WARD, JOSEPH (1817-92) was born in Staffordshire. A surveyor by profession, he came to Nelson in the George Fyfe (1842), and with his brother-in-law (Cyrus Goulter) was employed by the New Zealand Company, and later by the Nelson provincial government, laying off a part of the Wairau block for agricultural purposes. He also surveyed pastoral runs in Marlborough and the town and district of Kaikoura. Ward took up a large block of country on the Clarence river, which he named the Warden run and afterwards increased by the addition of the Tytler run. At one time he was running more than 50,000 sheep, but the ravages of scab and rabbits compelled him to surrender a portion and in his later years he devoted his attention to the Blythfield and Brookby estates. He saw much adventure and hardship in the early days of Marlborough. To gain access to his property he developed the track by Ward's pass (which he discovered). His interest in the welfare of the whole district never flagged; and no member of the Provincial Council did better service in the stormy days of Marlborough politics. From 1853-57 he represented Wairau in the Nelson Council. Marlborough being established as a separate province, he was a member of that Council throughout (representing Flaxbourne and Clarence 1860-62, Clarence 1862-69, and Wairau valley 1869-75). He was a member of the executive in 1860, 1862 and 1867-69 and was deputy-superintendent in 1867. In 1875 (when Seymour left on a visit to England) Ward agreed to stand for the Wairau seat in Parliament and defeated Moorhouse. What he saw of general politics in the session of 1875, when the battle of the provinces was being fought out, sufficed to disillusion him. He stood for re-election, but was defeated by Henry Dodson, and resisted all future overtures to re-enter the colonial sphere. He was a justice of the peace and did duty as such for many years and on many local boards. A Roman Catholic by religion, he was a faithful supporter of the church in his province. Ward died on 12 Nov 1892.

Nelson and Marlborough P.C. Proc. and Gaz.; Redwood; Cycl. N.Z., v (p); Buick, Marlborough (p); Marlborough Express, 13 Nov 1892.

Reference: Volume 2, page 233

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