward George Britton Moss was the Member of Parliament for from

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's ...

to 1905.

Death

Moss died in Auckland on 8 July 1904. He was survived by his wife (by two years) and six of his eight children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moss, Fred Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Saint Helenian emigrants to New Zealand Saint Helenian emigrants to South Africa Members of the Otago Provincial Council New Zealand businesspeople 1820s births 1904 deaths New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates Date of birth unknown