Mark Woolf Silverstone

Mark Woolf Silverstone (born Marks; December 1880[note 1] – 7 September 1951)[2] was a notable Polish-born New Zealand cabinet-maker, socialist, local politician and financier, who co-founded the New Zealand Alliance of Labour.

He was born in Pułtusk, Poland to Jewish parents, Barnett Silverstone, a tailor, and his wife, Esther Gotshank. His parents fled Poland to London in 1889 due to religious persecution.[3]

A socialist, his religious faith declined and he joined the National Secular Society. On 25 June 1904, he wed Esther Ethel Feld, a fellow socialist and émigré.[3] He became a naturalised citizen of New Zealand in 1907.[4]

Silverstone acted as secretary of the Dunedin branch of the National Peace and Anti-militarist League from 1913, which opposed New Zealand's participation in World War I. However, as a councillor on the Otago Labour Council he sponsored a resolution seeking to safeguard the welfare and interests of demobbed soldiers returning home. In 1936, Silverstone was appointed to the board of directors of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand by Walter Nash, then-Minister of Finance.[3]

Death

Mark Woolf Silverstone died at Dunedin, New Zealand on 7 September 1951. He was survived by his wife, two sons and two daughters.[3]

Notes
  1. Silverstone's year of birth is widely given as 1883. However, he was enrolled in Chicksand Street School in 1890 in Tower Hamlets, London, with a date of birth given as December 1880.[1] Additionally, he was listed as 26 years old when he was naturalised on 12 September 1907.
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References
  1. London, England, School Admissions and Discharges, 1840-1911
  2. "Silverstone, Mark Woolf - The Community Archive". thecommunityarchive.org.nz.
  3. Tubbs, Richard V. "Mark Woolf Silverstone". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  4. Woolf Marks Silverstone; New Zealand, Naturalisations, 1843-1981
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