BJNL's GENEALOGY

It is clear that, when George Chapman died on 30 January 1911, aged just 50 years, he was a well liked and respected member of the Nelson community. At the time he died, George had been Superintendent of Nelson Mental Hospital for about 7 years:  George Chapman (about 1888)  [crop of larger photo (below)] (From "The Colonist," Jan. 31.) [1]. The death occurred with distressing suddenness yesterday morning of Mr George Chapman, Superintendent of the Mental Hospital. It appears that Mr Chapman had risen as usual, and after having a cup of tea, went to the bathroom. Shortly afterwards Mrs Chapman's attention was attracted by a peculiar sound, and on going to the bathroom she found her husband lying unconscious in the bath. Mr Chapman was immediately removed from the bath, and Dr Mackay quickly arrived in response to an urgent summons, but though efforts to restore animation were continued for a long time they were unavailing. Mr Chapman was apparently in good health when he

 The inscription on Patrick Darcy's gravestone reveals his Irish origins. It reads: IN LOVING REMEMBRANCE OF PATRICK DARCY WHO DIED JULY 11TH 1895 NATIVE OF TIPPERARY IRELAND AGED 68 YEARS Patrick Darcy's gravestone, Nelson Creek Cemetery, Ngahere. Photo taken by B. Chapman (2002) Patrick is buried at Nelson Creek Cemetery at Ngahere. The Cemetery is sometimes referred to as Ngahere Cemetery. Ngahere is a small settlement near the confluence of the Grey River and Nelson Creek in the Grey District of the West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island: Location of Nelson Creek Cemetery Map created with Google My Maps (modified) Nelson Creek Cemetery is a very small cemetery surrounded by private farmland: Nelson Creek Cemetery, Ngahere, Grey District, West Coast, New Zealand Photo taken by B. Chapman (2002) So, who was Patrick Darcy and how did he come to be buried at Nelson Creek Cemetery so far away from his native Ireland? In Search of Gold? Most records associated with Patrick sug

As I have written previously, when my mother-in-law died, my husband inherited a box of items that belonged to his mother, Shirley, and before her, to his grandmother, Winnie, and his great grandmother, Emma. You can read about Shirley, Winnie, Emma and the treasure box in my post Our Treasure Box . James (about 1914) Amongst the various items in the box, there are a number of cards sent home to New Zealand from James. These were sent to Winnie and Emma. Initially, we were uncertain about who James was. However, through a clue on one of the cards, it was possible to determine that James was James Patrick Lowry. The correspondence suggests that James was a family friend who wrote not only to Winnie and Emma, but also to Winnie's step-father. In one of the cards to Winnie, James refers to having received a letter from Winnie's father and indicated his intention to write back. Most of the cards are undated. Those that are dated, were sent during 1915. All were sent from Egypt whil