DEATH AT 102

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 503, 5 November 1928, Page 14

DEATH AT 102

DAUGHTER OF MAORI CHIEF EDUCATED BY MISSIONARY (Special to THE SUN) WHANGAREI, Saturday. The death of one of the oidefli members of the Maori race, Mrs. RiW (Elizabeth) Pohe, occurred yesterday at the residence of her daughter. Mra ?Ao^ epene ’ of Ngaruatunua, in her 103rd year. Born at Waimahunga, Mrs. Pohe was a daughter of the iate Mr. R. Richardson, one of the first Europeajis to settle in the district, and a Scot by birth. Her mother was a daughter of the then well-known Maori chief. Turawhitu. The family eventually moved to Waikumete, Auckland, where they resided until the death of the mother. Th© children were then taken to Paihia, Bay of Islands, and were cared Q-nd educated by a missionary. Soon ®£ ter their arrival in the Bay district, the Maori War broke out in the vicinity of their home, necessitating a hasty removal to Pakaraka, where they remained until xneace was declared. Mrs. Pohe’s husband was William Pohe, who was one of the first Maori justices of the peace in Whangarei. They ®®ttled at Waimahuna Pa. There she reared a family of ten sons and three daughters. 'tlP to the time of her death Mrs. Pohe retained all her faculties. She would discuss with her friends reminiscences of older times, and often recalled incidents connected with the Maori Wars. She is survived by two daughters, Mrs. Mary Solomon, of WTiareora, and Mrs. S. Papene. of Ngaruatunua, and five sons, Messrs. J. Pohe, Kamo, G. Pohe. Parua Bay, JDuncan Pohe, Kawakawa, H. Pohe, Tauranga. and William Pohe, Maungakahia. There are a large number or other, descendants, including several great-great-grandchildren. A large tangi is being held at Nga* ruatunua, and Maoris from all over the North are assembling.