Henry Scotland (11 July 1821–27 July 1910) was an English-born member of the New Zealand Legislative Council from 24 February 1868 until his death on 27 July 1910.
Scotland initially settled in New Plymouth, where he practised law. Following his appointment to the Legislative Council in 1868, Scotland stood for Maori land rights, civil liberties, the preservation of native bush, and the peaceful settlement of international differences. Historian Dick Scott remarks that these concerns "put him light-years ahead of time in nineteenth-century New Zealand". In the 1880s, Scotland moved to Pahi in the Northland Region.
Personal life
Scotland was married three times; his first two wives predeceased him. His first marriage was to Sarah Biggs (c.1817–1887), whom he married in London in 1842. In 1889, he married Mary Ann Spriggs (1861–1896), with whom he had two sons. He was survived by his third wife, Margaret Venning (c.1847–1916), whom he married in 1898.
His younger son, Will Scotland, became a noted aviator.
Death
Scotland died in Wellington on 27 July 1910, aged 89. He is interred at Auckland's Purewa Cemetery.
Publications
The New-Zealander on London Bridge, or, Moral ruins of the modern Babylon (1878)
Denominationalism: The Bane of Christianity – Two Letters to a Friend in the Country (1888)
Notes
↑Scott (1999) incorrectly states that the two sons were from Scotland's third marriage.
References
↑Wilson, Jim (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand parliamentary record, 1840-1984 (4ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. p.163. OCLC154283103.