William Montgomery

William John Alexander Montgomery (1821 – 21 December 1914) was a New Zealand politician and merchant from Little River on Banks Peninsula. Born in London, he lived in a number of places and pursued a number of occupations before settling in Christchurch, New Zealand. Private life Early life Montgomery was from an old Scottish family that had settled in Ireland. He was born in London and baptised on 14 January 1821. His father was Josias Montgomery, a saddler, and his mother was Eleanor Martin. His father was killed in a hunting accident in 1825, and William was educated in Belfast at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, where his uncle Henry Montgomery was head of English.