Thomas Coldham Williams
{{Short description|New Zealand land owner}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Use New Zealand English|date=March 2025}}
Thomas Coldham Williams (1825—1912) was a New Zealand land owner. A son of Henry Williams, Williams received a good education and had access to capital, which led to him acquiring a lot of land, especially in the Wairarapa. Williams managed the Brancepeth Station and was critical of the government's acquisition of land in the Manawatu District area.
Biography
=Early life=
Williams was born in Paihia, New Zealand, in 1825. As the son of Henry Williams, Williams was educated at Te Waimate Mission.
Williams later studied at St John's College and received education from his uncle William Williams.{{cite journal |last1=Carpenter |first1=Samuel |title=Te Whānau Wiremu ki Aotearoa: How the Williams' story has shaped Christianity, Culture, and Nation in Aotearoa, New Zealand. |pages=36–50|doi=10.3316/informit.516848635977393 |journal=Stimulus: The New Zealand Journal of Christian Thought and Practice|volume=30|issue=1|publisher=Laidlaw College|issn=2230-5963 |date=June 2023|doi-broken-date=6 April 2025 }} Williams farmed in the Bay of Islands before moving to Auckland and in 1864, being elected to represent the Bay of Islands on the Auckland Provincial Council, but did not take the seat and moved to the Wellington Province.{{cite book |last1=Scholefield |first1=Guy |title=A Dictionary of New Zealand Biography |date=1940 |publisher=Department of Internal Affairs |edition=2 |page=515}}
=Personal life=
In 1858, Williams married Anne Beetham, Williams and his wife had 13 children.{{cite encyclopaedia|encyclopaedia=The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Wellington Provincial District]|title=Mr. Thomas C. Williams|url=https://ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/webarchive/20210104000423/http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc01Cycl-t1-body-d4-d62-d17.html#name-131349-mention|date=1897}}
=Brancepeth=
File:Brancepeth Station house 5.jpg
Williams marriage to Anne Beetham, daughter of William Beetham, put Williams in charge of Brancepeth, a {{cvt|4,000|hectare}} station in Wainuioru. Williams used his capital to double the size by purchasing land from local Mãori.{{cite web |last1=Stirling |first1=Bruce |last2=O'Brien |first2=Rebecca |last3=Howes |first3=Xanthe |title=Brancepeth Station |url=https://www.heritage.org.nz/list-details/7649/Brancepeth%20Station |website=Heritage New Zealand |date=10 October 2005}} The Brancepeth Station eventually grew to {{cvt|49,000|acres}}.
In addition to Brancepeth, Williams had {{cvt|2,000|acres}} at Lansdowne and had town sections in Pahiatua, Eketāhuna, and Masterton, as well as owning most of the land around Kerikeri by the 1890s.{{cite encyclopaedia|title=Kerikeri|page=6|chapter=Northland places|encyclopaedia=Te Ara|date=12 December 2005|author=Claudia Orange|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/northland-places/page-6}}
=Manawatu purchase=
In the 1850s, the government started purchasing land around the Manawatu District area. Williams believed the purchase was in violation of the Treaty of Waitangi and wrote to newspapers about the purchase as well as writing a pamphlet in 1868 titled: The Manawatu Purchase Completed, or, The Treaty of Waitangi Broken. Williams signed his pamphlet as a 'Native of New Zealand', which at the time was a term typically reserved for Mãori. Williams, who was not a lawyer, also served as legal counsel for Ngāti Raukawa in their case in the Native Land Court about the purchase. The court sided with the government and the purchase was ruled valid.
=Queen Margaret College Tower=
File:Queen Margaret College Tower Building 2.jpg
By 1878, Williams was living in Wellington. In March 1878, Williams had purchased a Hobson Street property belonging to the deceased architect William Clayton. This property was one of the first concrete residences in New Zealand and Williams hired Charles Tringham to extend the property. The property was known for the events that were held there during the 19th and 20th century. Following Williams' death the property became part of Queen Margaret College.{{cite web |last1=Morrell |first1=Vivienne |title=Queen Margaret College Tower Building |url=https://www.heritage.org.nz/list-details/1419/Listing |website=Heritage New Zealand |date=7 July 2013}}
=Manako Station=
In Kerikeri, Williams had a station of {{cvt|6,640|acre}} named Manako Station that grew a wide variety of crops, in addition to cattle, sheep, and horses. The station grew paspalum, Swedes, turnips, oats, and heathgrass. The station also experimented with gorse, which later became a weed in the area as the temperate climate allowed it to spread quickly. Williams' sons, Guy and Hugh, helped to run the station and it was one of the largest employers in Kerikeri.{{cite report|url=https://heritage.nzdl.org/greenstone3/library/collection/pdf-reports/document/Johnson93|title= Archaeological Monitoring of the FNDC Kerikeri Riverbank Stabilisation Works NZHPT Authority 2009/67|date=2009|first1=Leigh|last1=Johnson|publisher=Far North District Council}}{{cite report|title= Archaeological Survey and Assessment of the Proposed Footbridge and Paths; Underground Power Cabling; Road Turning Circles; Road Removal and Landscaping and Partial Completion of Heritage New Zealand Authority 2008/245, Kerikeri Basin, Kerikeri, Northland|last1=Johnson|first1=Leigh|first2=Elisabeth|last2=Callaghan|url=https://heritage.nzdl.org/greenstone3/library/collection/pdf-reports/document/Johnson134|date=2008|publisher=Far North District Council}}