Heritage

Roderick Fraser was born in 1810 in Pictou, Nova Scotia, second born son to parents who had travelled to Nova Scotia in 1805 as part of the exodus from the Highlands. In 1835 he married Marcella (McLennan) born in 1816 in Applecross, Scotland. She travelled to Nova Scotia with her parents some time after 1827, the year her youngest brother was born in Applecross.

Roderick and Marcella had nine children, all born on Nova Scotia, and in December 1856 they and many extended family members left for New Zealand on the Breadalbane, to join those who had previously made the journey from Nova Scotia to Waipu; arriving on 21 May 1857. There was a final (sixth) boat a year or two later.

Roderick had been a miller on Nova Scotia, as well as trying to establish a farm. It made sense for him to use the stream on the land he obtained outside Waipu (four previous boatloads of settlers had already got the best land nearest the coast) to power a mill. Roderick and Marcella's third son was my great grandfather. He farmed some land in Northland, supplementing the family income by going away for months at a time working as a labourer to help build the railways. My grandfather and father were also farmers.

In 2003, 150 years after the arrival at Waipu of the Margaret (the first of the six boats), a celebration was held at Waipu. My brother and I attended the three days. As part of the celebrations, a heritage trail was created, with this as the third site. During the celebrations staff and students from the archaeology department at Auckland University excavated the river bank and found remains of the old mill. The old house (very much modified) remains, well back from the road, and surrounded by trees.

On my way back to Auckland from the hospital visit in Whangarei, I pulled off the main road and went along Millbrook Road to revisit a little piece of my heritage, and take this photograph.