Embedded Files
NAME:
Katherine Priestley
BORN:
12th Oct 1910
MARRIED:
Duff Paku
Ray Dorn
DIED:
13th Aug 1974
This chapter is dedicated to Katherine (b.1910), the fifth daughter of William Augustine and Kate Priestley. It has been written by her son Bill Paku through his shared first hand experiences with her.
Although faced with adversity throughout much of her life, Katherine (Kitty) led a very productive life for both family and community. Many thanks to Bill for sharing his mothers life story with us.
Any corrections, additional information, pictures or stories relevant to this chapter can be submitted via the contacts in the footer section of this page. Accreditation is given, where applicable. Many thanks to all those who have contributed.
Katherine Priestley (Kitty)
Katherine Priestley (Kitty)
by Bill Paku
Katherine Priestley was born at 47 Cochrane Street, Gisborne on Wednesday 12 October 1910. The entry in her father’s diary for that day would have read something like this:-
12th October - Labour Day
Item 1 Shifted the ewes to the racecourse road paddock
Item 2 Moved the course proper
Item 3 Wife gave birth to a daughter
Item 4 Helped Cooper stack his hay in their railway paddock
An announcement made, it seems with casualness would not however have been greeted as such. The day Katherine, or Kitty as she was known to her family, was born would have been welcomed with much excitement by both her Parents and her siblings. It would have been a good day in the Priestley household that day.
Young Kitty
Kitty aged 9
As a young girl Kitty had rheumatic fever which left her with health problems for the whole of her life. As a result of her illness she was not able to enjoy the sports and vigorous exercise her siblings excelled at but she compensated for these in other ways.
Kitty channelled her passions into the arts, very quickly learning that she had a natural talent for painting and music. This talent would be her constant companion her entire life. She nurtured and honed it from a very young age and through the years it would bring her both a sense of pleasure and accomplishment. Gardening too brought her much pleasure and for all her days she indulged her love of the arts and gardening liberally.
There was another person in Kitty’s life who also recognised in her not just her love of the arts but also her natural ability. Her father William Augustine encouraged his daughter in her artistic pursuits and no doubt took much pride in her many successes and accomplishments. One day when Kitty was very young he heard her teaching herself to play the piano and arranged music lessons for her. He also bought her her first set of oil paints. This paint set would become one of Kitty’s prized possessions from her father. As a boy Kitty’s son Bill remembers the metal hinged box with tubes of coloured paints carefully tucked away after each use and treasured for many many years.
Married Life
Kitty married Wairoa man, Duff Paku whom she had met in the Mahia area where she was employed doing domestic duties. She was 20 years old when they married and made their home in Wairoa. On 1 June 1931 they welcomed into the world their only child together, a son William (Bill) Paku who Kitty named after her father.
The first years of their marriage were not easy. New Zealand was in the grip of a depression. The term for this at the time was “the slump years.” Duff spent those years, along with many others on the dole as a labourer. The dole in those days meant turning up at the labour office with your lunch. If you were lucky you got a days work that netted you half a crown (25 cents). When Bill was 2 or 3 he remembers seeing Duff head off with his sugar bag of lunch and bottle of cold tea, only to return, more often than not at 9am which meant there would be no half crown for that day.
The Paku home was a two room batch near the railway station at Wairoa. It had half an acre of ground with it which was completely in garden; flowers and berries as well as fruit trees and vegetables. They kept fowls and ducks and Uncle John; next door milked cows. The river was full of fish and eels so all in all they lived quite well. Meat from family and friends subsidised the diet and any cash earned was usually for flour, sugar, salt and tea.
When Kitty's beloved father; William Augustine died in 1937 the Paku family returned to Gisborne. Kitty and Duff got work as a married couple in the outback of Whatatutu. The last seven miles to the station were through water. The crossing was a wide rocky riverbed. Supplies and mail arrived 3 or 4 times a week depending on the river level. Horse and cart or dray was the usual mode of transport and sometimes in Summer a truck would get through. Correspondence school was Bill’s lot at that time.
Unfortunately the cold, damp quarters and long hours worked baking bread and cooking for 12-14 people played havoc with Kitty’s health and she contracted rheumatic arthritis which she lived with in a crippled state for the rest of her life.
Kitty, Charlie and Marie
These years were especially difficult for Kitty and her young family but much like her Mother, Kate before her she persevered, often putting her family before herself. Despite these years and the price they exacted on her Kitty still managed to secure a good upbringing for Bill ensuring he knew he was supported and loved not only by his Parents but also his extended Priestley family.
Kitty’s return to 47 Cochrane Street coincided with a decision by Duff that he didn’t want to be married anymore. He deserted Kitty and Bill and took off into the sunset never to be seen again. Once again Kitty had to show her inner strength. With grace and determination she took this in her stride and continued to do all she could to ensure she and her son had a good future.
Moving On
The family at Cochrane Street at that time (1939) were Kate, Kitty, young brother Charles and mokos Ida (or Iddy Piddy as Kitty called her), Mary, Rata and Bill. Between jobs other whanau would also come to stay.
Kitty and brother Charlie
Kitty, wanting to contribute to the household, obtained work when she could, usually in domestic roles or on local farms where she could live-in. Her rheumatic condition worsened with the hard domestic life and resulted in her having to give it up in the end.
"How wonderful it was at that time, with no welfare money available to have a grandmother and mother who just said “We’ll manage.” - Bill Paku
Then came the second world war years and brothers Pat, Harry, Bill and Charles all volunteered. Charles was not accepted for service because of his badly damaged leg (an accident as an infant) which had left him semi crippled. He was devastated.
Brother Pat’s family had moved into Cochrane Street for a while when Pat was serving in the 28th Maori Battalion but later rented a house in Ormond Road.
Kitty saw an ad in the local paper for work in a surveying and civil engineering company called Grant and Cooke. All of the male staff at that time were away in the services with the exception of Arthur Cooke a first world war veteran and Charlie Nurse, a Boer War veteran.
Kitty was put on trial, tracing maps and documentation. Her neat printing and drawing made her a natural and before long she was doing calculations from the field books and became a vital addition to the staff. The wages were small at the time but combined with Bill’s earnings, mowing lawns, milking cows etc they were now able to contribute.
After the war years Kitty applied for a job with the Maori Affairs survey department, a sole position which she ran for the rest of her working life.
When her mother Kate passed away on 24 March 1945, Kitty and son Bill continued to live at Cochrane Street until it was sold about 1948-49. Bill had started work by this time and they rented rooms in the old homestead from the new owner until finding a small two bedroom flat in the Mangapapa area.
Accommodation was at a premium in those post war years and when the flat was sold and she was given notice she had a problem on her hands. Family once again came to the rescue. Niece, Joan Edwards (nee Robinson) offered Kitty a room with her family (husband Clyde and children).
Joan and Clyde were very good to Kitty. And when, after a couple of years Kitty and Bill found a section, Clyde built a lovely two bedroom home with the aid of a Maori Affairs loan. At last Kitty had something she could call her own, a home, her gardens, music and painting.
Kitty enjoyed traveling and in particular, visiting her brothers and sisters. These trips were a source of inspiration for her landscape artwork; from her brother Kepa in Te Araroa, Dine in Auckland, Pani in the South Island and everywhere in between, she loved painting momentos of her travels.
Over her lifetime, much of her art she generously gave to various friends and family members who have since handed them down through their families. These taonga are very much cherished and some of these have been kindly shared with us in the slideshow below.
She was quite an accomplished pianist and would play daily. This not only filled the house with wonderful mind soothing harmonies but also helped her keep the joints in her hands supple.
Kitty had many operations on her feet and legs to ease the crippling effects of her complaint. She was in a lot of pain at times but continued to work, which she loved. In times of adversity one often finds their measure and throughout her life Kitty's measure of courage, determination and a little old fashioned Priestley stubbornness showed itself again and again. She was not going to be stopped and she was certainly not going to let anything prevent her from enjoying the things that brought her peace and pleasure; her painting, her music, her gardening and her work.
She bussed to work each morning and in the evenings locals were treated to the sight of Kitty stepping off the bus to be greeted by her tomboy cat named Thomas who escorted her home each day; a distance of two blocks.
Kitty was a foundation member of the local Business and Professional Woman’s Club and enjoyed those meetings for many years.
Retirement
Kitty married again about the time of her retirement to Ray Dorn and it was great to know that she was not alone and had the company of someone with similar interests.
At the time of Kitty’s passing she had two grandchildren Kay and David; who she adored.
Katherine Dorn (nee Priestley) passed away on 13 August 1974. Her funeral was held in the Holy Trinity Church. The church was completely full and a large crowd were standing outside the open doors. A true indication of a very much respected woman. She was more than deserving of this tribute, for a life lived with courage, selflessness and a determination to always do good for those she knew and loved. She is a much loved and fondly remembered tipuna. We honour her. May she rest in peace.
Kitty Stories
Kitty Stories
Kitty Timeline
Kitty Timeline
> 1910 - Born: 12 Oct 1910
1910 - 1936: Reign of King George V.
1914 - Start of World War I.
1918 - The Influenza Epidemic of 1918. Refer also to New Zealand History online. End of World War I.
1927 - World population reaches 2 billion.
> 1930 - Married Paku Duff Rangimataeo: Abt 1930
1931- Napier earthquake.
> 1931 - Child William (Bill) Paku b. 1 Jun 1931
1936 - 20 Jan to11 Dec Reign of King Edward VIII (abdicated). 1936 to 1952: Reign of King George VI.8
1939 - Start of WWII. Germany invades Poland.9
1945 - End of World War II. V.E. Day.10
1950 - Korean War. (1950-1953)11
1952 - New Zealand's population reaches over two million. 6 Feb 1952: Reign of Queen Elizabeth II
1053 - Edmund Hillary & Tenzing Norgay conquer Mt Everest. 24 Dec 1953: Tangiwai rail disaster.
1959 - Auckland Harbour Bridge opens.
1960 - World population reaches 3 billion.
1965 - Vietnam War. (1965-1975)
1968 - Wahine inter-island ferry disaster.
1969 - Man walks on the moon. Apollo 11 mission.
1973 - New Zealand's population reaches three million.
1974 - World population reaches 4 billion.
> 1974 - Died: 13 Aug 1974
Kitty Media
Kitty Media
(Click on enlarge icon below to view in full screen)
(Click on enlarge icon below to view in full screen)
Kitty Whakapapa
Kitty Whakapapa
For privacy purposes, our whakapapa is password protected. To gain access to the whakapapa pages, you will need to apply for a username and password. Access is free. For faster processing of your application, please indicate your line of decent to the Priestley family
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse