A little bit of new information

I've had an email from the NZSOG Pacific Islands Interest Group co-ordinator, Christine Liava'a, who has been able to provide me with a little bit more information. I'm finding Family research to be an inch by inch process. Every scrap of information gets pored over and fit into this huge jigsaw to build up the picture just a tiny bit more.

Christine has given me some snippets about some of the Tongan Sutherlands - some that I already have, some that builds on what I've got.

One of the names Christine has given me is Robert Sutherland, aged 44, born 26 May 1876 in Edinburgh, Scotland, who applied for a passport to travel to New Zealand in 1920. His occupation is listed as "accountant". I'm pretty sure I've come across a young Robert in one of the Scotland censuses listed as a Trainee Clerk - No - I've just looked back at my notes and it's not Robert at all - James aged 14 is listed in 1871 as a trainee clerk. Robert wasn't born until 1876.

Now here's a bit more of the story I haven't written down yet and it's probably time to do so:
The Robert/Christina Sutherland family left Scotland on the Ben Cruachan in 1883. They were unassisted immigrants, so they at least had the funds to pay for passage to Australia for the whole family.

The passenger list has:
[source: Index of Inward Passenger Lists for Briish Foreign and NZ Ports - PROArchives. Public Record Office, Victoria, Fiche420 pg2]
Mr R Sutherland aged 41
Master R 7
Miss E 4
Miss K 15
Mast W 13
Miss C 18
Miss G 9
Miss A 20
Mrs 42

The initials all match up and the ages almost match up - except for Mr R, who seems to have miraculously lost 10 years and Mrs, who is 4 years younger.

I did a bit more of a search around the Australian records and found Ann Sutherland, who married Richard Holden in Newtown in 1891. I also found deaths f0r Christina, who died in 1922 in St Leonards, Sydney and Robert, who died in 1916, St Leonards. I took a punt and paid the outrageous sum of $50 to get death certificates for these two. I suspect that all they'll do is support my hunch that these are my South Leith Christina and Robrt - I'm still trying to find the vital piece of evidence linking them to William Morrison Sutherland of Tonga.

One thought:If Robert the Accountant from Tonga is the son of Christina and Robert, then he must have been schooled in Australia.

Other information I've got from Christine refers to:
William Morrison Jnr, who applied for a british passport to travel to New Zealand for school and later work. He is 17.
Christina Middlemas Sutherland applied for a passport 9/3/22 aged 23 born 5 jan 1899 married ? Edwards Died 27 June 1976 Middlemore Hospital Auckland - somehow connected to Clive Edwards of Tonga
Robert Sutherland, accountant, aged 44 applied for a passport in 1920
Georgina Mary Sutherland attnded school at Hilltop School, Newmrket Auckland 1910s-20s, married Arthur Henry Frost 1930, 3 children 1=George - Divorce 1933
Georgina and her mother, Mrs Sutherland, are mentioned in Dorothy Ferguson's Teaching in Tonga 1927-1930.
Walter Stringer died young

I've also got a couple of references to shipping arrivals - Mr Sutherland, Scholar, aged 17 arrived Auckland from Nukualofa on Navua 24 feb 1920 and G Sutherland, female aged 12, scholar, arrived Auckland from Nukualofa on Talune 02 April 1918.

I seem to have collected all sorts of information on sundry other family members but Morrison remains a slippery customer.