Thomas (Allan) and Nellie Wheeler and their four children
Allan was the first of six children born to Thomas Ockold and Sarah Louise (Louie) Wheeler. Allen was an orchardist at Te Kauwahata, with the well known Bonnie Brae Orchard, for many years. He was also very active politically, standing as a Social Credit candidate in Parliamentary elections for a number of years.
A hard worker, he often did things by himself, including using dynamite to blast out trees.
Allan and Nellie met on the Hauraki Plains when Allan's parents relocated there from Waitakere where he had been raised at Bethells Beach. Young Harriet Ellen Mc Watters (Nellie) caught his eye and they married.
After nearby relatives decided to sell and relocate to Auckland, Allan purchased Clyde Orchards, which had previously been run and owned by his sister Ethel and her husband James Thompson, and their sons.
Always active, Allan and Nellie hiked, and went on plenty of long walks well into their eighties. Trips out on the boat were greatly enjoyed. Nellie also enjoyed gardening, and her roses received regular attention.
Allan and Nellie Wheeler held many Mellsop family reunions at their property at Clyde Orchards, Te Kauwhata, over the 1970s and 1980s, which helped to unite the extended families.
Allan finally turned over the reins for his orchard, but he and Nellie remained in the house at Clyde Orchards before retiring finally, when things got too much, to the Te Kauwhata rest home.
Allan's dates: Born 19 Oct 1910, Auckland
Died 20 Dec, 2011, Te Kauwhata
A hard worker, he often did things by himself, including using dynamite to blast out trees.
Allan and Nellie met on the Hauraki Plains when Allan's parents relocated there from Waitakere where he had been raised at Bethells Beach. Young Harriet Ellen Mc Watters (Nellie) caught his eye and they married.
After nearby relatives decided to sell and relocate to Auckland, Allan purchased Clyde Orchards, which had previously been run and owned by his sister Ethel and her husband James Thompson, and their sons.
Always active, Allan and Nellie hiked, and went on plenty of long walks well into their eighties. Trips out on the boat were greatly enjoyed. Nellie also enjoyed gardening, and her roses received regular attention.
Allan and Nellie Wheeler held many Mellsop family reunions at their property at Clyde Orchards, Te Kauwhata, over the 1970s and 1980s, which helped to unite the extended families.
Allan finally turned over the reins for his orchard, but he and Nellie remained in the house at Clyde Orchards before retiring finally, when things got too much, to the Te Kauwhata rest home.
Allan's dates: Born 19 Oct 1910, Auckland
Died 20 Dec, 2011, Te Kauwhata