OBITUARY

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 8, Issue 33, 15 December 1944, Page 4

OBITUARY

MR GEORGE HILL

The death occurred on December ■ Ist 194.-1. of Mr George Hill, a higli- " lv respected resident of the Tane--1 atua district. 1 The late Mr Hill was born on Oct- ' ober 18 1861 at Flat Bush Pa pan ' toetoe, and at the age of nine he accompanied his parents to the. Wai- ' kato, Avhere, they took up land on the shores of Lake Waikare. For about 20 years they Avere the only white settlers in the Matahura dis--1 trict, and as the result of the late. Mr Hill was a A'ery iluent Maori speaker. OAving to the delicate " health of his. lather the task of seeing that the family was- kept sup- ' plied Avith food fell to him and all : stores had to be taken across the, Lake in a canoe. An added responsibility was in 1 seeing that the family Avas protected from hostile native?. In 1890 he : married Mary Allen, eldest daugh- ' ter of Alfred Allen of Buckland (late of Cork, Ireland) and they : took up another block of lahd about one mile from the original one. Here a hand-saw pit Avas put in to saw the timber to build their home and also a more: substantial one for Mr Hill's parents. In 1911 he sold out and left the Waikato and came to the Bay of Plenty Avhere he purchased the Ave.ll known property "Sybton" Opotiki, Avhere lie resided for six years,. In 1917, owing to the loss of his eldest son in the Great War, he disposed of this property and purchased a smaller farm now known as. "Te Waiu " Taneatua f 1 where he resided until his death. Owing to his deafness he lived a A'ery retired life, taking no part in public affairs, but in his younge.r days he Avill be remembered as a keen horseman and well known figure in the slioav ring. He is surviA r ed by his wii'c_ 5 sons Alfred (Murupara), Eric (Opouriao, Taneatua) Curtis (Opotiki), Harold (Taneatua) TreA 7 or (overseas), and 5 daughters Mesdames J. T. Donaldson (Opotiki), A. W. Jurd (Kutarere), G. R. Yeoman (Opouriao, Tan-eatua), N. A. Eagle (Waimana) and W. Lysaglit (Whakatane) . There, are also o3 grandchildren and one great-grandson. The eldest, son, George. AA r as killed on Gallipoli in August 1915, and the youngest son, Trevor j lias been overseas for almost 4 years.