James Carroll (pictured standing second from the right- Richard Seddon is seated to the left with his hand on the paper) was born at Wairoa, one of eight children of Joseph Carroll, born in Sydney of Irish descent, and Tapuke, a Māori woman of the Ngāti Kahungunu tribe. He was educated both at Whare Wananga (traditional Māori college) and the Wairoa native school but left early to be a farm worker. In 1870, while no more than thirteen, he was part of the Māori force pursuing Te Kooti in the Urewera, and his bravery was mentioned in dispatches. Beginning his career as an interpreter and land agent, Carroll was elected to the Eastern Maori seat in 1887. He was Colonial Secretary (equivalent to Minister of Internal Affairs) from 1895. He was the first Māori to hold the cabinet position Native Affairs, which he held between 1899 and 1912. He was held in high regard within the Liberal Party and was acting prime minister in 1909 and 1911.
On 4 July 1881 Carroll married Heni Materoa (pictured below), which is where our family link comes from, also known as Te Huinga (1852/56?–1930) she was born at Makauri, a few miles north of Turanga (Gisborne). Her father was Mikaera Turangi of the Rongowhakaata (which is our familys hapu)tribe. Her mother was Riperata Kahutia, an influential leader of Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki. She was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1918. Heni Materoa-Carroll died in November 1930, Sir James died 8 years prior. Sad thing is they never had any kids. Heni was my Great Great Great (give or take one Great) Aunty.
Hi
ReplyDeleteDid these people adopt a boy called Tuahae Carroll? He went to Wellington College and went off to World War 1. I am researching him for school and his dad knew Seddon and was a member of the then Maori Party.
Thanks
yes they did my great grandfather tuahae sydney james carroll his son toki carroll and his son sydney carroll.
DeleteHenry, did you find any more korero/ info about Tuahae Carroll? I've been doing some research for some of my own work about Sir James Carroll and I've come to meet an extraordinary women, who is a Carroll too. No doubt your school project is long done now. Just wondered if you found out what happened to Tuahae. Regards.
ReplyDeleteHi, I've just seen this post and I am happy to answer your question on what happened to Tuahae Carroll. In 1914 he enlisted with the first Maori Contingent and left these shores for Gallipoli. He died in action in 1915, only days before they were due to come home. He departed NZ as a Private, and prior to his death he was ranked as a Corporal. He never returned home and lies in Gallipoli with all of the other fallen Maori soldiers interred there. He left behind a wife, known as Peti Waima and a young son Toki who was 3yrs at the time his father departed. He lies in the Embarkation Pier Cemetery in Gallipoli - Turkey. I hope this information is what you were looking for. If you have any further queries, I am quite happy to let you know with what knowledge I have. Kind regards K.
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