Ivy Jones - Memories of When She Was Young

Date: 27 Jan 1979 [unknown]
Location: New Zealand
Surname/tag: Jones

This transcription is taken from a preprinted booklet that was prepared for her granddaughter Karen (Still) Ersser, now called Kay. Ivy signed it, but the handwritten content appears to have been dictated by Ivy and written by her daughter Diane (Mayes) Still. After Diane died, Ivy's son, John, transcribed all the questions in the booklet that were responded to and recorded them below.

Contents 1 My Birth 2 About My Mother 3 About My Father 4 My Family 5 My Childhood Home 6 My Home Town 7 A Typical Day Growing Up 8 Childhood Favourites 9 Falling in Love

My Birth

My full maiden name Ivy Jones

I was given this name because It was the name of one of my mother's best friends who attended my birth

My birth place and place of birth 27th January 1919 Sandy Bay

What was happening in the world when I was born People mostly travelled with a horse and gig. Horsepower was also used to pull hay wagons etc

About My Mother

My mother's best story about growing up She died when I was three so I don't recall any stories

One of my most precious memories of my mother Remembers her fighting against being locked in the hay shed until she got over an attack - she seemed to be in a lot of pain. My older sister Edna told me Mum was a good, very loving mother. My father took her to the hospital in Motueka and when she came back she said the doctor could do nothing for her

About My Father

My father's best story about growing up No. I heard he worked in a coal mine in England.

One of my most precious memories of my father He would visit my foster parents farm and stay a while at Christmas when he could. He made a fuss of me when he visited and took me for walks around the farm He lived on his own farm in Marhai with Edna and the older boys. Harry went into an orphanage (2nd youngest)

My Family

My Brothers and sister's names Bill, Herbert, Edna, Harry & me from eldest to youngest

The things we used to do together I got teased by my older brothers. When I put the dishes away (my job) my brothers made me walk slowly one foot in front of the other to stop me getting ahead of them washing and drying the dishes

The things we did together There was a gate between my father's farm and the Stringer's farm (the people who raised me) next door. My brothers climbed the gate first and peed on me at the bottom.

How often I see my family I visited my Dad when I was older occassionally. He lived and worked by the cement works in Tasman Bay

I have seen God work in our family by My foster parents' only child, Stan, who was older than me, was more of a brother to me than my own. Stan was 10 to 15 years older than me.

My Childhood Home

My earliest memory of home Drying the dishes as to slow me down my brothers made me walk across the kitchen one foot in front of the other but touching. The cupboards for the dishes we on the opposite side of the sink. The cooking was bone on a wood burning range. Didn't have electricity, lighting was oil lamps and candles.

My childhood bedroom My foster home was a two storey house. I think my room was upstairs. There was a water tank beside the range to heat water. There was a copper for heating water for washing & baths.

My Home Town

The street I lived on Stringers farm, Marahau

My favourite store and why I loved to go there Riwaka was where the nearest shop was. This was a long trip over the hill from Sandy Bay by pony and trap

The farm was fairly self sufficient with hens and cows. Bread was home baked on the coal range

A Typical Day Growing Up

Where my father worked Lambert Jones worked at the Tarakohe lime works or his farm. Sam Stringer worked on their farm

What my mother did during the day Kate Stringer cooked, cleaned, washed etc, etc

The chores I had to do The dishes, set the tables, housework, feed the hens, cooking. I won first prize for my pikelets in a produce show. I leant to sew about 14 at a correspondence school course on dressmaking.

On summer days I liked to go to the beach and gather pipi's and muscles and fishing. The farmers families gathered together for beach picnics

On winter days I enjoyed The open fires and reading books, colouring with crayons

Childhood Favourites

My favourite storybook I loved lots of books being read to me before I learned to read

My favourite poem I liked the nursery rhymes

My favourite doll or toy The working farm dogs were my pets too

My favourite treat Going to the beach

Falling in Love

Your Grandfather, my husband Christopher Walter Mayes was born in 1915 in Simla, India to Pearl Helen Mayes (nee Isaks) and Christopher Burke Mayes, a Civil Engineer. His real mother's name was Pearl, Gwen, and Isabel. He was raised by his grand parents.

How old I was and what I was doing when I met your grand father I met him when I was 16 and working on my foster parents farm. I was then sent to live in Wellington with my brother Bill and wife Rose as our attraction to each other was not approved of by Sam and Kate Stringer. (nee Hollyoake).

I was attracted to him because he was in a musical band that came to play on the farm as they were friends of my foster brother Stan. I had several other suitors and male friends who came on to the farm.

Your grandfather proposed by Christopher, your Grandfather, traced me down to Wellington and we began courting. I had to write and ask the permission of my real father so I could marry your grandfather when I was 20 and he was 24.

The day, time and place we were married 6 April 1939 Registrars Office, Wellington, New Zealand I was aged 20 years, Christopher Walter Mayes was aged 24