The STRONGs of Ulster, Ireland, Chapter 7

The "STRONG Family" section of this site is divided into 11 chapters and 8 appendices. Please read in sequence by following the links at the bottom of each page or use the "Quick Nav" at top right. If you wish to select individual chapters, please click on the top left link to the "Sitemap" page. Note that the chapters develop the story of our family and the appendices contain supporting data… for example the Descendancy Report in Appendix 1 with BDM records and photos of family members.

Do you have information, opinion or a question relating to this site? Please use the e-mail link available at the bottom of each page. I look forward to corresponding with you.

Robert STRONG's son: William Aberdare STRONG

William Aberdare STRONG was born on 5 Feb 1875 on the ship "Baron Aberdare". William's son, Robert William, later said about his father's birth:

"In due course they boarded a vessel called the Baron Aberdare and set sail. Conditions on board were very crowded and the food was not of the best. On board there were a number of pregnant women and the captain ordered that food from his own table be sent to them to supplement their rations. My grandmother, Jane STRONG, was one of these and as the ship rounded the Cape of Good Hope my father was born. He was named after the ship: William Aberdare STRONG."

Source: Strong RW. Interviewed by Brian Strong. 1978.

William lived with his family at least until he was 16, when their home was at Victoria Ave, Eden Terrace. His father Robert entered a family census in the family Bible on 5 Apr 1891, showing that three children still lived at home ..... Mary (aged 18), William (aged 16), John (aged 10).

 

William Aberdare STRONG. William Aberdare STRONG at various ages. Courtesy: Brian Strong.
Compare with his probable Sydney photo, bottom right.

William Aberdare STRONG is pictured at various ages, both above and later in this page. Photos: Courtesy of Brian Strong.

Margaret Jane STEEN. Margaret Jane STEEN
Courtesy: Brian Strong

When William left home, we traced his movements through Postal Directories and Electoral Rolls. He was a saddler in Coromandel in the 1896 & 1899 Directories. These same details were recorded when he witnessed his sister Mary's marriage in 1898. The Electoral Rolls then showed he was a saddler in Drury just before 1905. It is probable that William moved from Coromandel to Drury to work as a saddler in the military depot at Drury during the Boer War (11 Oct 1899 - 31 May 1902). There is a family tradition that when William was young, he worked for the army with his saddlery business, visiting outposts etc.

On 1 Jan 1903 when William was 27, he married Margaret Jane STEEN, pictured on left. Margaret was the daughter of William John STEEN & Margaret WALLACE, who were fellow immigrants on the "Baron Aberdare" in 1875. The marriage took place in the STEEN family home at Pukekohe, NZ. Robert William continues his family's story:

"The STEEN family came from a farming district in Northern Ireland (Grandmother Margaret was born at Omagh, Co. Tyrone). My grandfather STEEN was very well educated so the captain made him the schoolmaster to instruct the children on the boat. The Steens rode out on the railway to Pukekohe where eventually they got a few acres of land at Pukekohe West, which is about three miles from the present township of Pukekohe. The Steens rode out on the railway to Pukekohe where eventually they got a few acres of land at Pukekohe West, which is about three miles from the present township of Pukekohe.The land was covered with heavy bush. In those early days if a fifty-pound sack of flour was required my grandfather had to tramp through the trackless heavy bush to the military depot at Drury. He tied the sack of flour on his back and tramped away back home. In time the land was cleared. It was very fertile and eventually became a good dairy farm. Grandfather also grew crops of potatoes and onions which were sent to the markets in Auckland for sale. My mother Margaret was born there in a whare (a term applied by pioneers to any small hut) several years later. The two families, the STRONGs and the Steens were always on friendly terms and visited one another. In due course my father, William Aberdare STRONG met Margaret STEEN and they were married."

Source: Strong RW. Interviewed by Brian Strong.1978.

Young William Aberdare STRONGYoung William Aberdare STRONG.
Courtesy: Brian STRONG

William continued as a saddler in Drury for the rest of his life. A history of the Drury School and Districts locates William's saddlery business next to a blacksmith's forge, which was opposite the Presbyterian Church. Another source said the saddlery was a brown building, which was moved bodily in the late 1940's. This event probably followed William's death in 1947. The family home was near oak trees, which are in modern times at a bend in the motorway at Drury. Robert William said that his father had two houses in Drury. William's parents used the old house when they moved from Auckland in 1905, while William lived in the new house. When William's father Robert died in 1910, his mother Jane moved in with him.

In 2002 I visited Drury and was given permission to look through the Drury Presbyterian Church records. I found that William's family was active in this church. The Communion Roll had entries for Mrs. W. STRONG, which extended from 1924 to 1937. Her son R.W. STRONG made his "Profession of Faith" in March 1925.

My father, Robert STRONG, remembered (accurately) William Aberdare visiting his branch of the family in NSW Australia. He said in a letter: "I met Uncle Willie of Drury... he had 3 sons, 2 of them (I think) were school teachers". I found a photo in my father's collection when he died, and became convinced that it contained a photo of William Aberdare, when he visited Sydney, Australia. See the collage of photos above, as well as a description of the problem photo in Appendix 4: Similar.

William's niece, Olive LOWE (née STEEN) d. 30 Jun 2006, remembered him as a tall man the family called Willie.

When I first became interested in our family history and knew nothing about my NZ relatives, I found a newspaper clipping of William's funeral notice in our family Bible, kept in NSW Australia. It said:

"STRONG. - On March 2, 1947, at his residence, Drury, William Aberdare, beloved husband and chum of Margaret STRONG and loving father of Robert, William and Joseph LANE, Auckland, and David Wallace (Suva); aged 72 years. - At rest. A short service will be held at the Papakura Presbyterian Church at 1:30 p.m. tomorrow (Tuesday), thence to the Papakura Cemetery, to arrive at 2 p.m."

Source: Funeral Notices. New Zealand Herald, Auckland. Mar 3 & 4, 1947.

Note also that the newspaper inserted a comma between Robert and William giving William Aberdare an extra son... Robert and William rather than just Robert William! William's obituary said:

"Mr William Aberdare STRONG, of Drury, has died, aged 72 years. He was born on the ship Baron Aberdare, which arrived in New Zealand in 1875. After receiving his education in Auckland, Mr STRONG established a saddlery business in Coromandel, but later moved to Drury, where he conducted a similar business. He retired a few years ago to take up poultry and mixed farming. Mr STRONG was associated with many sporting organizations in the Drury district, and was a steward of the former racing club. He is survived by his wife and three sons".

Note that the Papakura Museum has been collecting oral histories. An informant told the museum that in the decade before she was born in 1910 (and not after), there was a "race track on the Henry farm in Drury". Another informant said: "Punters arrived from Auckland on a train, and the races were served by bookies". Perhaps the track discontinued during World War I and never re-opened.

William Aberdare's will was made on 29 Oct, 1912 and left everything to his wife Margaret Jane Patterson STRONG, which created a problem at the time of probate in 1947, since his wife found that her birth had only been registered in the name of Margaret Jane. William Aberdare's estate and effects were valued for probate as under £1,600, and his occupation was given as a saddler.

After William's death, Margaret left Drury and lived with her sister-in-law Mary GEE (née STRONG) and her daughter Dolly at 20 Thornton Road, Cambridge NZ. The family knew them as the "Three Widows of Thornton Rd. See my page Mary for a photo of the house as well as the three widows. When Mary died in 1955, it is assumed that Margaret had to move on at the age of 75 to live in the Shalom Rest Home, 4 Kingsview Rd Mt Eden, Auckland, where she later died on 26 Dec 1968, at the age of 88. Her death notice said:

"STRONG, Margaret Jane. On December 26, 1968, at a private hospital, Auckland (formerly of Drury), beloved wife of the late William Aberdeare (sic), loved mother of Robert, Wallace (Auckland) and Joseph (Wellington) and loving grandmother of Brian, Heather and Penelope; in her 89th year. At rest. A service will be held at W.H. Tongue and Son's chapel, 1 Mt Eden Rd, on Monday at 12 noon, funeral then leaving for a committal service at Papakura Public Cemetery at 12.45 p.m. All communications to 15 Coleman Ave, Mt Roskill."

Funeral Notices. New Zealand Herald, Auckland. Also: Auckland Star, Auckland. Dec 28, 1968.

Gravestone of William and Margaret STRONGGravestone of William and Margaret STRONG.
Photo: PD Strong, 2002.

The latter address was for her son Robert William, who organized the funeral. Both Margaret and William were buried in the Presbyterian Section of Papakura Cemetery Auckland. (Above is the gravestone of William and Margaret STRONG. Photo: PD Strong 2002.) Their headstone reads:

In Loving Memory of
William Aberdare STRONG
Dearly loved husband of Margaret
Died 2-3-1947, aged 72.
And Margaret Jane, his beloved wife
Died 26-12-1968, age 88

The Story Continues