Act 29

The New Zealanders

The story of the Farndales who made New Zealand their home

The New Zealand Podcast

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New Zealand

New Zealand was first settled from Eastern Polynesia. Genetic and archaeological evidence suggests that humans emigrated from Taiwan via southeast Asia to Melanesia and then radiated eastwards into the Pacific in pulses and waves of discovery which gradually colonised islands from Samoa and Tonga all the way to Hawaii, the Marquesas, Easter Island, the Society Islands and, finally, New Zealand. In New Zealand there are no human artifacts or remains dating earlier than the Kaharoa Tephra, a layer of volcanic debris deposited by the Mount Tarawera eruption around 1314.

The descendants of these settlers became known as the Māori, forming a distinct culture of their own. The tiny Chatham Islands in the east of New Zealand were settled by the Moriori who ventured eastward in about 1500.

The first Europeans known to reach New Zealand were the crew of Dutch explorer Abel Tasman who arrived in his ships Heemskerck and Zeehaen. Tasman anchored at the northern end of the South Island in Golden Bay and named it Murderers' Bay in December 1642. He then sailed northward to Tonga following an attack by local Māori, Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri.

There was a difficult relationship with settlers. Māoris from New Zealand first visited London in the 1820s. They encouraged white settlers in the 1820s and 1830s. Many settlers were innocuous, even benevolent. However others were less scrupulous. Captain William Hobson signed the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 with Māori rulers, intended to control white settlement and regulate land sale. British troops ended up fighting the Māori in the 1860s to defend the settlers whose aggressive behaviour the British government deplored.

North Island

Scene 1 – The Masterton Farndales

Ronald Martin Farndale, son of Robert and Sarah Jane (nee Alcock) Farndale was born into the Wakefield 1 Line in Stanley, Wakefield on 22 January 1919. He descended from the Farndales of Craggs Hall Farm.

Ronald Martin Farndale

1919 to 1974

Captured at the Battle of Sidi Rezegh in North Africa, Ronald emigrated to New Zealand where his descendants still live

Wellington, New Zealand

On 30 April 1936 Ronald Farndale, 17, a farmer, departed from London for Wellington, New Zealand on the Ruahine of the New Zealand Shipping Company Limited. His last address was Bells Farm near Skipton. The SS Ruahine was a passenger and cargo liner in service from 1916 until 1949. She was refitted in 1926 with reduced passenger accommodation, and again in 1933 with 220 tourist class berths. He farmed at Morrinsville and Mastamata, Waikato, northeast of Hamilton.

Ronald served in World War 2 in 6th Field Ambulance Royal Army Medical Corps in Greece and Crete and he was captured in North Africa and was a prisoner of war in Italian camps. His wartime history will be picked up in Act 32.

Masterton, New Zealand

Ronald returned to New Zealand with the Army after the war. He was repatriated to UK in 1943, but he must have then returned to New Zealand. He became a builder in Masterton north of Wellington.

Masterton is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a region separated from Wellington by the Rimutaka ranges. It is 100 kilometres north east of Wellington.

The town was founded in 1854 by the Small Farms Association, led by Joseph Masters, after whom the town was named, and aimed to settle working people in villages and on the land. At first Masterton grew slowly, but as its farming hinterland became more productive it began to prosper. In the 1870s Masterton overtook Greytown as Wairarapa’s major town and Masterton became a borough in 1877. The town was reached by the railway line from Wellington in 1880. The railway became for a time the main line from Wellington to the north of New Zealand and its arrival cemented the town’s position as the Wairarapa region’s main market and distribution centre.

The railway station opened 1880 demolished 1967 The Post Office opened 1900 demolished 1960

In April 1965 one of the country's worst industrial accidents occurred at the General Plastics Factory on 170 Dixon Street. Masterton's real growth ended with a period of agricultural retrenchment from the mid 1970s. Efforts to decentralise industry to New Zealand's provinces gave Masterton a print works and some other industries but the lost economic activity was not restored.

Ronald married Margaret Madge Maxted (born 1906) on 28 July 1945 in Auckland. Maxwell Farndale was born on 21 May 1946 in New Zealand. In the 1946 Electoral Roll, Ronald Martin Farndale, a carpenter, lived at 81a Hillsborough Road, Roskill, Auckland with his wife Margaret Madge Farndale. In the 1954 Electoral Roll, Ronald Martin Farndale, a carpenter, lived at 99 Banister Street, Hawkes Bay, Wellington. Margaret died of a brain tumour in 1956. She is buried at Archer Street Cemetery, where Ronald was later buried.

Ronald married Doris Elaine Wilkin in 1959 in New Zealand.

Ronald and Doris

Bruce Matthew Farndale was born in 1960. Wendy Jane Farndale was born in 1962. In 1963 the family lived at 24A Fleet Street, Wairarapa, and Ronald was a carpenter with Doris Elaine Farndale. James Ronald Farndale was born and died on 8 December 1965 . Lynda Rose Farndale was born in or about 1967 and sadly passed away on 13 January 1967 in infancy. Donna Ruth Farndale was born in 1970. Robyn Joye Farndale, born 1972 when the family lived at 24A Fleet Street, Wairarapa, New Zealand, Ronald, a carpenter. Ronald’s son Maxwell Farndale, a clerk, with Maxwell’s wife Gail Ann Farndale, lived at 3 Casel Street, Wairarapa. The New Zealand Line are Ronald’s descendants.

Max Farndale married Gail Ann Cadwallada on 9 December 1967 at Carterton, south of Masterton. He became a sports shop owner and Secretary of the New Zealand Indoor Cricket Federation.

Max Farndale Ronald Farndale

Ronald died on 3 July 1974 at the age of 55 in Masterton. He is buried at Row 13 for ex servicemen at Archer Street Cemetery. He is also commemorated on a public memorial in Waharoa District, Matamata County for his service during the Second World War: R M Farndale; 62103, 2nd NZEF, Pte; NZ Medical Corps; Died 3.7.1974.

Ronald’s widow, Doris Elaine, remarried Jack Cottle in about 1980 and Jack passed away in about 2014. Doris and Jack had no children.

Max Farndale died on 2 December 2018. He was the founder of MSC Newswire, the National Press Club’s associate site. The National Press Club’s association with the site began four years ago and it reached a peak of activity this year when monthly visits reached 1.2 million. Mr Farndale configured the site around an international audience, reasoning that New Zealand media had become over-localised. Burly and affable and well known in Auckland athletic circles, notably in cycling and running, Mr Farndale had worked in production engineering and travel before arriving in the publishing sector. MSC Newswire became renowned for its predictions including the ascendancy of Donald Trump, and the fall of the National Party in the New Zealand general election.

Scene 2 – The Gisborne Farndales

Wilfred Farndale, the son of Tom and Dora (nee Perkins) Farndale, was born into the Stockton 3 Line in Stockton in 1911. Wilfred Farndale moved from Stockton in about 1936 or 1937, to Bristol where he met Doris Evelyn Howard (1919 to 1992), who was in domestic service. They were married in 1939. Between 1937 to 1947 the family lived near the aircraft factory at Filton, Gloucestershire, which was a 30 minute walk for Wilf. During the years 1942 to 1944 the family lived by the seaside at Weston-Super-Mare because of the air raids during the war. Wilf commuted by train during the days and manned the anti aircraft batteries at night. The family returned to Filton in 1945.

Wilf Farndale

1911 to 1985

An aircraft engineer in Bristol, Wilf emigrated to New Zealand

Wilfred John Howard (“Howard”) Farndale was born on 25 April 1940, at Filton. To Mr and Mrs W Farndale (nee Doris Howard), “Glenholme”, Conygre-road, Fulton, Bristol, on April 25, a son. Keith Allan (“Allan”) Farndale was born in 1942 at Weston Super Mare. Neil Hamilton Farndale was born in 1947, at Filton. Nigel John Farndale was born in 1950, at Filton. Melanie Frances Farndale was born in March 1952, at Filton. The New Zealand 2 Line are the descendants of Wilf Farndale who settled at Gisborne, North Island in 1964 to follow their eldest son, Howard. Wilf built bridges in the Gisborne area.

On 11 September 1959, Howard departed from Glasgow on board the SS Captain Cook for Wellington, New Zealand. His address was 45 Conygre Road, Filton, Bristol and he was a ledger clerk. He settled in Gisborne.

Howard married Shirley Parsons in July 1963.

Shirley, eldest daughter of Mrs N. Parsons, Hastings, to Howard, eldest son of Mr and Mrs W. Farndale, Bristol, England. The couple both work in Gisborne

The Māori called Gisborne Tūranga-nui-a-Kiwa, Great standing place of Kiwa. During the 14th century, Māori built fishing villages close to the sea and built pā on nearby hilltops.

Gisborne's Kaiti Beach is the place where Captain James Cook made his first landing in New Zealand from the Endeavour. Cook had earlier set off from Plymouth in August 1768 on a mission bound for Tahiti. After visiting in Tahiti, Cook continued south to look for a large landmass or continent, before heading west. Young Nick's Head was thought to be the first piece of New Zealand land sighted by Cook's party, and so named because it was first observed by cabin boy Nicholas Young on 6 October 1769. On 9 October, Cook came ashore on the eastern bank of the Tūranganui River, accompanied by a party of men. Their arrival was marred by misunderstanding and resulted in the death and wounding of nine Māori over four days. It was also on the banks of the Tūranganui River that first the township of Turanga grew as European traders and whalers began to settle in the river and port area. From the early 1830s, traders such as Captain John Harris and Captain George E. Read set up the first trading stations along the Tūranganui river and are attributed to the founding of the town. In 1831 John Harris set up the first trading station in Tūranga on behalf of a Sydney firm. Over the next 30 years, many more European traders and missionaries migrated to the region.

In 1868, the government bought 300 hectares of land for a town site. The town was laid out in 1870 and the name changed from Turanga to Gisborne, after the then colonial secretary, and to avoid confusion with Tauranga. In 1872, Gisborne's first public school was opened and its first newspaper, the Poverty Bay Standard was established. A town council was formed in 1877.

Rapid development came towards the end of the century on the back of a thriving pastoral hinterland. Two freezing works and many other industries were established. The population rose from 2,737 in 1901 to more than 15,000 in 1926.

At the end of the 1920s Gisborne had all the markers of a provincial capital except a railway line. It had an improved harbour, a substantial post office, a high school and an impressive main street (Gladstone Road). Large houses were built along the left bank of the Taruheru River and a botanical garden developed on the right bank. The 1950s and 1960s was a buoyant period. Pastoral farming thrived, the port was complemented by a rail link and an airport, and a food-processing and canning industry developed. Substantial areas of state housing were built off Childers Road, towards the airport. Gisborne attained city status in 1955. Gisborne High School was divided into boys’ and girls’ schools, and Lytton and Campion colleges opened. The population reached 30,000 in 1976.

Wilf and the rest of the family followed Howard to Gisborne in 1964.

Howard was best man at his brother Allan’s wedding in October 1966 to Heather Dawn Fenton.

At Holy Trinity Church, Heather Dawn, daughter of Mr and Mrs S J Fenton, Waipaoa, to Keith Allan, son of Mr and Mrs W J Farndale, 8 Foster Street. The attendants are, from left, Janice Fenton, Waipaoa, sister of the bride, chief maid, Howard Farndale, Gisborne, brother of the groom, best man, Zandra Fenton, Waipaoa, sister of the bride, and Melanie Farndale, Gisborne, sister of the groom. The flower girls are Deborah Harris, Gisborne, and Judith Parkinson, Hexton, both nieces of the bride. Future home, Cheltenham, Auckland

Neil Hamilton Farndale married Heather Morris in 1967 at Gisborne.

Eastern Union Association football team reached a notable goal when they won the coveted Central Districts League trophy this season. At the club's annual cabaret the trophy was presented to Eastern Union captain Bob Elliott by Doug Remeril of Hastings (chairman C.D.L.). Wilf Farndale (chairman P.B.F.A.), and Ian Whitley (chairman of Eastern Union), look on.

Joyce Turnbull, Elsie Stevens, Doris Farndale and Kirsty Fletcher P.B.F.A. chairman Wilf Farndale and his wife Doris, 1968

Enjoying the sunshine at the playcentre are Penny Ford, Melanie Farndale, Mrs Jacqueline Stubbs, secretary, David Haldane, Laura Keege, Karina Kowai, Karen Stubbs, and Irene Donaldson, 1968

With a cast of 25, the opera The Bride of Seville, an adaptation of “The Barber of Seville by Rossini, was presented by students of the Girl’s High School. 1969. Rosina, played by Melanie Farndale

Nurses in training at Cook Hospital receive lectures about the work of the Public Health nurse. Public Health nurse Miss A Bull has in her class, from left, front row; Nurses Elaine Cleland, Kath Beach, Lyn Ashdown, Lesley Dunlop, Robyn McLeod and, at back, Melanie Farndale, Anne Callaghan, Margaret Kover, Mary Ngatoa and Diane Stuart.

In 1970, on board the navy supply ship H.M.N.Z.S. Endeavour when it called into Gisborne on a short visit recently was Petty Officer Allan Farndale. He is the son of Wilf and Doris Farndale, 8 Foster Street. Allan was in the British Navy before transferring to the New Zealand Navy nearly six years ago, and completes his 12 years' service next January. After he leaves the. Navy, Alan intends to settle in Gisborne. From left: Mr Farndale, Allan, Mrs Farndale, Melanie and Nigel.

On 5 October 1962, USS Namakagon was transferred to under the Military Aid Program, to the Royal New Zealand Navy. She was commissioned as HMNZS Endeavour (A184), an Antarctic supply ship. She delivered fuel to research bases on Antarctica, bringing over 1 million gallons each year to McMurdo Sound. Endeavour completed two Antarctic voyages south each season between December and March. She then completed one each in her last two seasons. Her last voyage to the ice was January to February 1971, returning to Auckland via Lyttelton on 18 March, 1971. Endeavour was decommissioned and returned to U.S. custody in 1971.

In 1972, Howard was a welder and his family lived at 28 Bidois Road, Bay of Plenty.

Melanie Frances Farndale married David Harris in 1972.

Wilf Farndale, Ray Gorringe and Nigel Farndale. 1974 Wilf Farndale, Nigel Farndale, Dave Nelson and Gary Fowler, 1975

Nigel John Farndale died at Gisborne, New Zealand on 12 April 1977.

In 1978 Howard was a manager living with Shirley at 23 Collie Drive and in 1981, at same address, a manager, his wife now a manageress.

Wilfred died in Gisborne, New Zealand on 13 November 1985. He was buried at Taruheru Cemetery, in Gisborne, Plot 292. In loving memory of Nigel John Farndale, died 9 April 1977, aged 26 years, also his dad, Wilfred, died 13 November 1985. Doris died in Gisborne in March 1992. FARNDALE, nee Howard. Deepest Sympathy Dad and Auntie Binny on the loss of your sister and our Auntie Doris, our love and thoughts are with you – Margaret, Kathryn and Elizabeth.

Melanie died on 13 January 2012 at Gisborne. Neil died in Auckland in 2019.

Allan Farndale

Howard died on 3 April 2022. Dearly loved father of Melanie and Micheal. Much loved husband of the late Shirley. Greatly loved Poppa and Great Poppa. No funeral at Dad's request. Sadly missed by all. Rest in peace. Sorry to hear of Howards passing. Our history together goes back to the "Mills - Tui" days where Howard was the production Manager and I was based in Auckland. (In the 70's) When we went to Rotorua with clients, Howard always greeted us with a smile and a handshake. We stayed in touch from time to time since then and until last year. I will miss our conversations. Always a true Gentleman, you have gone too soon and will be missed. RIP Howard.

Scene 3 – Other New Zealand Settlers

Frederick Farndale, son of James and Mary Ann (nee Fairbairn) Farndale, was born in Middlesbrough on 20 November 1926. He lived in New Zealand in the 1960s, and later returned to live in Stockton.

Brian William Farndale, son of William Claude Gladys May (nee Browne) Farndale, was born into the Norwich Line on 10 November 1933. In 1967, Brian, a pattern cutter sailed to Australia from New Zealand on business. By then, he was resident in New Zealand. He stayed at the Florida Motel, 117 Victoria Street, Kings Cross, Sydney. In 1969 and 1972 he lived in New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. New Plymouth is on the North Taranaki Bight, about 150 kilometres northwest of Wellington. In 1978 and 1981 he lived in Fendalton, Canterbury, at Christchurch on the South Island of New Zealand. Brian died, aged 72, in 2005 in New Zealand.

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