Josiah Firth

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Josiah Clifton Firth (1826 – 1897) was a New Zealand farmer and businessman who had a brief brush with fame as the messenger between Te Kooti and the New Zealand Government during Te Kooti's War.

Born in Yorkshire, England, he moved to New Zealand in the early 1850s and settled in Auckland where he began making bricks and also took a one third interest in a flour mill. In 1859 he made his first visit to Mata Mata where he met and became friendly with Wiremu Tamehana, the King Maker.

In 1865 in the aftermath of the Invasion of the Waikato, Firth was able to lease from Tamehana a large area of land around Mata Mata for a rental of up to five hundred pounds a year. Two years later he bought outright some of the land covered by the lease and this became the basis of his estate at Mata Mata. Meanwhile his businesses in Auckland were prospering and he was able to construct a very fine house on the eastern side of Mt Eden.

Early in 1870 Josiah, or Hohaia as he was known to the Māori, was contacted by Te Kooti during his flight from Te Porere through the King Country and back to the Ureweras. Te Kooti wanted Hohaia to negotiate on his behalf with the New Zealand Government.

If they let me alone I will live quietly; if not I will fight

But Te Kooti had aroused too much fear and hatred for his offer to be accepted, and it was rejected out of hand. There was also considerable official annoyance with Josiah Firth. The Military and Politicians felt that he was abusing his position as a wealthy settler to interfere with national politics, they weren't going to let an amateur make peace and spoil their game. This was Firth's only appearance on the national scene.

In 1873 Firth began a seven year project to clear the Waihou River of snags and obstacles to navigation thus opening the upper reaches of the Thames Estuary to shipping.

New Zealand agriculture went through a serious depression during the 1880s, one which hit Firth hard, and in 1889 he was declared bankrupt. Later he began to develop a trade in pumice based on its properties of insulation and fire resistance, travelling to the United States and England. However he died suddenly just as the venture was becoming successful.