Ernest Wheeler
Farmer and Fanatical Gambler
Farmer and Fanatical Gambler
Ernest was the fourth of the ten children born to Anna and John Wheeler at Titi Farm in Mauku. He would only have been about 12 years old when his mother Anna died.
Ernest and his brother Tom (Thomas Wheeler was three years younger) were "great mates" and went north together as kauri gum collectors. They lived a hard life "surviving on white pork and native pigeon" according to Tom's son Allan, but they knew how to go the extra mile and both earned enough money to buy land and start farming. Ernest was a fanatical gambler (on the horses) and once spent two years just going to race meetings and betting on horses. He once walked the roughly 160 km from Whangarei to Auckland in 18 hours to go to the races. He sounds like he had the typical dry Wheeler man humour. Allan Wheeler (Ernest's nephew) reminisced once that when his mother (Louise) told Ernie that her sisters had made money at the races he replied dryly: "They'd be the first that ever did." Ernest farmed sheep at Hunua, and never married. He had cracked his ribs when he had been "tipped off a pig", and injury never healed fully. When he mustered his sheep alone, after a neighbour who was supposed to help failed to turn up, he haemorrhaged his rib injury and died at the age of 47. Ernest died intestate, and Letters of Administration were granted to one of his brothers, Harry Cecil Wheeler. The affidavit of Harry outlines who of the family was surviving at the time, and that Ernest's estate value was under 6000 pounds. Brother Thomas Wheeler of Ngatea and Samuel Ernest Henry of Te Akau went as sureties for Harry Wheeler in the administration of the estate. You can view the probate record HERE. |
Ernest is buried at Papakura Cemetery in Auckland. GPS location of his grave marker is 37°4'11" S 174°56'39" E
Click HERE to return to the page about Ernest's parents - Anna & John Wheeler
"Some gum diggers (called gum bleeders) climbed kauri trees to either collect gum or deliberately cut the tree so they could gather it later. However this practice was not popular as it eventually killed the tree. It was also dangerous. If you fell from a kauri tree you were inevitably killed. The West Coast Times (February 1899) reported that a skeleton had been found in a kauri tree. It was a gum digger who had climbed the tree then possibly lost his climbing gear or met with an accident. Unable to get down he had died waiting for help. When he was discovered kauri gum had formed around his skeleton!"
(From the National Library of New Zealand article on kauri gum climbers) |