- My Family History: Introduction An introduction to my research into my family history.
- The Anderson Family My father's ancestors. Includes details of the Anderson, Veitch, Williams and Tricker families
- The McCauley Family My mother's ancestors. Includes details of the McCauley, Donaldson, Ford and Gadd families
- The Britton Family An investigation into the "mystery" of my family; why was my paternal grandmother, Florence Britton, abandoned as a baby on the doorstep of gamekeeper George Freestone and his wife Annie (formerly Heaton)? Includes details of the family of Florence's mother, Eliza Thomas (including the McCauslands) and Florence's recorded father, Joseph Ridgway Britton (including the Boodles)
The McCauley Family
My mother's ancestors. Includes details of the McCauley, Donaldson, Ford and Gadd families
History of the McCauley Family
The McCauley family has been traced back to Andrew McCauley, my great-great-great grandfather, who was born in Ireland in around 1801 and married Mary Neely in 1825; she was born in Ireland in 1806. John Snr. McCauley, my great-great grandfather, born in 1826 in Clogher, County Tyrone, in what is now Northern Ireland, was their elder child.
John Snr.’s brother, George McCauley, married Sarah Ne(i)ely, on 29
April 1867, at St. Macartan's Cathedral, Clogher, and they had two children,
George Jnr. (born in 1860) and Annie (born on 19 October 1871). Sarah (now
widowed) and George Jnr. were still living in Ireland at the time of the 1901
census, George Jnr. and his wife, Ellen, having had two children, Robert and
William George. George Jnr. was the coachman for the Rector of Ballygawley
and his two sons worked on Richmount farm.
John Snr. married twice, his first wife being Elizabeth Irwin, who was born in 1833 in Clogher and died on 11 November 1872 in Ireland. John Snr. married his second wife, Mary Ann Williamson, born in Belfast in 1847, on 28 January 1874 in St. Macartan's Cathedral, Clogher. John Snr. and Mary Ann had one child, born in Northern Ireland.
John Snr. and Elizabeth had 12 or 13 children, all born in Northern Ireland, some of whom died in infancy. The second of John Snr.’s children was my great-grandfather, John Jnr. McCauley, born in Clogher in 1852. John Jnr. married Eliza Jane Donaldson, born in 1851, on 14 November 1873 in Newtownsaville Church, Tyrone; at the time John Jnr. and Eliza were residing in the Corboe and Lislea townlands respectively. At the time of her marriage, Eliza Jane was already the mother of her first daughter, Jane, born on 7 November 1870; the birth certificate records the father as John, aged 44, and it is interesting to speculate whether this could have been John Snr.! [view full document]
Family Trees
The documents below are detailed family trees of this branch of my family.
- The McCauley Family Tree - 5 Generations (MS Word file - 305kB)
- The Gadd Family Tree - 6 Generations (MS Word file - 94kB)
Films
The clip below shows my grandfather, George Thomas McCauley, winning the 2 foot world chopping championship in Eltham, New Zealand on Boxing Day, 1911. In 1901, the Taranaki town of Eltham held the first ever World Championship Axemen's Carnival and in subsequent years men from all over New Zealand, Australia and further afield flocked to the town each Boxing Day to participate in this event. In 1911, Charles Wilkinson organised Wanganui photographer, Charles F. Newham, to make a 1000 foot (300 metre) movie of the Carnival. This was shown at the Wilkinson Picture Hall two weeks later in January 1912.The clip below is taken from this film. (In Internet Explorer, click once on the film to activate it before clicking on the central arrow to play).
(Requires Macromedia Flash. Playback smoothness will depend on the quality of your internet connection).
You may also choose to download these film clips from the Axemen's Carnival; right-click and then left-click "Save Target As" (or equivalent) on these links:
- George McCauley - World Champion (0:48 minutes, 11.98 MB QuickTime file)
- Axemen's Carnival - Complete Footage (10:33 minutes, 80.15 MB QuickTime file)
(Clips require QuickTime player for playback).
Photographs
Here is a selection of images connected to this part of my family. To see a larger version of any photograph, please click onto the thumbnail image; the full-size image will open in another browser window.
Christchurch Town Halls
Elijah Gadd, my great great grandfather, built the first (wooden) town hall (second building from the left), completed in 1857, but this soon proved too small. He also provided the stone for the second, much larger town hall (to the right of the photograph), completed in 1863.The stone hall was so badly damaged by an earthquake in 1869 that it was condemned. The Supreme Court used to sit in the wooden hall.
Heathcote Hotel in the 1880s
This hotel was previously jointly owned by my great great grandfather, Elijah Gadd
Heathcote Hotel in 2006
The same hotel as it is today, much modified and renamed the Valley Inn Tavern
Gadd Brick-kiln
The remains of Elijah Gadd's brickworks in Heathcote, photographed in 1930. The site was purchased by William Tasman Scott in 1920 and this photo is reproduced with the kind permission of his grandson, Tasman L. Scott.
House of Elijah Gadd
This house at 313 Port Hills Road, Heathcote, was built and lived in by Elijah Gadd. The photo is reproduced with the kind permission of Tasman L. Scott
House of Henry James and Emily Ann Ford
This house at 321 Porthills Road, Heathcote, was bought for my great grandparents by Emily Ann's father, Elijah Gadd. The photo is reproduced with the kind permission of Tasman L. Scott
Gadd Headstone
In Barbadoes Street Cemetery, Christchurch, New Zealand. The inscription reads as follows: "Sacred to the memory of Sarah Ann the beloved wife of Elijah Gadd who died Dec 2nd 1854 aged 24 years Also of Samuel their son who died Jan 26th 1855 aged 9 weeks Also of Sarah Ann the second and beloved wife of Elijah Gadd who died Jan 12th 1871 aged 31 years Also of Sarah Jane their daughter died May 23rd 1862 aged 14 months"
Joseph and Sarah Cooksley (formerly Gadd)
My great great great aunt (1824-1894), the eldest sister of Elijah Gadd, and her husband who emigrated to New Zealand on the ship Waikato in 1875
James and Hester Carpenter (formerly Gadd)
My great great great aunt (1832-1905), the third sister of Elijah Gadd, and her husband who emigrated to New Zealand on the ship Dunedin in 1874
The Light Brigade
Henry James Ford sailed from London to Lyttleton, New Zealand in this ship in 1868. It was a vessel of 1214 tons
Henry James and Emily Ann Ford (formerly Gadd) and their family
My great grandparents and their 7 children taken in New Zealand in the early 1900s. Back Row: Eva Emily (1880-1963); Christopher Reuben (1881-1948); Elizabeth Ann (1874-1965); Henry James (1875-1957); Sarah Ann (1878-1925). Middle Row: Henry James (1850-1915); Emily Ann (1853-1907). Front Row: William Alexander (1888 -1916); Frederick Thomas (1890-1977). An 8th child, Samuel George, died a month after his birth in 1892
Site of Ford Brickworks
This plaque was erected by Robert Bird on behalf of the Eltham and Districts Historical Society in Hu Road, Eltham, to mark the site of the brickworks operated by my great grandfather, Henry James Ford, and his son of the same name in the 1890s and early 1900s. Robert Bird is the husband of Janice Emily Bird, a granddaughter of Eva Emily Ford.
Misses Ford's Tearooms
Taken in Eltham, Taranaki, New Zealand, this was one of the old photographs printed on a series of commemorative drink-mats produced in New Zealand in the early 1990s. My grandmother, Sarah Ann Ford, is on the left and her sister, Eva Emily, on the right of the photograph.
The Jessie Osborne
The McCauley family sailed from Liverpool to Auckland, New Zealand in this ship in 1876. It was a full-rigged vessel of 1058 tons
George Thomas and Sarah Ann McCauley (formerly Ford)
Taken on the marriage of my grandparents in Kaponga, Taranaki, New Zealand on 4th August 1908
George Thomas McCauley
My grandfather, taken in his prime. George was a world champion axeman. He died tragically, burnt to death in his wooden hut, presumably due to smoking in bed, on 19th October 1938
Harry and Margaret Isabella Ladner (formerly McCauley)
My great uncle and aunt, taken on their marriage on 24th April 1911. Without children themselves, they brought up my mother and her siblings following the early death of their mother, Sara Ann McCauley.
Graves of John Jnr. McCauley, Eliza Jane McCauley (formerly Donaldson) and William McCauley
My great grandparents, John Jnr. and Eliza Jane McCauley, were born in Northern Ireland and emigrated to New Zealand in 1876. Their graves and that of John Jnr.'s brother, William, are in the Katikati cemetery, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. John Jnr. died on 26th May 1910 when his horse and cart left the road in the Athenree Gorge and fell into the Waihi River. John Jnr.'s infant grandson, Sydney John McCauley, is also buried in the same plot
Margaret Isabella, Lillian and Margaret Olive Allan
My great great aunt Margaret Isabella Allan (formerly McCauley, 1867-1934), a sister of John Jnr. McCauley, and her daughters, Lillian Mabel (1895-1971) and Margaret Olive (1902-1976)
Martha Brierly (formerly McCauley)
My great great aunt Martha Brierly (formerly McCauley, 1863-1932), a sister of John Jnr. McCauley. Martha gave birth to an illegitimate son during the voyage of the Jessie Osborne bringing the McCauley family to New Zealand. Family researchers have recently established that this son was George John (Peg-Leg) McCauley, previously thought to be the son of John Snr. and his second wife, Mary Ann McCauley.
Hazel Emily Anderson (formerly McCauley)
My mother taken prior to her marriage
John Glen McCauley
My uncle (and godfather) John joined the RAF after the outbreak of war and was lost while a passenger on a Handley Page Harrow aircraft flying from Portreath, Cornwall, to Gibraltar on 19th December 1942. He, his father (George Thomas McCauley) and grandfather (John Jnr. McCauley) all died in accidents
John Glen and Joan Dorothy McCauley (formerly Harvey)
My uncle and aunt, presumably taken at about the time of their marriage in London on 16th July 1938
Plaque in Memory of John Glen McCauley
Placed beside an oak tree at the National Memorial Arboretum near Alrewas, Staffordshire, U.K. on 21st September 2006. The wording is as follows: "In memory of Flying Officer John Glen McCauley R.A.F.V.R.118987. Born Kaponga, New Zealand. Lost over Bay of Biscay on 19.12.42, aged 30 years. Planted by his nephew and godson, Robert John Anderson".
Quita Margarett Eva Crone (formerly McCauley)
My aunt Quita was the youngest of my mother's three siblings. She died on 18th September, 1967, at the young age of 44, shortly after this photograph was taken, leaving a husband and six young children