The Three Amigos

 In an earlier post I mention three families, resulting from Miriama Potiki's partners. All of these partners were Pakeha (pale, imaginary beings resembling men - more recently New Zealanders of European descent). The first was my 5x great grandfather, Major Joseph Greenwood, the second a sawyer by the name of Solomon Clarke, and the third, the only one she married, a lighthouse operator called Richard Paltridge. Once her grave was discovered, word spread via email. Peter Clarke in Lower Hutt, near Wellington, had made contact with me via a site called maori.org.nz as we were both searching for the same ancestor.  Peter is the great great grandson of Miriama and Solomon Clarke. This was back in 2009.

Fast forward to 2011 and we managed to track down members of the Paltridge family and the pieces of the puzzle gradually started to fit together. Before we knew it the family group had grown to around one hundred, and it was time to form a "committee", for want of a better word. It was obvious that Miriama's grave needed more than just a wooden marker and a crumbling slab, so one person from each family became the contact person. Peter and I were joined by Stan Scott, 6x grandson of Miriama and Richard Paltridge. It was Stan who ultimately organised the carving of the beautiful kauri headstone, and the replacement of the crumbling slab with an amazing fence surrounding it, as it would have looked in 1888.

The family met in 2014 and 2018 respectively for the unveiling of the headstone and the slab.

Peter, Stan and Donna

Canadian Cuzzy

In November 2007 I made contact, through the internet, with a cousin I didn't know I had. His name is Dan and at the time he lived in Vancouver, Canada. We share a 5 times great grandfather, Thomas Greenwood, whose father-in-law was a well-known London comedian/actor called Joseph Shepherd Munden. (I wonder if the comedy genes in our son Richie, a standup comic in Brisbane, came from him). Over the next four years, Dan and I communicated by email, and then Facebook, but it wasn't until 2011 that we actually met. The venue was The Bull and Gate, a pub in Kentish Town, London, owned by our Greenwood family from the 1700s through until the mid 1800s. This pub features significantly in my book.

Since that meeting in London, Dan regularly reminded me that I should get on with writing the book about our Greenwood family, as I stupidly said I might one day. And to be honest, it became more and more obvious that the story was well worth telling. So that's how it began. I think I actually started around 2017, so I didn't rush into it! Now, four years on, I'm writing this blog and trying to remember the most significant moments of the journey. 

Below is a photo of Dan and me not far from the Greenwood residence. The street sign is a result of the Greenwood Almshouses which the family set up to help the poor in that area. The other photo is the Bull and Gate as it looked in 2011. It has since become a gastro pub, but much of the interior is as it was in the 1800s. We have had a few meals and ales there over the years, and hopefully we will for years to come.

The Writing Begins

 This brings me to my story, with the working title 'A New Zealand Romance'.  It is not just about Miriama, but includes the story of Major Joseph Greenwood also, as his story is well worth telling. I have based it on actual events as much as I can, and filled in the gaps with what I believe to be credible situations. I hope I have brought the characters to life and given them the voices they deserve

A few years ago I wrote a biographical blog centred around some of the characters you will come across in the book. It is historical research which I did when I had no idea  I would one day write a novel based on their lives. You may find details in this blog useful. It is called The Greenwood Tree (https://mundengreenwoodtree.blogspot.com) and you can find a link to it in my profile.

From now on I will update this blog on a weekly basis, including facts and anecdotes, images and general comments about how I'm going with the story. I learn something new every day, but sometimes I just might need some input from my readers - so please feel free to comment!

A Grave Discovery

 In New Zealand, and probably all around the world, there are people who get satisfaction from finding out who is buried in unmarked graves, particularly in churchyards. It was one of these intrepid super sleuths, in a tiny place called Awhitu Central, in Manukau Heads, West Auckland, who came upon the final resting place of  Miriam Paltridge, the wife of a local lighthouse keeper. She had been buried there since 1888. Upon making further inquiries, she discovered that Miriam Paltridge was in fact our Maori maiden, Miriama Potiki. How I wish Mum were around to learn this.

This discovery in 2012 resulted in three families making contact, again through the internet, and, since then, we, the descendants of Miriama's three partners, have united at Awhitu three times. She now has a beautiful kauri headstone, a new concrete slab and railing, and dozens of people who acknowledge her as their ancestor. 

            Miriama's original plaque                                                          Her new kauri headstone

                                                       
           The Manukau Heads lighthouse

                                                                                                                                                                

                                                                   Some of the extended family

A Very Busy Man

 As I grew older, my interest in my heritage grew, and I found myself imagining the circumstances of my four times great grandparents meeting. There was a rumour, which I believe my mother told me, that Joseph had a wife in the city and his mistress (Miriam) in the suburbs. He was a busy chap, what with being a Fencible and a politician as well! Hence I began my own research, using the tools available to me in the 1980s. To cut a long story short, Mum died without ever discovering the resting place of her three times great grandmother, and it wasn't until 2012 that I stumbled upon it. Not literally. I didn't visit cemeteries in New Zealand, as I moved to Australia in 1980, but instead, the discovery was made via the internet.

NZ Fencibles

                                                Me, Boggabri, Australia, complete with 80s hair

Road Trip

From the time Mum received the death certificate, she searched for the elusive Miriam Potiki. I remember her telling me that my four times Great grandmother was a Maori maiden (her words) who was buried somewhere in Onehunga, Auckland. That led to a few trips up to 'the Big Smoke', a long journey from Tauranga in those days, trudging around cemeteries, trying to find Miriam's grave. Talk about a needle in a haystack!

Mum and Donna Summer in the 70s

 

Where It Began

 I always knew I had Maori blood. My mother, Ngaroma, was proud of her heritage, and she spent many years trying to discover more about her family. Unfortunately, in those pre internet days, research could be slow and painful. Her father, Frederick Greenwood, died when she was a teenager, and even if he had discussed his Maori heritage, Mum remembered very little. My grandmother was not much help with details, as they had little to do with Fred's family. One thing Mum was able to find, however, which proved invaluable, was a tool with which to unlock many secrets - her grandfather, Joseph McLean Greenwood's, death certificate. It stated that his father was Joseph Greenwood, a Major in the Imperial Army, and his mother was Miriam Potiki (no additional information).