This is the remarkable story of Mary Cloake, born in Devon, England in 1912, who immigrated to New Zealand as a baby with her parents Sarah and Bertie Thomas Cloake. Her memoir chronicles the development of her family's beekeeping enterprise in South Canterbury, from humble beginnings to a thriving business that helped establish New Zealand's beekeeping industry.
The story of Mary Cloake begins not in the wide open landscapes of New Zealand, but in the ancient county of Cornwall, England. Here, in the shop-lined streets of Torquay, Bertie Thomas Cloake and his wife Sarah built a modest life selling goods and insurance. But Bertie harbored a dream that would change everything: the dream of owning a farm in New Zealand, a land half a world away.
When Mary was just one year old, she and her mother Sarah departed Southampton on September 13, 1913, aboard the S.S. Corinthic to a new life on the other side of the world, where Bertie was waiting to meet them in Wellington.
Mary's early childhood was one of constant change and adventure. Before the family finally settled at Springbrook in 1921, young Mary had lived in seven different locations across South Canterbury's high country—experiencing frozen hot water bottles, snow deeper than she was tall, and adventures with faithful horses who knew the treacherous mountain tracks better than any human guide.
Springbrook represented everything Bertie had dreamed of when he left Cornwall. The ten acres may have lacked electricity, telephone, and proper plumbing, but it had rich soil, abundant fruit trees, and most crucially, it was close enough to civilization that the children could attend school and Sarah could have neighbours. From this humble foundation, the Cloake family would build a life of remarkable self-sufficiency.
In 1923, a swarm of bees in the kitchen chimney sparked what would become the Cloake family's main livelihood. From that humble beginning, Bertie built a beekeeping business that eventually spanned multiple apiaries across South Canterbury, won numerous prizes at agricultural shows, and pioneered the use of Italian queen bees in New Zealand.
Here the family grew up and married off as Springbrook became a landing place for an entire network of Cloake and Couling relatives who followed Bertie and Sarah's path from Cornwall to Canterbury. The Harpers, Steers, and Allens all arrived throughout the 1920s, many staying temporarily at the crowded Springbrook property before establishing their own lives in New Zealand. Through it all, the bonds of family and shared Cornish heritage helped ease the transition to life on the other side of the world.