CENTENARIAN’S DEATH

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 July 1941, Page 6

CENTENARIAN’S DEATH

MR M. J. GROUKOWSKI PIONEER CARTERTON SETTLER. After a very short illness, there passed away at the Greytown Hospital last evening a pioneer settler of Carterton, Mr Michael Joseph Gronkowski, in his one hundredth and first •year. The late Mr Gronkowski was born in Poland on October 13, 1840. In 1875 he married and in 1882, with his wife and three children (all girls), he left for New Zealand. After a few weeks in England he left in the sailing ship Victory 11, landing at Wellington. Soon afterwards he took up a small farm section at South Carterton. The family lived in a cottage built by the late Mr Moyston Jones, in Frederick Street, for 42 years. Mr Gronkowski was a hard working and highly respected pioneer and endured many hardships in the early days. He retained his faculties to the end and was a good conversationalist. He delighted in telling the story of his early arrival in Nev; Zealand, more especially of the days he spent in Carterton. After the death of his wife sixteen years ago, Mr Gronkowski lived with his daughter, Mrs P. Price, of Masterton. Last October, in honour of his having reached his hundredth birthday, a' large number of relatives and friends gathered at Mrs Price’s residence and ceelbrated the occasion. He received congratulatory messages from many parts of New Zealand, among them being one from the King and others from Lord and Lady Galway, Archbishop O’Shea and the, Prime Minister, Mr Fraser. Until within fourteen days of his death he had never suffered a serious illness throughout his long life. He was always an early riser. . His family consisted of six daughters and one son. The surviving members of the family are Mrs H. Lewis (Dannevirke), Mrs R. Bagge (Carterton), Mrs P. Price (Masterton) and Mrs P. McDonald (Auckland). The son is Mr T. Groukowski (Auckland) There are 29 grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren. The sympathy of a large circle of friends in the Wairarapa will be extended to the bereaved relatives. The funeral will take place tomorrow, leaving St Mary’s Church, Carterton, for the Clareville Cemetery at 3 p.m. •