Family Hero
New Zealander Marjorie Prictor is descended from British settlers who came to the North Island to forge a new life. Gail Dixon discovers more about the challenges they had to overcome
Marjorie Prictor celebrates a New Zealand settler
Early European settlers in New Zealand’s Albertland needed to be hardy souls. The long sea journey was arduous in itself, but some ships suffered mutinies or smallpox outbreaks. On arrival at the North Island, the vessels also had to navigate dangerous sea bars, one so notorious that it was dubbed ‘the Graveyard’.
Among those brave pioneers was Marjorie Prictor’s paternal great grandfather William Vickery, who was born in Swimbridge, Devon, in 1839.
His parents were John Vickery, a piano and organ manufacturer, and his wife Frances Mary Leah.
“William was well educated in the Classics and languages,” explains Marjorie. “He wanted to be a doctor, but his father fell into financial difficulty so he became a carpenter.”
In the early 1860s, a fresh drive was made by the New Zealand government to attract skilled immigrants. If settlers paid for their passage, they would receive a grant of 40 acres per adult.
About 70,000 acres of terrain north of Auckland was set aside for them. It became known as Albertland, in honour of Prince Albert who died in 1861.
Many settlers came from Britain, and ‘tea meetings’ were held by nonconformists who wished to live within a community where worship wasn’t controlled by the established church. About 3,000 people decided to brave the voyage, including William who arrived in 1862.
“Trouble was breaking out between the government and the Māoris over land purchases, so single men were immediately conscripted into the militia.
“In 1863, William was on sentry duty when he was shot accidentally. A soldier had begun cleaning his rifle without unloading it, and the bullet struck him in the chest. William was in a critical condition for days before recovering. But the bullet was never removed, and it caused him suffering for the rest of his life.”
William returned to Auckland and sold his initial grant of 40 acres to survive until he could work. In 1867, he married fellow settler Ann Evans and they had eight children together.
The family purchased another block of land near Wellsford in Albertland, which Marjorie’s grandfather William Evan Vickery farmed between 1897 and 1929. He was also a builder, as well as a part-time preacher.
Carving out a living was a huge challenge in the beginning. The land was covered in bush and maps were scarce, so some settlers couldn’t locate their territory.
Initially, tents were a luxury and most of the pioneers took shelter under tarpaulin stretched over poles. They had to find clean water, build houses and roads, clear the bush for grassland, and get to grips with the climate.
After hearing of the primitive conditions in Albertland, many settlers decided to stay in Auckland. However, during the 1860s a community of 80 families
William senior remained in
community. He was baptised into the nonconformist faith, and became an elder of the Cook Street Church of Christ. He was also a lifelong member of the Total Abstinence Society.
William passed away in 1904, and Ann in 1921. They have more than 100 descendants living in New Zealand today.
Marjorie has lived in Albertland for 56 years, where her late husband Lindsay ran a dairy farm. Her current home is just a mile away from the farm that her grandfather toiled to establish.
Naturally, she is proud of her ancestors. “William and Ann faced life’s challenges with faith and determination. They brought up their family to love and respect religious beliefs.”
the chest. The bullet struck William in for days He was in a critical condition