Arthur Milson Edmonds Part 1
edmondsallan- Hi to everyone . I am looking out the window at some miserable weather . A certain angel,who seems to have liked me a very long time , just refilled my cuppa, the cat is in her usual place ,warming the computer . what more could one ask .
Having put the John Samuel Edmonds death saga away to be filed , I thought we could look into another Edmonds, a few years closer to our time frame .and also has a mystery about him in our family records. Why have I suddenly brought this piece of ancestry up ?. I will tell you. . I am fortunate to own two ( 2 )computers . One is very old , with a huge amount of research / ancestral/ family / sea currents / wakapapa's / maori tribal Boundaries / and much , much more .I daren't get rid of it ,as I could not replace / remember / or transfer this valuable resource without causing some very big problems . The other is an up to date real workhorse. . I had both specially built to certain specs ( I better stop blowing my trumpet or you will all run away ) just warming up the hands . OK . now I'm ready -
On the old computer a was looking up info , & I came across some enquiries dated -- 16 / 8/ 2006 asking after " Ada Cross " wife of
" Arthur " If we go to our family tree , we have " Arthur's ' in every generation . When this enquiry asked after , " Ada Cross " with
" Arthur " my brain engaged some missing cog . and said I thought I had replied to that way back . On pressing a few more of "old faithful's " keys , I see I had not sent it off , or given it to Verna Mosoong,to go into the book . I apologize to the family for not doing so . I think we may have to do two ( 2 ) or three ( 3 ) journals on this subject as it goes right back Here is the first part .(
The enquiry was about " Arthur Milson Edmonds " & his wife . both were my grand -father & grandmother. in fact, " grandma reared me from when I was 18 months old to when I was 9 years old . We will start with " Arthur Milson Edmonds "
His occupation was an Architect& surveyor, One of his great works was assisting to survey the whole length of the great north highway ( now the ' No 1 Motorway 'from the central post office in Auckland to the far northern little town ship of " Tangoake " just past Te Kao in the far north from Kaitaia .He was originally an apprentice to a " William Henry Cross " who was born in Lancashire uk in 1841, became a certified architect in Uk then came to nz with his english born wife Louisa ( nee Duke ) born 1841 in Northhampton . uk . William Died in NZ 1930 - age 89 --Death /Reg ' No'-7804 & Louisa died in NZ -1925- Death /Reg No -2798
Ada Ellen Cross was the daughter of William & Louisa. ( ** Arthur married the Bosses daughter " )in 1889 AK > NZ. They had Five ( 5 )
children , HOWARD ( My father )- Gordon - Florence - Millicent -Phyllis. Both her Parents are buried in Waikumete cemetery. west Auckland. In the next Journal ( 2 ) I will cover the, story of his death,& burial, Etc which has also been a mystery . in the edmonds ancestry family records . till then - regards -edmondsallan
Hi and good afternoon Allan , I've actually seen those names at Waikumete Cemetery, as my family actually lived at Waikumete Cemetery well not actually in it , but just o n the outside as my dad worked for the ACC this is going way back to the early 1970's - 1989 as my dad had worked for the council , as he was a tractor driver/excuvator *just a fancy name for A Grave Digger"..well myself & my younger syblings use to play in ther cemetery when we were young kids as that was our play ground , & me being a curious child I would looked around at th e old graves & headstones & I do remember seeing quite a few Edmonds there along with my great grandparents :Robert & Maryann Strongman ( I didn't know this until about 6 - 7 years ago..& yet we lived not to far from them in 1 of the council houses,..As I use to work with my dad on the weeks ends , I would catch a ride with him on the old tractor..I would watch my dad get 1 of the graves ready for the funeral & plus while he was doing that I would nosy around at all the different graves & headstones as I was quite interested in some of the families that were buried there.. So yes as I mentioned earlier I've certainly come across those surnames..
Cousin Allan you are an amasing well of information & I Love reading your journals..Also when you rang me up yesterday morning inquiring about Arthur ^ Erana marriage date well I got to thinking "while scratching my head"... I tried to actually look that up but so far all I could come up with is this date :Marriage: About either :1844 - 1845, NEW ZEALAND, that's as far as I could find but then it might not be correct ,unless there's was not recorded as in the maori way you were asked who would you like to marry & you would choose the best possible husband , as I remember my nana telling me this as it was an old Maori custome where you'll have your potential suitors all lined up at the Marae in the Whare Hui (Meeting House)then your father would ask you who would you like ?..so you had a choice "well sometimes you didn't have a choice .. as your parents would choose for you, & these marriages were a marriage of convenience ,which would benefit you & your whanau & marae as well, so these marriages weren't officially reconised in the Pakeha society...
As were many of these types of marriages many pakeha men were gifted the women by there Rangatira to be a benefit to everyone.. plus most pakeha men had nore than 1 wife.. as was my grt,grt,grt,grt grandafather :Samuel Strongman *father to Davis Andrew Strongman*, as Davis' mother was a Maori slave girl who was gifted or laoned to Samuel so the maori slave girl was a captive slave fronm one of the Iwi from Matakana Island..Tauranga..So Davis's mother was: Matilda Edmonds (Arthur & Erana's daughter),so as you can see that happened quite alot in my whanau as it still does go on but not in public as most of it happens way out in the wop wops *back counties up north...