Jim and Florrie’s new car. Photo: Nancie Bensemann

But the brothers later forgave her, marvelling at how she was able to handle the children, including giving "painful pudding basin haircuts" and allocating chores, while mother Maria was out looking after the small-holding and father Diedrich (Dick) cut timber in the surrounding bush and worked his sawmill.

When Dick and Maria and family shifted to Golden Bay [circa 1902] the brothers kept in touch, regularly making the trip over the Takaka Hill at haymaking and harvest times on horse-drawn carriages which they’d made in their own coach building firm. Brother Roland (Roly) Bensemann later recalled: "We'd leave early in the morning, stop at the top of the Takaka Hill and reward the horse with an apple, then get to young Cyril's later that afternoon." Roland, 17 years younger than Florrie, regarded the Heath boys as cousins rather than nephews.

Like Florrie, all her siblings married partners with English surnames, following the general wishes of the German settlers to integrate into the English immigrant community. But they weren't always accepted as equals. Florrie's brother Ray, according to the Bensemann oral history, was called a "dirty Hun" in the Takaka hotel during the First World War. He picked up the offender (Ray was reputedly 16 stone and 6'5" [100kg and 1.9m] at age 18) and threw him bodily through the front window of the pub.

This backs up a theory held by non-Florrie descendants such as Stuart Heath that occasional displays of a fiery Heath passion and temper in current generations must come from an ancient Saxon tribe on the German side.

There's not much I can say in response to that last comment except perhaps that Paul and Stuart both deserve a good whack with a jam spoon!

Florrie's children came in quick succession after she married Jim in 1901. Anita was born in 1901 and I’m pretty sure both Ash and Cyril were both born in 1903. (Yes, that is possible!) In the next few years there were also: Reg in 1904, Verna in 1907, Norman in 1908 and Leonie (Bub) in 1909. That means seven children in nine years -that must be some sort of record. It isn't surprising that Florrie expected a lot of her children in the way of helping out once they were able to do so.

I love this photo of Florrie (top of page), especially with that saucepan which somehow looks more like a weapon in her hands than a useful kitchen implement. I wonder how often she actually got to take her apron off. Apparently she used to collect sticks in the pockets to use to start the cooking fire.

It would have been an exciting day when Florrie and Jim took possession of their new car in around 1920. The picture of Florrie and her family outside the Accommodation House says it all. There's Florrie, in her apron of course, with two of her daughters and that's probably Jim standing proudly against his new vehicle. The car would have got quite a beating being driven on the rough shingle road that you can see in the foreground. Then again, ninety one years later, the Graham Valley road is just the same!

The flash new car wasn't an indulgence, it was an investment. It was to replace the horses and wagonette which had been used for jobs such as the mail-run and Jim was able to use the car to pick up tourists and take them back to the guest house.

In later years Florrie and Jim moved to Nelson and many of their grandchildren visited them there. My dad Mervyn remembers his grandmother as being very kind to him. So does Florrie's granddaughter Nancie Bensemann, she and her brother Graeme and their cousin Larry often stayed with them and had some special times together. Nancie remembers that they were allowed to go fishing on their own off the boulders at the end of the street. She also remembers what a treat it was going to the pictures with "Granny" and how dark it was because of the war-time blackout which was in force.

When Jim was not well, he and Florrie often stayed at their daughter Verna's home in Dovedale. Then after Florrie herself took ill, her daughters Verna, Anita and Bub took turns staying with her a week at a time. Florrie died on 4 September 1947, aged 70, and she was buried in the cemetery in Dovedale. For some reason I became fascinated with Florrie as soon as I heard about her. She was such an organized, hardworking woman who had a huge influence on everyone around her -whether they liked it or not!