I have great admiration for my great-grandmother, Eva. Her first child was born at Manaia, the second at Kaupokanui, 3rd, Opunaki, 4th,Waimate Plans, 5th at Opunake again. The 6th child was born in Hawera, then 3 more daughters at Alton. Shortly before the 9th child was born, her husband, Robert, decided to move back up north. I remember being told of how Eva travelled with the five older children, four toddlers (the youngest being 4 months old) with only her crippled sister-in-law, Agnes, to help her. They would have travelled by train, boat and buggy, to join him!
A third son (child 10) was born at Pokeno railway station. (There must be a story there, too!) By 1901 the family were living at Miranda where child 11 was born. Three more children came along after that!
This amazing lady finally died at Miranda, in 1946, at the age of 84.
We could only catch a glimpse of 'Sunny Brae', from the road. This house was built on land that Robert purchased from the Maoris, after arriving in the area in the late 1890's (The first homestead was built on the high ridge overlooking the swamp to the south of its present position.) 'Sunny Brae' was built in 1902 .
Here is a view looking over the Firth of Thames.
I remember staying at 'Sunny Brae' as a child - in fact I celebrated my 7th birthday there. We sat around a huge farm dinner table; Dad's Aunty Flower had baked a wonderful marble cake for me and they presented me with a box of chocolates - I felt very special - but ruined it all by crying. Uncle Alf wanted me to sit on his knee and give him a kiss. I was terrified of him as he had a glass eye!
At the Miranda Cemetery we found some Coxhead graves. Robert and Eva are actually interred at Pukekohe. (This is where they lived with Robert's brother after handing the farm over to their son George.)
We took a different route home, travelling along the coast up to Clevedon.
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