Rev. Richard Davis

Richard Davis arrived in New Zealand in 1824 where he worked as a missionary at Paihia, Waimate and Kaikohe. A keen horticulturalist, he planted many trees including New Zealand's oldest oak tree.

English missionary dubbed NZ's first weatherman: Richard Davis, based in Waimate North in the Bay of Islands, started his first weather diary in 1839 but the pages lay for decades in Auckland Library before being stumbled on by a climate researcher. Source: https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/english-missionary-dubb...

• Emigration: 1. Richard DAVIS was appointed by the Church Missionary Society of the Church of England to the New Zealand Mission as a Missionary Agriculturalist and he , his wife and young family left England from Woolwich on 22 Nov 1823 aboard the ship "The Brothers" arriving in Australia in May 1824.|After three months in Parramatta with members of the Church Missionary Society, the DAVIS family embarked on the brig "Governor Macquarie" on 3 Aug and arrived at "Marsden's Vale" (Paihia) in the Bay of Islands on 15 Aug 1831. - Nov 22 1823 - Woolwich, London, England.

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Richard's headstone stands by the entrance door to the small wooden church next to the Mission House.

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Richard Davis was born 18 January, 1790 in Piddletrenthide, Dorset, the first son of William Davis (born Dec 1763) and his wife Ann (nee Symms, born 14 Jan 1786). Richard had a brother James (b Jul 1792) and a sister Mary (b Oct 1794)

When visiting the Piddle Valley in Dorset one gets a sense of an unchanging gentleness. The small cluster of thatched cottages, nestled in a hollow in front of the 12th Century stone Church, may be painted with acrylic rather than whitewash, but one could imagine our forebears walking back there and not noticing much difference. Just over the hill, a comfortable day's horsetrek away, entering the neighbouring valley of Cerne Abbas, the ancient figure of The Giant stands, club in hand etched, in the chalk face of the hill; sometimes partly obscured by mist, rain or falling snow,but on a sunny day as bold as brass, just as he was carved more than three centuries before.

The family left England on 28 Nov 1823 with six children, 4 girls and two boys on the sailing ship "The Brothers" departing from Woolwich, London. They reached Hobart 15 April 1824 and spent ten days in Australia before departing for New Zealand with the Rev Samuel Marsden. They were later to have three more children born in New Zealand.

The Davis family was a lone settled family that managed a number of farms near Sturminster, Newton. One farm was called 'Woodrow'. There are two farms of this name in the vicinity, one of 260 acres just out of Stourton Caundle and the other at Hazelbury Bryan. As the old Davis oak tree at Te Waimate is reported to have come from Goat Hill, just North West of Stourton Caundle, and Richard was the Overseer of this Parish we can be confident it is the former.

After three months in Parramata with members of the Church Missionary Society, the Davis family embarked on the brig 'Governor Macquarie' on August 3 and arrived at "Marsden's Vale" (Piahia) in the Bay of Islands on 15 August, 1824. The children they brought with them to NZ - Mary Ann (1814), Matilda (1814), Serena (1816) James (1818), William (1821) and Jane (1823) - were born in Lydlinch, near Sturminister Newton.

The family came to Kerikeri in 1824 where they stayed just a few months, returning to Piahia until the decision to locate the mission farm at Te Waimate was made in 1830. During this time a further three children were born - John (1825), Margaretta (1828) and Sophia (1830). Richard's task at tew Waimate was to develop an English-style pasture farm. The trials of this project have been researched and recorded by Jan Harris, while employed by the NZ Historic Places Trust, but remain unpublished.

Richard married twice more after his firstwife died in 1837, the first European adult to die in NZ. He married his second wife, a widow Mrs Anne Iselton, a year later. (Anne's daughter Caroline married Davis's son James). When Mary died, her children ranged in age from 25 down to seven years old. Some of them were looked after by his second wife. Their affection for Anne appears to have been such that one of Matilda's sons was given Iselton as a second name. This was also passed on to my father. Richard married his third wife, Jane Holloway King, in 1855. A son John was born of this marriage in 1858.

Richard's two older daughters married the two missionaries., William Gilbert Puckey and Joseph Matthews who went on to establish the mission in Kaitaia. His other children married as follows:

• Serena - Henry Francis Butt
• James - Caroline Iselton
• William - Eleanor Norris
• Jane - Edward Marsh Williams ( eldest son of Rev Henry Williams)
• Margaretta - James Alfred Beggood (Te Waimate Mission)
• Sophia - James Kemp
• John - Annie Hall John Nole Coleman died at the age of 16, in 1841, four years after his mother.

For the 39 years of his life from the time he arrived in New Zealand, Richard Davis toiled amongest the Maori people of the Bay of Islands region, based principally at Waimate North, until his death 28 May 1863. He ordained both Deacon and Priest by Dr Selwyn, Bishop and Metropolitan of New Zealand, the former being Selwyn's first ordination in New Zealand. Richard's headstone stands by the entrance door to the small wooden church next to the Mission House.

©Jeff Pyle 2001

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(Research):Davis Family NRAM Reference X1186 Type of record Correspondence Dates covered 1790-1974 Quantity 2 volumes Level of description Collection Location Far North Regional Museum A84 Description Rev. DAVIS arrived in New Zealand in 1824 and settled at the Waimate North Mission station. He was later appointed to the Kaikohe parish in 1852. His two eldest daughters married Rev Joseph Matthews and Mr William Gilbert Puckey, Anglican missionaries to the Kaitaia area.

The material was generated by Mrs June Dunn when compiling the DAVIS family tree. A celebration of 150 years of the Davis family's settlement in New Zealand took place in 1974. SERIES A84/1 Rev. Richard DAVIS family tree and history. A84/2 MATTHEWS PUCKEY family tree Access conditions

• DAVIS, Richard (Reverend)
• MATTHEWS, Joseph, family of
• PUCKEY, William Gilbert, family of

Subjects * Social affairs

© Far North Regional Museum NRAM www.nram.org.nz

GEDCOM Note

website Davis, Matthews & Puckey families Rev. DAVIS arrived in New Zealand in 1824 and settled at the Waimate North Mission station. He was later appointed to the Kaikohe parish in 1852. His two eldest daughters married Rev Joseph Matthews and Mr William Gilbert Puckey, Anglican missionaries to the Kaitaia area. The material was generated by Mrs June Dunn when compiling the DAVIS family tree. A celebration of 150 years of the Davis family's settlement in New Zealand took place in 1974.

SERIES A84/1 Rev. Richard DAVIS family tree and history. A84/2 MATTHEWS PUCKEY family tree Access conditions No restriction Name Entries

• DAVIS, Richard (Reverend)
• MATTHEWS, Joseph, family of
• PUCKEY, William Gilbert, family of NRAM © Far North Regional Museum NRAM www.nram.org.nz

NRAM Davis Family (X1186)

NRAM Reference X1186 Name Davis Family Type of record Correspondence Dates covered 1790-1974 Quantity 2 volumes Level of description Collection Location Far North Regional Museum A84 Description Y Y 3 11 Feb 2003 YES