Herbert (Bert) & Doris Cook and their three daughters
Herbert (Bert) Cook was the only son of Charlotte Maria (Lottie) Wheeler and Sidney Cooke (Jim) Mills, born while the couple were still living in a de facto marriage, and so unable to "claim" Bert as their own because of the proprieties of the time.
Instead - because Jim Mills was not free to marry because he already had a living wife and children of a first family - they presented a story of having "adopted" Bert, and Bert and his family referred to them as Auntie and Uncle, never as grandparents, as long as Bert, Jim and Lottie lived.
Despite this unsettling start, Bert Cook was absorbed into the Wheeler clan, working with his Uncle Arthur (Lottie's bachelor brother) on his Hauraki Plains farm and at one stage being assisted onto a property by Arthur to help him get a start on his own farm.
Bert married Doris Minnie Miller and they had three daughters, Doreen, born in Waipawa, in 1927, (who married Jack Bartlett and had three sons,) Lois, born in Thames in 1930 ( married Don Croll and had a three sons and two daughters,) and Beverley. born in Thames in 1944, who married John Clark and had four sons.
Doris and Bert were married in Thames but started their married life working on a sheep station at Waipawa in the southern Hawkes Bay where Bert was a ploughman doing all the cropping on the station. The magnificent team of horses he ran were groomed and fed each day ready to begin work at 8 every morning.
Doreen was born while they were at Waipawa and in 1929 the family moved to their farm at Bush Road, Ngatea, which they developed before purchasing more land on the Neavesville Road, Puriri, where they were to live for many years until Government wartime regulations brought them back in Ngatea.
Later, ill health forced the sale of both properties and the family moved to Waiheke Island to run a dairy/grocery business there; the daughters looked after the shop: Doris maintained control of the kitchen while Bert enjoyed being an odd jpob man if he couldn't pursue his love of fishing.
Eventually they sold out of Waiheke and moved to Papatoetoe, where Doris and Bert enjoyed retirement and bowls.
Bert died on his 84th birthday, July 25, 1986, at Papatoetoe.
Bert's dates: 4 May, 1902, Hepburn St, Ponsonby Auckland
Died 4 May 1986, Papatoetoe, Auckland.
Instead - because Jim Mills was not free to marry because he already had a living wife and children of a first family - they presented a story of having "adopted" Bert, and Bert and his family referred to them as Auntie and Uncle, never as grandparents, as long as Bert, Jim and Lottie lived.
Despite this unsettling start, Bert Cook was absorbed into the Wheeler clan, working with his Uncle Arthur (Lottie's bachelor brother) on his Hauraki Plains farm and at one stage being assisted onto a property by Arthur to help him get a start on his own farm.
Bert married Doris Minnie Miller and they had three daughters, Doreen, born in Waipawa, in 1927, (who married Jack Bartlett and had three sons,) Lois, born in Thames in 1930 ( married Don Croll and had a three sons and two daughters,) and Beverley. born in Thames in 1944, who married John Clark and had four sons.
Doris and Bert were married in Thames but started their married life working on a sheep station at Waipawa in the southern Hawkes Bay where Bert was a ploughman doing all the cropping on the station. The magnificent team of horses he ran were groomed and fed each day ready to begin work at 8 every morning.
Doreen was born while they were at Waipawa and in 1929 the family moved to their farm at Bush Road, Ngatea, which they developed before purchasing more land on the Neavesville Road, Puriri, where they were to live for many years until Government wartime regulations brought them back in Ngatea.
Later, ill health forced the sale of both properties and the family moved to Waiheke Island to run a dairy/grocery business there; the daughters looked after the shop: Doris maintained control of the kitchen while Bert enjoyed being an odd jpob man if he couldn't pursue his love of fishing.
Eventually they sold out of Waiheke and moved to Papatoetoe, where Doris and Bert enjoyed retirement and bowls.
Bert died on his 84th birthday, July 25, 1986, at Papatoetoe.
Bert's dates: 4 May, 1902, Hepburn St, Ponsonby Auckland
Died 4 May 1986, Papatoetoe, Auckland.