REYNOLDS, WILLIAM HUNTER (1822-99) was born at Chatham, Kent, the son of Thomas Reynolds, a retired lieutenant of the Royal Navy, who invested in cork plantations in Spain and Portugal. Reynolds passed his early days at Oporto, but a revolution in 1828 compelled the family to leave. He was educated at Nicholson Street Academy and Fountain Bridge school, Edinburgh. At the age of 12 he returned with his parents to Oporto, and attended a school kept by an Englishman, on whose death he went into his father's business. In a few years he acquired a thorough knowledge of the stripping and preparation of cork for the market. Returning to London in 1842, Reynolds found it necessary to study English afresh to acquire facility. For some years he managed the London house of the firm, which in one year had a turnover of £185,000. Then he went into business for himself in London. During these years Reynolds became acquainted with James Macandrew (who married his sister), and he also conceived an interest in the Otago Association. They all sailed together for New Zealand in the iron schooner Titan (reaching Dunedin in Jan 1851). They acquired a house in High street, and their store was at the corner of Stafford and Manse streets. As soon as the merchandise had been put under cover, Reynolds set off on foot through south Otago as far as Jacob's river in search of produce to make a cargo for California, where the diggings had opened up a lucrative market. Before leaving on this voyage the Titan loaded at Hobart with produce and stores for the business. The vacant space was filled up with Otago potatoes, barley, and lime. The Titan reached San Francisco just after the great fire of 1851, and Reynolds not only disposed of the cargo at a good profit, but was able to buy a return cargo advantageously. Most of this he disposed of profitably in Sydney. Filling up there with cattle and sheep, he returned to Dunedin, having made a profit of £8,000 to £9,000 on the voyage.

Reynolds was soon appointed to the commission of the peace, and he was agent for Lloyds until 1888. While still a member of Macandrew and Co., he acted on occasion as managing editor of the Otago Witness during the absence of Cutten. The circulation of this sixpenny weekly was then only 130 copies, and when the compositors struck for overdue wages Reynolds, by means of an energetic canvass, raised the subscription list to 300, and handed the paper back to Cutten as a sound proposition. On the introduction of representative government (1853) he was elected to the Provincial Council for the City of Dunedin, and when the provinces were abolished (1876) he had the record of having been a member of the Council throughout. Between 1854 and 1865 he was eight times a member of the executive. In 1867 he was elected speaker, a position he held with dignity for three years. During his occupancy of the chair he introduced (or reintroduced) the practice of wearing gown and bands. Reynolds first went into Parliament for Dunedin and Suburbs South (against Vogel and Cutten) in 1863. Three years later, when Macandrew had been re-elected Superintendent and the Stafford Government refused to delegate to him the usual powers respecting goldfields, feeling was so strong in Otago that those who had taken the side of the 'Centralists' - Paterson, Reynolds, and Richardson - were hooted on their appearance in Dunedin. In the Waterhouse Government (1872) and that of Fox (1873) Reynolds was Commissioner of Customs, and he was Colonial Secretary in Vogel's ministry for a few months in 1873. Though he had always been a provincialist at heart, he saw no hope of turning back the hands of the clock. Nevertheless, his retention of his portfolio cost him his seat in Parliament. In 1875 the Centralist candidates were beaten by over 400 votes by three provincialists - Macandrew, Stout, and Larnach. A few days later Reynolds was returned by Port Chalmers, and he afterwards took office in the Pollen Government. In 1876 he was strongly favoured for the speakership, but Vogel propitiated Fitzherbert with the post. Reynolds in 1878 resigned his seat, and was called to the Legislative Council, of which he remained a member until his death. On two occasions (1884-85 and 1886-87) he was a member without portfolio of the Stout-Vogel Government. In 1855 he went to Victoria, and succeeded in bringing to Otago in the Gil Blas a considerable number of immigrants. In 1856 the firm of Macandrew contracted with the provincial government to bring 2,000 immigrants from the United Kingdom. Reynolds went to London to superintend the shipping arrangements, while James Adam secured the immigrants. When Reynolds returned to New Zealand his partnership with Macandrew was dissolved, and he built some warehouses at the foot of Jetty street.

While he was provincial secretary Reynolds carried through the Otago education ordinance. The poll tax was not popular, and some of his constituents called upon Reynolds to resign. Once more he refused. He had his justification in the Otago system of education, recognised as one of the soundest in the colony. He was for some years a member of the board of school commissioners, a governor of the High Schools and a member of the board of church property. From 1869 he was a member of the council of Otago University. While Minister of Trade and Customs he promoted the establishment of a training ship for boys at Kohimarama as a means of dealing with juvenile crime. In Parliament he took charge of many measures affecting municipal government in Dunedin. He helped to reserve the town belt and to secure for the hospital the buildings used for the Exhibition of 1865. He was an original trustee of the Dunedin Savings Bank (1864), and remained one until his death. He was associated with the establishment of the Colonial Bank and was a director until the amalgamation with the Bank of New Zealand and was a director also of the Westport Coal Co., the Perpetual Trustees, Estate, and Agency Co., and the Otago Daily Times and Witness Co.

Reynolds married (1856) Rachel Selina (1838-1928), daughter of William Pinkerton (q.v.). He died on 1 Apr 1899.

Otago P.C. Proc.; N.Z.P.D., 28 Jun 1899; Cycl. N.Z., iv; Hocken, Otago; Gols Gent.; Otago Daily Times, 2 Apr 1899, 7 Mar 1950 (p).

Reference: Volume 2, page 117

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