‘My Relations Left Orkney And Moved To New Zealand’

Bo Harris has always had the travel bug – and when she began researching her tree, she discovered why. She shares her family’s story with Claire Vaughan

Ableak windswept churchyard overlooking a blustery coastline on a small Scottish island contains a lichen-spotted headstone erected by a son in loving memory of his mother. A century and a half later, England-based

New Zealander and direct descendant Bo Harris (née Law) came to this remote spot, ran her fingers over the headstone’s lettering and watched the waves crash on the shore below on her journey to reclaim her ancestors. Along the way, she found heroes, pioneers and a victim of a modern-day plague – and even took to the sea herself.

Bo first came to England in 1979. To gain a work permit, she had to prove that she had UK ancestors. Her research triggered an enduring love of family history and uncovered forebears who lived through key moments in New Zealand’s history.

Among them is James Harcus, one of her great great uncles, who worked on New Zealand’s railways. When the First World War broke out, he enlisted in the Otago Infantry Regiment aged 28. “He was part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) and the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC),” says Bo. James departed from Port Chalmers, Dunedin, on the RMS Ruapehu as part of the NZEF Main Body and 1st Reinforcements. “The units disembarked in Egypt along with Australian Imperial forces to finish training and help defend the Suez Canal,” explains Bo on her website rootsroutes.com.

‘The NZEF were thrown into the firing line when they waded ashore’

In The Firing Line

On 25 April 1915, James was among the ANZAC troops who landed near Ari Burnu, now known as Anzac Cove, on the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey. “The NZEF were thrown immediately into the firing line when they waded ashore, as the enemy were already in the ravines and gullies above. Once above the beach, with shrapnel flying around them, they dug trenches to desperately defend their position.” The dead and dying lay all around.

James survived Gallipoli, but was wounded on 3 May 1915, probably during the Battle for Baby 700 (a key hill). He