Thomas McDonnell Sr. (1788 – 13 September 1864) was a timber trader and Additional British Resident in New Zealand. His oldest son was Colonel

Thomas McDonnell Thomas McDonnell ( – 8 November 1899) was a 19th-century New Zealand public servant, military leader and writer. Biography Childhood and early life McDonnell was born to Thomas McDonnell Sr., an early British merchant and speculator who s ...

. McDonnell Sr. was born in

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, County Antrim, Antrim, ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, located within the historic Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the c ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He joined the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

in 1804, and left on half-pay and joined the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

in 1815. He was in command of a brig in the China seas in 1830 and visited the Kaipara and the

Hokianga The Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as the Hokianga River, a long Estuary, estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. The original name, still used by local Mā ...

in New Zealand around this time. He bought a property at

Horeke Horeke () is a settlement in the upper reaches of the Hokianga Harbour in Northland, New Zealand. Kohukohu is just across the harbour. The Horeke basalts are located near the town, and can be viewed on an easy stroll through the Wairere Boulde ...

on the

Hokianga Harbour The Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as the Hokianga River, a long estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. The original name, still used by local Māori, is ...

in 1831 and developed a trading, timber and shipbuilding business. He later visited England and was appointed an additional

British Resident A resident minister, or resident for short, is a government official required to take up permanent residence in another country. A representative of his government, he officially has diplomatic functions which are often seen as a form of in ...

for the Hokianga district in late 1834 or early 1835. He arrived back in New Zealand in July 1835. He resigned as Additional Resident just one year later after several disputes with

James Busby James Busby (7 February 1802 – 15 July 1871) was the British Resident in New Zealand from 1833 to 1840. He was involved in drafting the 1835 Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand and the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi. As British Residen ...

. After ongoing disputes with

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, other settlers and officials in the Hokianga, McDonnell moved to

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...

in 1858, and then immediately to

Onehunga Onehunga is a suburb of Auckland in New Zealand and the location of the Port of Onehunga, the city's small port on the Manukau Harbour. It is south of the city centre, close to the volcanic cone of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill. Onehunga is ...

. He died there after a fall from his horse in 1864.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McDonnell, Thomas Sr. 1788 births 1864 deaths People from Auckland People from the Hokianga