| William Sefton Moorhouse | |
| 2nd Superintendent of Canterbury Province | |
| In office 24 Oct 1857 – Feb 1863 |
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| In office 30 May 1866 – May 1868 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 18 December 1825 |
| Died | 15 September 1881 |
William Sefton Moorhouse (18 December 1825 – 15 September 1881) was a New Zealand politician. He was the second Superintendent of Canterbury Province.
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He was born in Yorkshire, England, and trained as a lawyer. After working for a time in London, he moved to Lyttelton, New Zealand, with his two brothers in 1851. Soon afterwards, he moved to Wellington, where he resumed his law practice. After marrying in 1853, he briefly moved to Australia, but subsequently returned to Lyttelton. Later he moved to Christchurch, where he acted as a lawyer, magistrate, newspaper editor, and ship owner.[1]
Moorhouse was active both in national and provincial politics, and later was a Mayor of Wellington.
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| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | |
| 1853–1855 | 1st | Akaroa | Independent | |
| 1858–1860 | 2nd | Akaroa | Independent | |
| 1862–1863 | 3rd | Heathcote | Independent | |
| 1866–1867 | 4th | Westland | Independent | |
| 1867–1868 | 4th | Westland Boroughs | Independent | |
| 1870 | 4th | Christchurch | Independent | |
| 1875–1879 | 6th | Christchurch | Independent | |
| 1879–1881 | 7th | Ashley | Independent | |
He was elected to represent Akaroa in the 1st New Zealand Parliament, and remained an MP until his death. In his parliamentary career, he represented the Akaroa, Heathcote (a notice of election was gazetted on 12 July 1862,[2] and the member sworn in on 14 July[3]), Westland, Westland Boroughs, Christchurch and Ashley (elected 1879)[4] electorates. In the 1866 election, he had won both the Mount Herbert and Westland electorates, and chose to represent the latter.
The Westland Representation Act 1867 introduced changes to the Waimea and Westland electorates. Their areas were reassigned and four electorates formed. As a result, Westland was abolished in 1867, a new electorate (Westland Boroughs) was established, and the Act stipulated that the sitting member (Moorhouse) was transferred to it. Other new electorates, for which by-elections were to be held, were Westland North and Westland South.[5][6] Moorhouse resigned from Westland Boroughs on 20 February 1868,[6] and William Henry Harrison won the resulting by-election.[7]
In 1855, Moorhouse was elected to the Canterbury Provincial Council, and later served as the Province's Superintendent. James FitzGerald resigned from the superintendency in October 1857 due to illness. Moorhouse and Joseph Brittan contested the vacancy, and obtained 727 and 352 votes, respectively.[8][9] He served as Superintendent until February 1863, and another term from May 1866 to May 1868.
He was Mayor of Wellington in 1875, and died in Wellington on 15 September 1881.
His sister Sarah Ann Moorhouse married William Barnard Rhodes
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Akaroa 1853–1855 1858–1860 |
Succeeded by John Cuff |
| Preceded by John Cuff |
Succeeded by Augustus White |
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| Preceded by William Travers |
Member of Parliament for Christchurch 1870 1875–1879 alongside: Edward Richardson, Edward Stevens |
In abeyance
Title next held by
himself |
| In abeyance
Title last held by
himself |
Succeeded by Samuel Paull Andrews |
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| Preceded by John Evans Brown |
Member of Parliament for Ashley 1879–1881 |
Succeeded by William Fisher Pearson |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by James FitzGerald |
Superintendent of Canterbury Province 1857–63 1866–68 |
Succeeded by Samuel Bealey |
| Preceded by Samuel Bealey |
Succeeded by William Rolleston |
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