1. Sir William Hall-Jones was the 16th prime minister of New Zealand from June 1906 until August 1906.
19 Facts About William Hall-Jones
1. 2.
William Hall-Jones was interim prime minister from the death of Richard Seddon to the return from overseas of Joseph Ward.
3.
William Hall-Jones was a mild mannered man with a fully earned reputation as an outstanding administrator.
4.
From 1908 to 1912, William Hall-Jones was New Zealand's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
5.
William Hall-Jones was born in Folkestone, Kent, England, and landed at Dunedin in 1873.
6.
William Hall-Jones became a carpenter and later a builder in Timaru.
7.
William Hall-Jones developed an interest in local politics serving on the Timaru Borough Council from 1884 to 1886, and again from 1890 to 1892.
8.
William Hall-Jones initially refused nomination from locals, citing several upcoming business contracts.
9.
However, after persistent calls, William Hall-Jones reluctantly accepted despite having no parliamentary ambitions.
10.
William Hall-Jones represented Timaru in the House of Representatives until his resignation in October 1908.
11.
William Hall-Jones was initially an Independent Liberal holding moderate, progressive views that tended to align him with John Ballance, Sir George Grey and John McKenzie.
12.
William Hall-Jones joined the Liberal caucus and in 1891 became the party whip alongside Westby Perceval.
13.
William Hall-Jones was responsible for the eventual construction of the Otira tunnel, going through Arthur's Pass.
14.
Several weeks after entering cabinet, William Hall-Jones was appointed minister of marine, a post which he was to hold for over a decade.
15.
William Hall-Jones was responsible for passing a bill granting protection to the famous navigation dolphin Pelorus Jack by Order in Council under the Sea Fisheries Act on 26 September 1904.
16.
William Hall-Jones was acting prime minister during the absence from the country of Seddon in 1906 and formed an administration immediately after Seddon's funeral.
17.
However, William Hall-Jones announced that he would only hold power until Sir Joseph Ward's return from abroad.
18.
William Hall-Jones accepted the Railways and Public Works portfolios in the subsequent Ward administration.
19.
William Hall-Jones died at his home in Wellington on 19 June 1936.