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  1. #1
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    Default William E Cowling. 1893-1948. Loose Ends

    WEC was born on 18 June 1893, the only son of Frederick and Mary Ann Cowling of Thames.
    Frederick, a gold miner and hotelier, died on 21 Nov 1912. In his will he named his widow, Mary Ann, as his sole beneficiary. A stamp duty assessment of £2130 was made against his estate. What might the gross value of the state have been to attract such a levy? What would be a current valuation?

    WEC married Jessie Irene Lyndon in 1921 and together they had two children. Originally employed in clerical positions he later became a baker/confectioner. In this capacity he was declared bankrupt in 1931 when in partnership with B N Tanner(?). Where was his father's cash? Why did his mother not help?

    In 1940 decree nisi was granted in favour of his wife on grounds of mutual separation.
    WEC died on 19 September 1948 and was buried at Tauranga, Bay of Plenty. "Find A Grave" incorrectly identifies his mother as his spouse.
    His mother died on 27 April 1956 and was buried in the plot adjacent to her son. Do any obituary notices exist for either mother or son?

    His ex-wife, Jessie died on 15 July 1967. Her death was registered as "Jessie Irene Cowling cka Cairns". I am familiar with the abbreviation "aka" - " also known as" but what exactly does "cka" mean?
    On her grave marker at Waikumete she is named as Irene Jessie Cairns. Is it reasonable to assume there was a Mr Cairns but no marriage?

    I would appreciate any additional information or detail relating to any of the mentioned events - or anything additional connected to the various individuals that has not been mentioned. I have found all references to the family in Papers Past (I think!)

  2. #2

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    Re. stamp duty, the Hawera and Normanby Star, 5 Feb 1913, reports Frederick Cowling's (Auckland) estate as £2,130 in it's list of "Estates of £1,000 and more in the various districts of the Dominion".
    "dyfal donc a dyr y garreg"

  3. #3
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    cka = commonly known as?

    Or, is is a badly-written/mis-copied 'aka' which you've mis-read as cka?

    I would agree that it sounds as if there was a Mr Cairns, but no marriage.

    Pam
    Vulcan XH558 - “Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.”

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by helachau View Post
    Re. stamp duty, the Hawera and Normanby Star, 5 Feb 1913, reports Frederick Cowling's (Auckland) estate as £2,130 in it's list of "Estates of £1,000 and more in the various districts of the Dominion".
    So £2130 was the amount on which stamp duty was assessed, not the rate at which the duty was charged. That makes sense, otherwise it would have implied a very large estate. Thanks. That's one point clarified.

  5. #5
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    Having read helachau's post #2, I did mean to ask where you found
    A stamp duty assessment of £2130 was made against his estate
    and ask if you/a.n.other had mis-read/mistranscribed the word 'on' as 'of'.

    As you say, 'on' makes better sense.

    Pam
    Vulcan XH558 - “Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.”

  6. #6
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    I found a report on Papers Past, not the one mentioned by helachau, which did not make the meaning clear and I misinterpreted it. It still seems quite a reasonably sized estate.

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