Henry Mason (1830 - 1931)

Born 1830 in Portaferry, County Down, Ireland [uncertain]

Husband of Maria Magdalena (Wech) Mason — married 6 Sep 1885 in Mahurangi, New Zealand

Descendants

Died 14 May 1931 at about age 101 in Glorit, Rodney, New Zealand

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Biography

Henry Mason was born in Ireland.

Henry was born in the north of Ireland in about 1830. He was probably born in County Down. Marriage certificate lists parents as James & Ellen (see research note below). He married Lena Wech in 1885.^[1]

Henry Mason migrated from Ireland to New Zealand.

Death

Date: 14 MAY 1931

Place: Glorit, New Zealand

Cause: Senile degeneration^[2][3]

Obituary

At the great age of 101 years, Mr Henry Mason died on May 14 at the residence of his youngest son, Glorit, on the Kaipara Harbour. He was born in Ireland at the end of the reign of George IV., and went to the Australian goldfields when 21 years of age. He was on the Ballarat field for a time, but later went in for dealing in horses, a business which Mr Mason carried on successfully for 30 years. During the Waikato war he sold many heavy horses to the New Zealand Government for transport work, and crossed the Tasman Sea many times in charge of his animals. Years after the war old horses were working on farms branded C.T.C., which was the mark of the Commissariat Transport Corps.

Mr Mason settled in Auckland 50 years ago, and lived in Ponsonby. He was for some time engaged in the carting business, but afterwards went farming at Mahurangi Heads from 1889 to 1904. He next went to Glorit, where he remained for the rest of his long life. He is survived by Mrs Mason and the following children: Mr James Mason, of Waipu; Mr Henry Mason, butcher, of Kaipara Flats; Mr John Mason, farmer of Tauhoa; Mr William Mason, of Kaipara Flats; and Mr T. H. Mason, of Glorit. The daughters are: Mrs O. Ranum and Mrs G. Woodcock, of Tauhoa; Mrs B. Martin, of Woodcocks and Mrs W. Gush and Mrs H. Burdett, of Tauhoa. There are 29 grandchildren.^[4]

Death at 101 Years

Resident of Glorit, A dealer in Horses, Business during Maori Wars

A retired farmer and horse-dealer, Mr. Henry Mason, who carried on an extensive trade in livestock with Australia in the sixties and seventies, died yesterday at his youngest son's farm at Glorit, on the Kaipara Harbour. Among residents of the district he was reputed to he 108, but in the absence of a birth certificate his family estimated his age to be at least 101.

Born in Ireland in 1830, the year that George IV. died, Mr. Mason voyaged to Australia when he was 21 years of age, drawn by the lure of the gold discoveries. He was on the diggings at Ballarat during the exciting gold-rush days, but his fondness of horses, which attracted him regularly to the stock sales, eventually led him into the horse-dealing business, which he carried on successfully for 30 years or more. His purchases, made principally in Melbourne, were mainly horses built for heavy work. He sold them in Auckland, very largely to the New Zealand Government for military purposes during the Maori Wars, and travelled countless times across the Tasman in pursuit of his business.

Fifty years ago Mr. Mason made his home in Auckland, residing near Shelly Beach. For some years he was engaged in the carting business and then moved to Mahurangi Heads, where ho was occupied with farming pursuits from 1889 to 1904. He then took up the farm at Glorit, where he remained until his death.

Mr. Mason was an expert horseman and a good ploughman. He had a tough physique and enjoyed excellent health until a few months ago. He thought nothing of riding his horse 30 miles a day when he was 99 years of age, and travelled about on horseback up to six months of his death.

Mrs. Mason survives her husband, and there are ten children, all of whom are living. The sons, of whom there are five, are: Mr. James Mason, of Waipu; Mr. Henry Mason, butcher, of Kaipara Flats; Mr. John Mason, farmer, of Tauhoa; Mr. William Mason, of Kaipara Flats; and Mr. T. H. Mason, of Glorit. The daughters are: Mrs. O. Ranum, and Mrs. G. Woodcock, of Tauhoa; Mrs. B. Martin, of Woodcocks; and Mrs. W. Gush and Mrs. H. Burdett, of Tauhoa. There are 29 grandchildren.^[5]

Research note

Lynne Cullen, a descendent of Henry has DNA connections with descendants of James Mason and Margaret Blayney of Portaferry, County Down. Children of this couple immigrated to Australia as Henry originally did. It seems likely that these are Henry's parents. The marriage record with his mother's name as Ellen had his wife's mother's name as Ellen as well even though it is Dorothea, so it is not a reliable source of information. The surname listed could be a misspelling of Blayney.

Sources

1. ↑ "New Zealand, Civil Records Indexes, 1800-1896," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q24K-981M : accessed 9 September 2017), Henry Mason and Eleanor Wack, 1885; citing Marriage, New Zealand, New Zealand, Wellington; registration number 1885/1988.
2. ↑ See death certificate in photos
3. ↑ Find A Grave, database and images (https://new.findagrave.com : accessed 9 September 2017), memorial page for Henry Mason (1830–14 May 1931), Find A Grave Memorial no. 127498190, citing Tauhoa Cemetery, Tauhoa, Auckland Council, Auckland, New Zealand ; Maintained by Julie Preston (contributor 48075085) .
4. ↑ OBITUARY., Rodney and Otamatea Times, Waitemata and Kaipara Gazette, 20 May 1931]
5. ↑ DEATH AT 101 YEARS., New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20873, 15 May 1931

• Spanish Disorder. (1931, May 21). Kilmore Free Press (Kilmore, Vic. : 1870 - 1954), p. 2 (MORNING). Retrieved September 9, 2017, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58590615
• DEATH AT 108. (1931, May 18). Townsville Daily Bulletin (Qld. : 1907 - 1954), p. 9. Retrieved September 9, 2017, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article61338304
• "New Zealand, Archives New Zealand, Probate Records, 1843-1998," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99NV-HFNV?cc=1865481&wc=4BFT-CXP%3A1045247701%2C1045502201 : 15 October 2015), Auckland Court > Probate records 1931 P416/31-P440/31 > image 327 of 378; Archives New Zealand, Auckland Regional Office.
• Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXV, Issue 3586, 15 January 1869, Page 3, https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DSC18690115.2.29.2

Acknowledgements

Thank you to Julie Preston for creating profile Mason-2436 through the import of mixed trees 1_2012-04-27.ged on Apr 28, 2012.

See the changes page for the details of edits by Julie and others.