Monday, February 20, 2017

The Johns Family

Florence Johns was the  youngest daughter of Annie nee Cousins and Ezekiel Johns.  She was the young wife of Russell Francis Kitto, and mother to his two young sons, who died far too early in 1928.  This post is about Florence's parents, grandparents and immediate family.  

Florence's father Ezekiel Johns was the son of Ezekiel Johns (1835 - 1 February 1910) and Mary Johns (1834 - 17 July 1917).   Florence's grandfather Ezekiel was apparently a native of St Hillary, Cornwall, England.  Reports state that around 1856 he went gold mining in Victoria, Australia and that he spent 14 years there.  Following that he returned to Cornwall around 1870 and then went to California for a couple of years.  He then came to NZ, settling in Roxborough and Wetherstone before staying in Blue Spur.  Based on cemetery records and newspaper reports, I estimate that the Johns family came to NZ around 1875/76.  Ezekiel Snr died after ill health over a twenty year period and particularly bad health from around 1905.  His widow, Mary herself died seven years later at 1 Queen Street, Dunedin, her daughter Mrs Uren's home.  

Ezekiel Snr and Mary had the following children:

1.  Mary Jane Johns (1854, England - 8 November 1938, Dunedin) married John Henry Uren (1854, England - 9 September 1940, Dunedin).  John worked as a Mine Manager.  Mary and John had lived at Blue Spur but then retired to Dunedin.   At the time of their deaths John and Mary was living at 14 Duke Street, Dunedin.  
Mary and John had the following children:

1.1 . Mary Selina Uren (1878 - 1956) married Sydney James Varcoe (1871 - 1937) in 1900.  Sydney was the son of Ephraim and Angelina (nee Williams) Varcoe, who had married in NZ in 1870.  Mary and Sydney had the following family:
1.1.1  Clarence Albert Varcoe (1901 - 2 November 1953, Dunedin) married Amelia Adelaide Maddock (1900 - 22 November 1984, Dunedin) in 1926.  Clarence and Amelia lived at Opoho prior to his death and Clarence worked as a Grocer.  
1.1.2  Gladys Mary Varcoe (16 September 1904 - 1986) married Alfred Wilson Christie (16 April 1900 - 1980)  in 1925
1.1.3  Sydney James Varcoe (1902)
1.1.4  Ephraim John Cyril Varcoe (1905 -14 January 1978) married Eileen Mary Jones (1907 - 18 November 1980) in 1928.  They had at least one stillborn baby, born in 1934.  
1.1.5  Harold Philip Varcoe (1907 - 24 March 1991) married Georgina Buchanan McCabe (1908 - 13 January 1984) in 1930.  
1.1.6  Stanley Ezekial Varcoe (1910)
1.1.7  Raymond Wallace Varcoe (1911)

1.2 . Emily Maude Uren (3 October 1880 - 1975).  Perhaps never marrying contributed to Emily's long life!

1.3 . Christiana Beatrice Uren (1884 - 1968).  Like her sister, Christiana also never married and lived to a fairly decent age. 

1.4 . John Henry Uren (1885 - 13 November 1968, Dunedin) married Mildred Falconer (1887 -  28 August 1961) in 1914.  John and Mildred lived in Roxborough where John worked as a Grocer.  

1.5 . Joseph Philip Uren (1887 - 21 March 1919).  At the time of his death, Joseph was working as a Bank Clerk and living at 1 Queen Street, Dunedin - his parents' home.  

2.  Christiana Johns (1863 - 1940) married Richard Pilling (1859 - 1919) in 1885. The couple lived in Wellington and had the following children:

2.1 . Christiana McColl Pilling (1886 - 1970) married Alfred Harding Sheehy (1884 - 1962) in 1912.  They had at least one son:
2.1.1  Richard John Pilling (11 April 1914 - 1979) 

2.2 . Ethel Mary Pilling (15 February 1888 - 1972) married Thomas Henry Turvey (12 August 1901 - 1972) in 1924.  Thomas was the son of William Henry and Rosa Turvey.  He was considerably younger than his wife.   

2.3 . Emily Onslow Pilling (1889 - 1956) married George Stanley Amos (5 April 1890 - 1982) in 1914.

2.4 . Richard Valentine Pilling (1892 - 1911).  Richard died prematurely at the age of 19.   At the time of his death, the Pilling family were living at 314 Taranaki Street, Wellington.  "So loved, so mourned".  

2.5 . James Milton Pilling (1893 - 10 September 1893).  At the time of little James' death, the family were still living in Lawrence and had not yet moved North to Wellington.  

2.6 . Ida Florence Pilling (1895 - 1974) married Angus Murdoch Nicholson (1891 - 1960) in 1922. 

2.7 . Clarence Pilling (1898 - 1966) married Susannah Irene Turvey (1903) in 1925.  Susannah was the daughter of William Henry and Rosa Turvey.  Early in their marriage, Clarence and Susannah resided in Blenheim.  

2.8 . Lilian May Pilling (30 March 1902 - 1978) married Arthur Hopkins in 1923. 

3.  Ezekiel Johns Jnr was born at Blue Spur in 1869.  His father was one of the first mine managers at Blue Spur.  He went to school at Blue Spur School and became a building apprentice to D Eggleston, a builder in Lawrence.  On 27 July 1892 Ezekiel married Annie Cousins in the Presbyterian faith by Rev. I. Jolly, at the home of Thomas Cousins (1833 - 1908) who was most probably her uncle.  Thomas was an owner of the Blue Spur Mine.  John Cousins, her father, had was deceased by the time of their wedding.  Annie was apparently the daughter of John Cousins, who were locals of Blue Spur also.  Ezekiel worked as a builder at Lawrence for a few years and then moved to Miller's Flat and ran a grocery store.  He then retired and went to live in Dunedin.
Ezekiel died at his son Harold's home in Mosgiel in 1940.  Annie was born in 1867 and died around 1920.  
Ezekiel and Annie Johns had the following family:

3.1 . James Arthur Johns was born on 3 August 1893 at Miller's Flat.  He married Gladys May Fort (1890) on 7 April 1920 at the Social Hall, Central Mission, by Rev. Eaton.  Gladys was the daughter of William and Adelaide (nee  Ruston) Fort who had themselves married in 1889.  According to Wikipedia, James attended Otago High School and qualified as a pharmacist in 1912.  In 1914 he migrated to Sydney, Australia and served with the Australian Imperial Force.  After a year working as a pharmacist in Britian, he returned to Austrlaia and went to to marry Gladys, in New Zealand.  They had at least one daughter together.  James worked as a pharmacist and in 1929 moved to Maffra in Victoria.  From 1942 to 1954 he served on Maffra Shire Council.  Although initially a member of the Country Party, in 1945 he joined the Labour Party and was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assemply for Gippsland North.  He was defeated in 1947.  James worked as a JP and retired from work in 1957.  He died in Maffra in 1959.   

3.2 . Emily Johns was born on 20 March 1895.  She married Wilfred Curphey (1881 - 1955) in 1919.  Emily died in 1985.  The Curphey's lived in Alexandra.

3.3 . Annie Johns was born on 24 January 1898.  She married William Nils Peter Kloogh (31 August 1894 - 1979)  in 1921.  (The Kloogh family were also related to the Kitto family, who Annie's sister Florence married into).    Annie died in 1978.  The Kloogh's lived in Port Chalmers.  

3.4 . Florence Johns (1901 - 1928).  See the post on the Kitto family to see her marriage and children.

3.5 . Harold Cecil Johns was born in 1904.  He died on 9 June 1971 at Outram.  

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