M. Maley

Michael Maley was my paternal grandfather. He was born in Annaghdown, Galway, Ireland on 6th February 1862. As a newborn he was taken by his parents to Glasgow so that the family could get an assisted passage to New Zealand. Whilst in Glasgow Martin, Michael's father worked as a carpenter. The family arrived in Bluff on the ship STORM CLOUD on 8th December 1862. They walked part of the way to Invercargill and were rowed some of the way. I asked a member of the local iwi if the iwi did the rowing and he said that the rowing was done by two irishmen one of whom was called McElhinney.

At some stage Michael moved to Lumsden and worked on the Railway. He later opened a bootmaking business. Michael signed the Second Suffrage Petition. His wife, Elizabeth did not sign. (I suspect Michael signed because he would have been accessible. The petitioners would have been able to go into his shop}.

My father, Leo was born to Michael and Elizabeth on the last day of the Nineteenth Century. Dad had nine siblings. Michael had a large vegetable garden and an orchard. My father, his sister Bessie and their younger brother Joe worked in their father's garden on a Saturday. They spent quite a bit of time having long-jumping competitions. This activity ceased when a neighbour told their father.

Michael died of the 1918 flu. Two of his children, Bessie and my father also contracted the 1918 flu and recovered. Bessie's husband died of the flu. My mother, Grace also had the flu. Bessie and her husband had a farm. During the flu two of my father's younger siblings were sent to look after the farm. As they were small town children they didn't know what to do so they counted the animals. This story is at odds with Connie's daughter, Von's recollection that whilst on the farm Connie sat on a sheep and Joe slit its throat.

The networks established by the women petitioners were useful in setting up care for those afflicted by the 1918 flu.

Prior to the First World War my father's two older brothers Martin and Walter had the family name Maley changed back to the original O'Malley.