David Grant

DAVID GRANT

The story of David Grant is the story of a man who had neither chick nor child to carry on his name. He was most probably the youngest son of Charles and Janet and the information available indicates that he arrived from Scotland some time after his brothers, William and John, and that he, too, went to his brother Peter at “Gowrie” after landing at Dunedin. He acted as best man to his brother William whose marriage was in 1866. Thomas Grant of “Clairinch” confirms that the full face photograph reproduced is a speaking likeness of his Uncle David as he remembers him on occasional visits to “Clairinch” whilst Thomas was still in his youth. David married a Taieri lass, Jeannie Bruce, and from Mrs. Alex. Bruce, of Outram, came her husband's recollection that Jeannie was a member of the Bruce family that came out in the “Robert Henderson” in 1858 and settled at Saddle Hill. There was a family of four boys and four girls and Jane, or Jeannie as she was called, was the third daughter in the family. One of her brothers, James, was employed at “Gowrie” and there is little doubt that was how David Grant came to meet and subsequently marry Jeannie Bruce. Efforts to determine when and where David and Jeannie were married and where they set up their home have not been successful, but it could well be that as one informant writes: “I always understood that they had lived in

the 'Gowrie' cottage which was beside the weeping willow at 'Gowrie' gate.” David's niece, Mary Grant of “Gowrie” – Peter's only daughter – was a bridesmaid and her daughter, Mary Aitken, has a recollection of her mother saying that the newly weds headed for Milton after the ceremony. (David's brother William, of course, was at this time in the Milton area.)

It is sad to relate that Jeannie died within the first year of the marriage. There is a slight degree of discrepancy between the accounts available. One indicates that she and her child died in childbirth and another is that after the Bruce family moved to Te Houka, and after her marriage, Jeannie visited Te Houka to assist in a family crisis that involved nursing a farm employee who had contracted a fever. This disease, through which Jeannie, her mother and sister, Mary, successfully nursed the victim, was subsequently contracted by both Jeannie and her sister and resulted in their joint deaths. It is due to the interest and perseverance of Mrs. Alex. Bruce that it has been possible to locate the last resting place of Jeannie who is buried in Warepa Cemetery; She died on 18th August, 1868, at the age of 23, just a few weeks after the death of her sister Mary, aged 21, on 2nd June, 1868.

No information has come to light regarding the movements of David in the years immediately following the tragic loss of his wife but it seems quite certain that he moved into the Wanganui area late in the 1890's or early in the 1900's. The photograph reproduced was taken in Wanganui and with the assistance of Edwin Grant (of “Clairinch”) and his son Keith something about David has been discovered to record. The photographer who took the photograph of David, was bought out by a successor who was well established in Wanganui for a number of years before Edwin arrived in the River City in 1909. About that period the Westmere district north of Wanganui, particularly, produced a lot of grain, especially oats, and David Grant operated a threshing mill and chaff cutting service. It is also known of course, that grain growing was wide spread farming practice in adjoining districts and in an era when the horse was the basis of farming operations the joint activities of harvesting and chaff cutting were an important feature in farming practice - oaten chaff was a No. 1 priority with the teamsters of those days.

Edwin Grant moved to New Plymouth immediately after his return from World War I and in his relatively brief period of residence in Wanganui between 1909 and 1915 any contact he had with his Uncle David is not recalled. He does remember, however, that one of the Brodie boys — Charles - who frequently visited Wanganui as a commercial traveller about those years was a close friend of David Grant who was, of course, his uncle. He was outstandingly capable with machinery — a true brother of Peter. This flair for making machinery work was also a recollection of another Westmere resident whose connection with the district extends to a full 66 years and who remembered David Grant clearly as "a big man – straight as a die” who was an inveterate pipe smoker and “a more contrary man you would never meet in a day's march.” David was employed as a ploughman by a Mr. William Ritchie, a very substantial landowner in the Westmere area and a highly respected citizen and a widely consulted man on farming matters. William Ritchie reportedly employed only the best and David Grant's standing as ploughman is thereby established; he took great pride in his work, was prepared to work long hours and to turn out ploughing "that was a joy to behold.” Ritchie was the owner of the threshing mill-chaff cutting unit which David Grant operated and cared for so efficiently.

David Grant remained a widower and it is sad to think that his sterling qualities and skills as recalled by the informants quoted were not handed on to a succeeding generation for the benefit of the country of his adoption. Life must have been lonely for the last surviving member of the six Grant men and women who came to the Otago settlements 100 years and more ago. “His ain fireside” was not to be his lot. The autumn of his life was spent in the Jubilee Home in Wanganui and he died there on 26th June 1922, full of years at the age of 79.