Joseph Bernard Wareing was born in Harborne, Birmingham in England in March 1848 and was the fourth son of James and Emela Catherine Wareing.  Margaret Hoare was the youngest daughter of Patrick and Catherine Hoare and was born in Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland in 1854.

They both immigrated to New Zealand. Joseph came to New Zealand in 1864 on the Surat (a ship that ten years later wrecked at the Catlins) leaving London on 18 June 1864 and arriving into Auckland 4 October.  Margaret arrived into Timaru on 16 December 1862, on the ship “Echunga”, as a nine year old.

Joseph had made his way down to Burke’s Pass in South Canterbury by the following year, worked some land and ran a store for several years before setting up a foundry in Temuka with Keith Gray in the early 1870’s.  It is during this time that he met Margaret Hoare and they were married on 12 June 1873 – they are my great great grandparents.

They started their family of 11 children, with the first being my great grandmother Emily Catherine (1874-1950) and then, Agnes (1876-1959), Mary Gertrude (1878-?), Joseph Bernard (1880-1914), Francis Cyril (1882-1946), Theresa (1885-1919), Cecil (1887-1964), Margaret Mary (1889-1919), George Patrick (1893-?), Hilda Maude (1895-1974) and finally Veronica (1898-1915).

Joseph’s involvement in the foundry business only lasted 19 months, and in June 1874 he purchased the business of John M Martin, a general store in Temuka.  His brother Philip, arrived in Temuka in February 1875 and they became partners in this business trading as “Wareing Brothers”

The business acquisition was not a good decision, as it very quickly fell into difficulty, and the brothers went bankrupt the same year.  The store could not be sold and nor could it trade its way forward and was finally closed in May 1876.

Joseph re-establishes his Temuka fortunes by buying 75 acres of farmland at Milford which he called “Woodlands”.  Soon after he also bought 400 acres at Rangitata, and leased other land, and focused on breeding Border Leicester sheep.

For 20 years he was very successful at this, however, he again fell into financial difficulty in 1901 and this second bankruptcy forced the sale of his Rangitata interests. 

Eventually he also sells his “Woodlands” property, moves into Temuka and his final business dealings are in property sales.

On 12th December, 1912, Joseph Bernard Wareing took part in the unveiling of the Temuka Pioneer’s Memorial Fountain, to commemorate the Coronation of King George V. He is standing on the left, in front of the woman in white, front row, 4th from the fountain.

In 1925 Margaret Wareing fell ill and passed away at home on 4 January 1926 due to asthenia caused by malignant disease of her uterus (possibly cancer). She was 72 years old.

Joseph became very unwell shortly after Margaret’s death and suffered for the next two years with severe bronchitis and myocardial degeneration.  He too passed away, on 7 July 1928 at the age of 80.  They are both buried at Temuka Cemetery (Row 233 Plot 220).