Benjamin PEARCE, born on 6Jan1863, is described as having golden coloured hair and beard - he won a prize for the best kept beard when he was 21. Benjamin worked as a farmer, fireman and a Seaman.

Mary Ann 'Annie' COSTELLO was born 10Mar1865 at New Plymouth, New Zealand. She was the eldest of Martin and Ellen COSTELLO's six daughters. Her mother was widowed ten years later so life must have been very hard for her and her four remaining little sisters. Within another year her mother remarried and produced another seven children in fifteen years.

Nothing else is known of Annie until she married Benjamin PEARCE on 19Sep1884 at the Auckland Registry Office. She had probably met her husband in New Plymouth because he was a Seaman on boats trading the coast from Auckland.

They had five children between 1885 and 1900 - Lionel, Ruby, Ethel, Benjamin Martin Athol b 13Aug1891 and Alex (He died seven months later on 4Sep1900). All children were born at Onehunga in Auckland.

Family story states that during the big strike of 1884c - just before Lionel was born - the family lost all their furniture during the 6 month strike but were too proud to accept help from the Union. Benjamin also fell from a horse in 1887 - just before Ruby was born - he was laid up for eighteen months. It was then he started to drink heavily.

On 15Jul1891, just a month after her mother Ellen died, Mary Ann wrote a letter to her step-father Sydney Madgwick. She was living at Church St, Onehunga at the time. In it she states -

'I don't want anything to do with the property at all. I forgo (sic) any claim I may have in it. I have no money to waste on law and lawyers. I dont want to take anything from the children or put you to any trouble or expence (sic). I know mother ment (sic) the children to have anything there was. I have not got mothers photos taken off yet, you must wait until I can go to Auckland and that wont be for a week or two yet. I hope by the time you get this you will have got a housekeeper. Your a long time getting one. ....butter is only one shilling and four pence a pound up here but I think it will soon be down now if it isnt we will have to eat dry bread....hoping you are all well with very best love to the children.'

Within three weeks of his son Alex dying, Benjamin was found dead on a dredge "Erskine" in Manakau Harbour on 30Sep1900. He was only 38 and living apart from his wife Annie at the time. An inquest was held which stated that a fall from a horse eighteen months previous had caused him to have epileptic fits which probably contributed to his death.

Annie received little help from the PEARCE family and worked long and hard to look after herself and her four children - she worked managing hotels and made clothes for a funeral parlour next door to make extra money.

Two years after she was widowed, Annie married Thomas Edward Newey in 1902. They lived in Wellington for the next thirteen years until in 1915 Annie and Thomas Newey sailed to Sydney to make a new life in Australia. The family settled on the North Shore of Sydney.

On Annie's recommendation, her son Benjamin and family also came to Australia per 'Aorangi'. That was mid 1926.
Molly tells the story - 'The reason why we haven't any documents with dates etc is firstly - After the War Tom Newey became Postmaster and store keeper at Bayview opposite the Bayview wharf near Church Point NSW in about 1921. Then in 1923 just before Xmas the whole place was burnt to the ground. It was a fine two storey building, a weekend boarding house and tearoom with tea gardens. It was a lucky thing they escaped in their nightclothes. The house was very old and the timber was dry, everything was lost, I only have photos and little bits and pieces that I collected over the years from relatives'.

Annie and Tom moved to Harbord where Annie installed a bomb shelter in the backyard after WW2 broke out.
Annie died 21Jul1942 and is buried at French's Forest Cemetery.

Mary Ann (Annie) lived a very long and full life from 1865 to 1942 - 77 years - through two World Wars and a Depression.

Annie PEARCE (nee COSTELLO)