AN OTAGO CENTENARIAN.

Otago Witness, Issue 3029, 3 April 1912, Page 69

AN OTAGO CENTENARIAN.

JMiss Cooper, whoso photograph we give in our illustrated pages this week, io nno of the few centenarians living in New Zealand. Born in Caithness in 1811, she sailed to New Zealand in the sailing vessel Nelson from Glasgow in 1863, reaching Port Chalmers on the 9tli October of that year, after a rough voyage of four months. After living for some time in the Taieri, Miss Cooper took up her residence with her niece in Roxburgh in 1872. and there she has lived ever since. She ha.s been a consistent member of the Roxburgh Presbyterian Church for 40 years, and till recently was a regular attendant Her niece, who journeyed to New Zealand with Mies Cooper, married Mr Andrew Young, a miner, in 1865. Mr Young, whose photograph wo also give is a native of Fifeshire, and left Scotland in 1855 for Australia. Ho took pari in the Gabriel's Gully rush in 1861, settling in Roxburgh in 1862; thi* year, thereore, being hi.s " Toviot Jubilee.' 1 Mr Young is ?8 yeans of ago, and his wife is eight years younger, so that the combined ages of the three "old identities" total 248 years. A gu-rdrn party was held ir. December last io celebrate Miss Cooper's hundredth birthday, when a short devotional service was conducted by the Rev. A. V. G. Chandler, who also spoke a few words of congratulation. On behalf of the members of the congregation Mrs Gilmour presented the old lady with a handsome shawl. Wc regret to record the fact that Miss Cooper recently met with a mishap, and unfortunately fractured her leg.