ROWLEY, THOMAS, a son of the first dean designate of Christchurch Cathedral (who did not come to New Zealand to take up his duties), arrived in Canterbury in the early fifties. He bought the Sandy Knolls estate in 1854, and the Alford estate on the Waimakariri in 1860. He sat in the House of Representatives as member for Ellesmere from 1861 until he resigned in 1862, when he sold his share in the property to his partner (Tooth) and returned to Scotland. He married a daughter of Archdeacon Mathias.

Acland; Don.

Reference: Volume 2, page 133

🌳 Further sources