The father of Auckland, Sir John Logan Campbell

From City Scene, published on 28 October, 2007

Honourable achievement - Sir John Logan Campbell stands by the statue of himself in Cornwall Park, 1906. Special Collections, Auckland City Libraries (N.Z.), 7-A4746.

The man commonly referred to as the father of Auckland, Sir John Logan Campbell, was born in Scotland in 1817.

When he arrived in Auckland in 1840, Logan Campbell had intended trying sheep farming but instead he, and business partner William Brown, set up Auckland's first merchant firm, Brown and Campbell.

The company bought an allotment, put up a warehouse and acted as general merchants, auctioneers, shipping and commission agents, and land speculators.

But pioneer life left Campbell dissatisfied and in 1848 he went on a two-year overseas tour. When he returned, he found it difficult to settle back into life as a raw colonial.

He had acquired a love of the arts and yearned to return to Europe to live off the earnings of his firm.

However, he became embroiled in local politics, serving as provincial superintendent, mayor of Auckland and member of the House of Representatives for the city of Auckland.

Eventually, he extricated himself and, in late 1856, left the colony.

In his book, Poenamo, Logan Campbell described himself as living a life of "wandering vagabondism", travelling through Europe and Asia until 1871, when he returned to Auckland with a young wife and two children to resume control of his business.

Campbell became part of Auckland's financial elite, building a reputation as an author and founding Auckland's first school of art.

Campbell's driving ambition in his twilight years was ensuring that his 400-acre One Tree Hill estate became a public park.

Sir John wanted the park to be a quiet haven of rest and relief, far from the crowded city's life, and somewhere children could play and watch animals grazing.

In 1902 he became a knight bachelor and, in the newspapers of the day, he was widely referred to as the father of Auckland.