John Minchin

John Minchin was born on 17 May 1822 at Myrtle Grove, County Tipperary, Ireland. He was the 5th child of Reverend William Minchin and Mary Anne Wright. With their home now virtually bursting at the seams, John was sent to live with his grandparents at Greenhills. He could remember coming down in the mornings and seeing his grandfather and his friends still gambling with cards, as they had been doing all night. Little wonder Greenhills was lost to the family, also through the land laws. John's father Rev. William Minchin would not allow a pack of cards in the house. None of John's descendents can shed light on how John spent his formative years, or how he managed to support a large family during his working life, although he was registered as a Civil Engineer. He was a tall man, standing 6ft 4ins and of a "very generous disposition". John married, firstly, Clementina Holmes (Wood) in 1847. Clementina was a widow with 3 children. They had one daughter together, Clementina (Tina). After Clementina's death, he married, secondly, Mary Sundius in 1854. She was a very tall woman born to a Swedish father. Apparently he met her in Germany. Together they had 2 children; Lucy Palmer Minchin and Mary Minchin. Unsure what became of this relationship but then John went on to marry, thirdly, Louisa Watkins on 18 May 1874 at London, England. They travelled to New Zealand as "Assisted immigrants" on the sailing ship St Leonards (1874). He was 51 years old, Louisa was just 26. Among other things the passengers did not know, this vessel was carrying munitions to the armed forces in the new colony. Upon arrival John and Louisa were allocated a block of land at Inglewood, Taranaki, at first living in tents. Together John and Louisa reared 8 children. They also faced a lifetime of frugality of which they taught their children the ways of pioneers from the start. Just how John supported his family is not known, but undoubtedly they managed to live off the land, perhaps running dairy cows on the lush Taranaki pasture. He remained a dogmatic Protestant and was known to cross the street if he saw a priest coming, and was known to drive his horse and trap right down the middle of the street, forcing oncoming traffic to pull aside for him. He was remembered by his grandson Harry for his love of horticulture. Reputedly he was the first person to bring blackberry plants to the province, planting them round the stumps of recently felled trees and watering them on his newly acquired farm on Durham Road. Unfortunately the plant flourished and is still a pest today. He was not concerned with the long term implications of such a thorny pest. John was a winemaker and of course he made blackberry wine which he sold around the district and very popular it was too. The farm in Durham Rd was apparently one of the untidiest in the district, with many weeds and it was not until the farm was sold to new owners that is was cleaned up with use of 245T spray. His younger brother Fred lived with John and Louisa for many years, no doubt they often reminisced about their childhood growing up at Greenhills in Ireland. Though there was an eleven year age difference, Fred and John both died in the winter of 1913, within a month of each other; John was 91. John Minchin has left quite a legacy in New Zealand with well over 400 descendents. Surname:MINCHINForenames:JohnLast Address:Inglewood (Farmer)Age at Death:91 YearsDate of Death:28 Jul 1913Category:BurialFuneral Director:Spurdle, No Longer In BusinessDate of Burial:30 Jul 1913Cemetery:INGLEWOODLocation in Cemetery:Memorial Area, Row P Plot 6S