Image Number291/1Datec.1867Decade1860sSubjectMayors & CouncillorsDescriptionFirst Mayor of Dunedin, 1865-67. On the 22nd July 1865, it was announced that William Mason had been elected Mayor of Dunedin, with 495 votes. The election of Mr Mason saw a step away from normal British practice, as he was voted in by Dunedin ratepayers, not by council members. Another change was that voting was made by secret ballot; a principle not yet adopted in parliamentary elections. Each male ratepayer was entitled to vote in any ward in which he held property. After serving two terms as Mayor of Dunedin, from 1865 to 1867, Mason returned to architecture in 1871 with the establishment of Mason & Wales, alongside N.Y.A Wales, a practice which still exists today. Notable Dunedin buildings attributed to Mason include Bishopscourt (399 Highgate) and All Saints’ Church (786 Cumberland Street).
