Direct Ancestors- one page summaries

It's my plan to write a one page summary about each of my direct ancestors, (using Ahnentafel numbering.) Some family lines I can go back further than others to find these of course. The plan is then to put the summary in a plastic sleeve with a copy of birth/baptism, marriage and death registrations where I have them. (This will alert me to gaps I need to try and fill as well.)

Although the page is my own design, I got an idea for doing something like this from a presentation given by Fiona Brooker of Memories in Time. 

I have been working on collecting that BDM information for my great grandmother, Johanna Scettrini (who married Francis Davis Payn.) It was only late last year that I finally got Johanna's birth registration printout from Australia. The Scettrini name is so often misspelled in so many different ways, but I happened to see a "Groamina Leetrini" spelling on an Ancestry index, and lo and behold, it was her.
Then in the past few weeks, I ordered a printout of her death registration. I was preparing a talk about cemetery listings for a local genealogy event at the library when I realised Johanna was missing from the index of the Hokitika Cemetery burials where I expected to find her. For a while I had dreadful thoughts that she might by lying in a pauper's grave in Greymouth, though family all thought she was in Hokitika Cemetery with her husband Frank. But the printout of her death registration arrived and confirmed she was buried in Hokitika as we all thought. (Now I am in the process of trying to get her name added to the index.)

So Johanna then became the first person I wrote a one page summary about, and her bdm info is neatly filed with the summary. She has the Ahnentafel Number 15.

Any bets on how long it will take me to finish this task??! I have also written one about her father as well now, Giuseppe (Joseph) Scettrini, (Ahnentafel Number 30).

Kumara Sketch Map

In January 2023 I spent time on the West Coast, and in particular, exploring around Kumara, Larrikins and Goldsborough where my Payn, Scettrini, and some of my Lalor ancestors lived.

I am a great mixer-upper of left and right, and whenever I had visited Kumara, I always found myself confused about directions. Cycling along parts of the West Coast Cycle Trail though, helped me put everything into the right place in my mind. Hopefully this sketch map will help me recall the lay of the land for any future trip.

 On the Cycle Trail, I emerged into Kumara from the Greymouth end, and found myself within a short distance from where my Lalor grandparents, and my Uncle Jack, lived. It reminded me that my Uncle Jack had told me once that the old Tramway had passed nearby- and I know that at least part of the cycle route traverses it.

Uncle Jack told me there used to be two Payn-Scettrini houses up at the top of Boundary Rd, and I knew that my Scettrini 2x-great-grandfather lived up there: family photos show him there as an old man. Now there is one house up the top there, fully renovated. Next door it is hard to tell if any of the old house is left, as there is a lot of bush on the section.

 I took the liberty of wandering through part of this second section though, and found myself coming out onto the Larrikins part of the cycle trail! That was a lightbulb moment of how things fitted together in the landscape. 

Next day when I cycled the Larrikins part of the route, from the old Theatre Royal Hotel up to the road leading to Callaghans and Goldsborough, I recognised when I was passing the back of the two Scettrini sections.

According to family stories, Scettrini sisters Johanna (Payn) and Nellie (Baretta) used to live up on Boundary Rd next door to each other. There is an architect’s sign outside the renovated house.  One of my cousins, a Baretta descendant, grew up in Kumara and has told me that Ellen Baretta née Scettrini lived in the house that is still standing.

Somehow I had also been confused as I knew that “Payn’s Track” near where Frank Payn was goldmining was on the other side of the main road, and I had thought that was Larrikins too. A more careful re-reading of some of the material the West Coast Historical Museum prepared for our Payn-Scettrini family reunion in the early 90s showed me he was in fact mining later in a different place from Larrikins. I had walked Payn’s Track on a previous West Coast visit- I must re-walk it next time I am in Kumara.

Next I took the road that led me to Goldsborough and Stafford. I am grateful to various people on the West Coast South Island history FB group, who helped me with information before my trip south. It helped me clarify where Larrikins was, and also where Big Dam was, near Goldsborough, the first place where the Scettrini family lived before they moved to Kumara.

I had hoped I might perhaps walk or even drive up a road I could see on a map for Big Dam Hill. But when I arrived I discovered there was current mining activity up there, and access wasn’t possible. At least I now have a clear idea of where it was in relation to the main Goldsborough settlement. It shouldn’t be surprising that Giuseppe Scettrini, from a mountain village in Ticino, should choose to live in such a wild and hilly place.

 

The Last Post

On October 3rd 1918, John Francis Payn, my great-uncle, was killed in action near Crevecoeur in northern France.

He was born in Kumara on the West Coast in 1895, the sixth child and second son of Francis Davis Payn and Johanna Scettrini.

He was a private in the 2nd Battalion of the Wellington Regiment, NZEF. He departed New Zealand on 17 June 1917, and served in France for just over a year before his death on the battlefield.

Via Twitter, thanks to @NZLainey and @powderkeig, I learned about the Last Post ceremonies at Pukeahu National War Memorial Park in Wellington. These have been held each evening to commemorate the 100 year anniversaries of New Zealand  involvement in World War 1. I decided to apply to read the Ode in English at the ceremony on October 3rd, 2018, the date marking 100 years since the death of John Francis Payn.

Leaving Palmerston North early-ish allowed time for some Wellington explorations. It was dull and a little drizzly first thing, but this seemed to bring out the very best in the tulips at the Botanical Gardens. Somehow, their brightness reminded me of poppies found today on the old battlefields.

Around 4pm it was time to get ready for the ceremony. I had taken my greenstone taonga to wear, which had belonged to a cousin on the Payn side. (I had also decided to wear a skirt to show respect- but the Wellington breeze was swirling around the memorial, so perhaps trousers would have been more suitable!)

When I arrived at Pukeahu I was very pleased to find my youngest sister, who lives in Wellington, had made it there. Lainey and Jane both arrived, and a cousin and her three children were also there. It was heartening to find I had such support.

Soon John, the organiser of the ceremony, arrived, and he made my sister and myself both very welcome. He talked me through what was to happen. Since it was a special anniversary, he said I could say a few words about John Francis, and lay a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the start of the ceremony. I was introduced to all the military participants, and they also made me very welcome.

The ceremony itself was simple and dignified. There was a senior officer who was in charge, two men to bring down the flags, and a bugler. This day there were three of us to read the Ode, including an Italian man who read it in Italian.

We marched out to our positions, and we three readers of the Ode stood just behind the tomb. I spoke briefly about John Francis and laid the wreath. Then the bugler played the still and the Last Post. We three read our versions of the Ode, in Te Reo, English, and Italian. And then everyone stood still for a minute's silence. At the end we all marched back into the shrine area. It was a simple ceremony, very respectful of the memory of those soldiers who had not come home.

John had a special gift for me before we all departed- this special '100' Last Post commemoration pin. He then kindly took photos of our family visitors in the shrine.

It was a special time at Pukeahu, and I feel privileged to have had the chance to honour the memory of John Francis Payn.

Payn-Wallace wedding

How I love Papers Past! I am currently going through all the info I have about Frank Payn and Johanna Scettrini's family, and tidying it all up in neat folders both on the computer and into paper files. Mostly I only have a small amount of info about each of their children but it still takes time.

Next job is to store it all online somehow but I am being so indecisive about what to use. I find Google Docs so cumbersome- not sure about DropBox- and have never really got to proper grips with iCloud. One day...

Every so often I get bored with being neat and tidy, and I delve into Papers Past to find something new...

While I was tidying all my info about Elizabeth Payn, the third child of Frank and Johanna, a little Papers Past delving led me to this wonderful account of her marriage.

 This account was published in the West Coast Times on 7 February 1912. From it we learn that Elizabeth Payn married Mr Kenneth Wallace of Hokitika on February 5th 1912 at Holy Trinity Church. We are told Elizabeth was the second daughter, and was given away by her father. Her sister Mary was her bridesmaid. There were toasts held at the bride's parents residence after the ceremony, and in the evening bride and groom left for their future home in Hokitika. 

One of the other useful features of the Papers Past website is that it is now easy to get the full reference details to an excerpt- and I (usually!) remember to screenshot them, so here they are. 

Someone - I think it was Freda, descended from the Kate Payn (Olsen) line- sent me this wonderful photo of the Wallace family.

Joseph (Giuseppe) Scettrini

Joseph (Giuseppe) SCETTRINI

On September 20, 1834, John, son of Joseph Abondi Scitrini, and Maria Johanna, daughter of  Gugliermus Scilacci, were married at the Church of the Blessed Mary Virgin of Mt Carmel, in Corippo, Canton of Ticino, Southern Switzerland.

From Corippo parish register- via microfilm at Mormon FHC.

A year later, on the ninth of September, 1835, their infant son, Joseph, was baptised at the same church.

From microfilm of Corippo parish register, 1835,- with my translation.

               Joseph was one of many young men who left Corippo where there were many hardships, and he found his way to the goldfields in Victoria. In 1864 he was married at St Kilian's, Bendigo, to a young Irish woman named Catherine Heneberry. He described himself then as a 29 year old bachelor, resident at Sailor's Gully.

             

Their first child, Johanna, was born at Sandhurst on 29 December 1865,  and their second child, John, was born at Eaglehawk in 1867.

           

It wasn't long before the family moved across the Tasman to the West Coast goldfields, and settled first at Waimea, near the Big Dam, during the Goldsborough rush. Johanna is known to have gone to the school there.  At least four children were born at Waimea: the first was MaryAnne in December 1869, and the last seems to be Joseph Beneda, born in May 1876.           

The family is next known to be living at Kumara, where Joseph lived for the rest of his days in a house on Boundary Road. 

 

On 21 March, 1883, Joseph applied for naturalisation. He was described as a goldminer,  45 years old, who had been living in the colony of New Zealand for 15 years.

           

On 6 January, 1887, Catherine Heneberry died, leaving Joseph a widower with eleven living children (nine of them girls), ranging in age from two to twenty-one. He never re-married.

                            

In September of 1890, Joseph discovered gold in a swampy area near Whiskey Creek, and a small rush occurred. He applied for a 6 acre claim and had constructed a 30ft tunnel. A newspaper reporter on Sept 15, 1890, found only one person working on the prospector's claim (assumed to be his son) and states that "I understand that Scetterini is not well at present and is consequently not working." He continues later: "I think we should all be desirous of rewarding a prospector and the storekeepers who had the courage to back him, for months, and though I consider six acres rather too large a slice for a very small party of men, I think the area should be in proportion to the labour expended.” 

Mr Seddon gave notice in Parliament on Sept 16, 1890, that this rush had occurred, and named the prospector as J. Sceterini. He sought Government aid to improve the access track.

Joseph is believed to have buried some of his gold, but when his section was dug up after his death, none was found. 

           

At the family reunion in 1992, Elizabeth Payn's wedding photograph from 1912 was reproduced on the front page of The Greymouth Evening Star. It shows Joseph Scettrini seated in the front row, complete with walking stick and large white beard.

 

           

Joseph lived until 4 October 1928, when he died, at 94 years of age, at his daughter's residence in Boundary Rd, Kumara. He was survived by seven children and thirty grandchildren. His obituary says: "Deceased followed alluvial mining practically all his life, and was for some time employed on Government Roads in and about Kumara. He was one of Kumara's oldest identities, as well as being one of the longest lived of Kumara's citizens."  

Note on SPELLING of Joseph Scettrini's name.

Joseph's original first name in Italian was Giuseppe. On the Latin baptismal entry it is written as josephus. The original spelling in Italian (in Corippo) of the surname is SCETTRINI, though on the Latin Church entries it appears as scitrini.

The surname is OFTEN misspelled, and when searching for information about the family in indexes, it is necessary to think quite laterally!  Some of the variations in spelling that I have detected include Scetrini, Sectrini, Scetrina, Seitrina, Sechini, Seitrino, Scetrim, Setrini, Citrini.

Frank PAYN & Johanna SCETTRINI

Now it is time to briefly introduce my great-grandparents from Kumara, my maternal grandmother's parents- Francis Davis Payn, and Johanna Scettrini.

(Originals of these photos are presently held by Joe Payn, Kumara.)

Francis Davis PAYN was born in November 1854 in St Martin's Parish on the island of Jersey in the Channel Islands. His parents were Thomas Payn and Elizabeth MOURANT. (Their headstone is in French, so I assume Francis Davis was probably able to speak French.) Originally some of us thought he was born in 1851, but it turns out he had an older brother of the same name who died aged 3. Our Francis Davis was born the very next day, and given the same name.

Johanna SCETTRINI was born in 1865 in Australia. She was baptised in St Kilian's (Catholic) Church in Bendigo, and her residence was given as Sailor's Gully. Her parents were Giuseppe Scettrini from Corippo, Ticino, in southern Switzerland, and Catherine HENEBERRY from Ballyporeen in Co Tipperary, Ireland. When she was young, Johanna's parents moved to follow the goldmining on the West Coast, and settled first at Big Dam/ Waimea/ Goldsborough. They later moved to Kumara.

Francis and Johanna married in Kumara in 1886 at the Registrar's Office. He was a goldminer, and she had been doing some domestic duties for the Seddons, who presented the couple with a large clock on their marriage. Frank's residence was given as "Dillmans", and Johanna's as Kumara.
(The spelling of Johanna's surname appears to be written as Scetrini at her wedding- one of many spellings that differ from the original name of Scettrini back in Corippo.)

Frank and Johanna had 11 children that I am aware of:- Thomas- 1886; Catherine (Kate)-1888; Elizabeth (Lizzie) -1890; Mary Ann- 1891; Rose (my grandmother)- 1893; John Francis (Jack)- 1895; Hilda Selina- 1897; Joseph Helier (Joe)- 1899; Matilda (Tilly)- 1901; Albert Edward- 1903; Francis Davis (Frank)- 1908. (I am grateful to cousins Patricia Milne (nee Lalor), Pat Wallace, and Maurice Payn for help researching the details for these children.)

Frank Payn was very involved in the local community. In Papers Past there are references to him as a goldminer, and he was also  one of the Kumara Hospital trustees. Payn's Gully is named after him, and there is a track that Joe Payn has been very involved with creating (at the Boundary Rd/ Londonderry Rock end of Kumara township.)

Frank Payn died in 1929 in the hospital in Hokitika, aged 74. Johanna lived to be 93 and died in November 1957 in Tasman Home, Greymouth.

Greymouth Evening Star 22/11/57

Frank and Johanna are both buried in the cemetery in Hokitika.