Thames (NZ): WWI family research

With all the WWI books that have been published, and will be published over the next few years, it is important to check and see if your relatives are mentioned. Check you local library, read the book index if time is short and see if your family surnames are within.

Last week I got the book "Berry Boys," by Michael Fitzgerald and Claire Regnault. I had heard about the photographs that had been found in Wellington and had looked at them on the internet to see if there were any Thames faces. To my surprise, the book contained my Grandfather's Uncle - Arthur Dudley Cornes.

Arthur was the son of Alfred and Evelyn Cornes, born in Thames in 1884 and educated at the Tararu School. The full portrait and details are available online.

The final draft/proof has been completed on an upcoming book on the men and women from Thames who served in WWI - watch this space and The Treasury website for further news. In the meantime, keep searching the new WWI publications as they become available, and you too, may strike gold like I did.