William Powditch

William Powditch (8 February 1795 – 22 August 1872) was a very early settler in New Zealand's Bay of Islands and a politician in Auckland.

[1] He commanded the Royal George that brought Thomas Brisbane, the incoming Governor of New South Wales, to Sydney in 1821[2] and accompanied George Arthur, the incoming Lieutenant Governor of Van Diemen's Land on his trip to Tasmania in 1824.

[3] He was a trader in the Bay of Islands when the Postmaster-General of New South Wales appointed him in 1831 "to receive and return mail"; this was the first postal service between Australia and New Zealand.

[6] He represented the Pensioner Settlements electorate until February 1856 when he resigned,[7] and again from April 1857 to September 1861.

[9] His membership of the council and his speakership ended when he was defeated by Maurice O'Rorke at 9 November 1865 election for Onehunga,[5][10] who also succeeded him as speaker.