EIGHTY-FIFTH BIRTHDAY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21579, 25 August 1933, Page 12

EIGHTY-FIFTH BIRTHDAY

WHANGAREI RESIDENT OVER 180 DESCENDANTS [bv TELEGRAPH—OWN COKBESPOXDEyr"! "WHANGAREI, Thursday Mrs. Thomas Fyfe, of Mill Iload, Wliangarei, to-day celebrated her 85th birthday. She was born in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Mrs. Fyfe came to New Zealand with her husband and children, leaving Deal on October 12, 1874, in the barque Dilharrie, which carried 500 people, arriving in New Zealand after a passage of 110 days, The family had made application for passages cn the ill-fated Cospatrick, which was burned at sea, but the complement was already made up. Shortly after the Dilharrie passed the equator those on board saw floating wreckage of the Cospatrick. Shortly after reaching Auckland Mr. and Mrs. Fyfe went on a email cutter from Qnehunga to the settlement atPollok and later went to the Thames goldfields, where Mr. Fyfe was a contractor at the Queen of Beauty mine, The next move was to Kawakawa, where Mr. Fyfo was employed in. Moody's mine. Subsequently Mr. Fyfe took over a boarding house at Waipapa, near Kerikeri, which was well known to travellers. After a period they went to Coromandol and then returned to the north, living at Kiripaka, where Mr. Fyfe was engaged in coalmining. Mrs. Fyfe reads and knite without the use of glasses and with the exception of slight deafness is in excellent health. Mr. Fyfe died 26 years ago. Of their 17 children there are now 13 living. She has 70 grandchildren. 102' great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.