James Davis (1818 - 1889)

Born 14 Jan 1818 in Dorset, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Husband of Caroline (Iselton) Davis — married 2 Mar 1840 in St John the Baptist Church,Waimate North,New Zealand

Husband of Frances Anne (Goodwyn) Davis — married 9 May 1883 in Auckland,New Zealand

Descendants

Died 3 Apr 1889 at age 71 in Gisborne, New Zealand

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James Davis migrated from England to New Zealand.

Biography

James Davis was born in Dorset in 1818. He was the son of Reverend Richard Davis and Mary Crocker.

He emigrated from England to New Zealand in 1824. His mother died in 1837. His father remarried, twice.

James married Caroline Iselton on the 2nd of March, 1840, at St John the Baptist Church, Waimate North, New Zealand. James' father was Caroline's stepfather.

They had at least six children. His wife Caroline died in 1881.

His second married was to Frances Anne Goodwyn on the 9th of May, 1883, in Auckland, New Zealand.^[1]

He died in Gisborne, New Zealand in 1889, aged 71.^[2]

Buried in Makaraka Cemetery, Gisborne, New Zealand. Plot 193. No headstone [2018]^[3]

Obituary

OBITUARY^[4]

We have to record the decease at Gisborne of one of our oldest settlers, Mr. James Davis, late of Waimate, Bay of Islands. Mr. Davis arrived in New Zealand on the 15th August, 1824, being then six years old, with his father, the late Rev. Richard Davis, missionary. In the early days of the colony he was employed in the Native Department under Lieut.-Governor Hobson, but after a short time, throwing up his appointment, turned his attention to farming. Mr. Davis was a direct lineal descendant of the O'Donnells, of Ulster, who, together with the O'Neills, were expatriated for their rebellion soon after James I. came to the throne. The O'Donnells took refuge first in Rome, but subsequently removed to Wales where the family changed their name to that of Davis, finally settled in Devonshire, England, from whence they emigrated to New Zealand. The late Mr. Davis's connections both in this colony and in Australia are exceedingly numerous. He has left of his own immediate descendants three daughters and four grandchildren. Mr. Davis was twice married first to Miss Caroline Iselton and secondly, of late years, to Miss Frances A. Goodwin, who survives him. Two of his daughters by the first marriage are married to well-known colonists; Mr. James Coney, of the Thames Postal Department, and Mr. Kenneth Watkins, the artist of this city. Mr. Davis was well versed in all the legendary law of the ancient Maori, and was consequently held in great esteem by all the Northern chiefs. He was also one of the originators of the present Native Lands Court. His great knowledge of the Maori language also enabled him to assist the Ven. Archdeacon Maunsell in revising the translation of the Maori Bible.

Sources

1. ↑ MARRIAGE - N.Z. Govt. B.D.M. index - 1883/989 Frances Anne Goodwyn & James Davis
2. ↑ "New Zealand, Civil Records Indexes, 1800-1966," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q24K-8YTF : 27 November 2017), James Davis, 1889; citing Death, New Zealand, registration number 1889/1945, Archives of New Zealand, Wellington.
3. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/194127133/james-davis), memorial page for James Davis (14 Jan 1818–3 Apr 1889), Find a Grave Memorial no. 194127133, citing Makaraka Cemetery, Gisborne, Gisborne District, Gisborne, New Zealand ; Maintained by Terri Williamson-Lee (contributor 49155228)
4. ↑ Auckland Star 17.4.1889 page : 4. Retrieved from https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/AS18890417.2.17

Replacement headstone put in place 2022 by family members.