From [BT]3: Born at Beaminster, Dorsetshire, 1858. Buried at Waikumete cemetery, 1922, main cemetery on Great North Road in Auckland. Ellen Octavia buried there also.
Left school at the age of 12. HIs first job was as a delivery boy for his grandmother who was a corsetmaker. His first delivery was a pair of “wedding” corsets to a neighbouring village. He hitched a ride on a farm cart but fell off in the mud with the corsets. He delivered them, but they were returned to the maker and a new pair had to be made in a great hurry for the wedding.
After this inauspicious start JSB entered the printing trade - at the age of 13 being employed in a printing office. After amassing a capital of five pounds beside his fare, he came to New Zealand, arriving in 1878.
After arriving in New Zealand he initially worked for the Rangitikei Advocate, then in 1880 settled in Cambridge taking charge of the printing department of the Waikato Mail. The paper ceased to exist a year later and he opened a general printing, book, and stationery business. He started the Waikato Advocate in 1895 , which was merged into the Waikato Times when he purchased the latter paper.
James was living in Cambridge at the time of the Tarawera eruption. With the local people being alarmed at the noise, James rode his horse to Hamilton to discover the cause of the alarming noise.
Mayor of Cambridge, 1892-1895 (elections were then held annually). Later the family continued to live in Cambridge while he went to work in Hamilton by train. One story (unconfirmed) is that on his return home one day he found his house had been accidentally burned down. Move to Hamilton to live in 1898.
Mayor of Hamilton 1905-1909, at which time he retired. During this time major issues included the purchase by council of the local gasworks, inauguration of a drainage scheme, building a new traffic bridge, and opening of the library.
Chairman of the Board of Governors of Hamilton High School when it was formed. Instrumental in starting the Hamilton theatres. Bond St. in Hamilton named after him. He was instrumental in starting the Waikato Winter Show. In the first few years he used to bring the takings home each night, sleeping with the money under the mattress. As the takings increased, his wife Ellen objected and the bank was persuaded to stay open to take the money. During the first years everyone made a great effort to make a success of the venture, exhibiting in as many classes as possible with needlework and produce sections.
After Sarah died, James met his second wife when she was travelling around the world. She returned to England and the following year (1905) returned to New Zealand. They were married at All Saints Church, Ponsonby, Auckland, returning to Hamilton where they lived in Selkirk Street “Aroha House”.
After retirement he moved to Auckland, living at 84 Victoria Ave (later renumbered 148? 206?). The section had two acres of land and the house had previously been a farmhouse, but extensively renovated before purchase. Continued to be actively involved in community affairs, and was an active member of the Auckland Harbour Board, Education Board, Grammar School Board, and the Seddon Memorial Technical College (now ATI). Had a lifelong interest in education, perhaps because he left school himself at the age of 12.
Four sons served overseas during the war, three being wounded. The fourth, Gussie, was listed as missing in 1915. James never gave up hope that somewhere, somehow, Gussie would turn up. It was in 1922 when he was just starting for a Harbour Board meeting that he received a letter from the War Office saying that Gussie’s remains had been identified and buried in the War Cemetery. It was such a shock that James had a stroke, which some weeks later resulted in his death.

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From the biographical database of the NZ Dictionary of National Biography. Emailed to me on 8 October, 2008:
 
Sources [R1] Obit, Waikato Times? 27/11/22, [R2] Waikato Times index cards, [R3] Obit of Ellen Octavia Bond, Waikato Times? 19/12/55, [R4] Cemetery transcript, Hamilton West Cemetery, [R5] "Astride the River" Gibbons 1977, [R6] Waikato Times 5/1/60 "Origin of Waikato Winter Show"
 
Country of Birth ENGLAND
Region / Place of Birth Dorsetshire [R1]
Occupations PRINTER, GENERAL-PRINTING-BUSINESS, BOOK-AND-STATIONARY-BUSINESS, NEWSPAPER-OWNER, OPERATED-PUBLIC-TRUST-OFFICE, [R1]
Date of Death 26 Nov 1922 
Country of Death NEW ZEALAND
Region / Place of Death Auckland
Career / Personality Summary Achievements: Mayor of both Cambridge and Hamilton. Involved in public life of both communities. Considered a more forward thinking man than previous Hamilton mayors - encouraged the establishment of Waikato Winter Show. He considered the decision of Frankton to remain outside Hamilton borough a backward step. Not all his decisions were popular such as the siting of sale yards and Carnegie Library. He worked as a printer for the Rangitikei Advocate, and in 1880 worked for Waikato Mail. Started the Waikato Advocate in 1895, and then purchased the Waikato Times. His general printing business expanded into a book and stationary business. Offices Held: 1886-1895 Member, Cambridge Borough Council (Mayor 3 years), 1901-09 Hamilton Borough Council (Mayor 1905-09), Member, Waikato Agricultural and Pastoral Assn, 1890 Chairman, Cambridge Licensing Committee, President (1 term) Waikato Winter Show Association, 1911- Board of Governors, Hamilton High School, Member, Auckland Harbour Board, Member, Auckland Board of Education, Chairman of directors, Theatre Royal Co Ltd, [R1]
 
Arrival Details Arrival Date: 1878 
Organisation Membership 1884- Committee, Waikato Horticultural Society, Committee, St Andrew's Guild of Ringers, Elected to St Andrew's Vestry, St Andrew's Church, Cambridge
Location of Images Cyclopedia of NZ vol 2 Auckland p 745
Religious Adherence ANGLICAN
 
Other Information His son Augustine died at Gallipoli aged 25 on 25 April 1915. Main Places of Residence: Cambridge, Hamilton 
 
Father's Name BOND
Occupation
Details of Upbringing Religious Upbringing: Vestry member of St Andrew's, Cambridge 
 
Marriages or Partnerships 2
Marriage 1
Information about Children of this Marriage Nr of children: 6 Names of children: (f) b 18 Mar 1882, (m) b 10 Jan 1884, (m) b 28 Feb 1885, (m) b 9 Jul 1886, (m), (m), [R2, R4]
Partners Name Sarah Annie [R4]
Partners Birth & Death Details Death date spouse: 1902 APR 20
Marriage 2
Date of Marriage 
Country NEW ZEALAND
Region / Place NZ
Information about Children of this Marriage Nr of children: 2 Names of children: (f) Ellen Sarah Hamilton (Mrs C Tidmarsh), (f), [R3]
Partners Name Ellen Octavia [R3]
Partners Birth & Death Details Birth date spouse: 1866? 1955 
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Buried in Whitiora Cemetery. Descendants of James and Sarah Bond are listed in (great) detail in the Bond family tree, prepared by Brian and Carol Robinson, 62 Houchens Road, Hamilton (file ref: geneol.017). Golly gee, think of all those distant relatives I have. Hmmm...... I can hardly stand the excitement.

She met James Bond while on a trip around the world, returned to England and then returned to NZ to marry him in 1905. I always thought that she was sent off on a world trip to find a husband. Possibly. But she was pretty old. It’s just as likely that she set off on a world trip simply because she wanted to.

More details in the James Bond notes. For a more general discussion of my ancestor Grahams (for those who care) look at http://www.burningviolin.org/family/, and follow the Grahams link. A lot of information about the Grahams of Edmond Castle can be found in the writings of THB Graham, Ellen Octavia’s brother. See especially Trans. Cumb. Westmor. Ant. Arch. Soc. New Series VII (1907) The Old Village of Edmond Castle5. This article, and others, are included in the multimedia section of the first Graham of Edmond Castle to appear in this genealogy.

Her son-in-law Pop always called her a wonderful old lady. Emphasis on lady. One gets the impression he was told this many times. I wouldn’t be surprised. He knew her when he was courting her daughter, old Granny, at Victoria Ave. I must find her birth and death dates.

Pop told me (in 2006) that Ellen Octavia was very interested in Botany, and they would often go for trips into the New Zealand countryside to look for new plants.

She was cremated and buried in the same plot as James Shiner Bond (Waikumete cemetery, Anglican Division A, Row 7, Plot 7). The grave marker is still there (in October, 2008), with her details and James’ details. A little battered, but still legible. It had a stone cross on the top which fell off at some stage, but has been partially replaced. In the cemetery notes, her occupation was listed as “House Duties”. I also have a copy of her death notice in the paper.


Brian Tidmarsh (grandson of Ellen Octavia) wrote this piece for me, which I reproduce verbatim. (The “James” he refers to is me.)

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Brian’s memories of ‘Granny’ (Ellen Octavia Bond)

Although there are photos of Granny and Clive and Nell (my parents) and Alf and Cherry and my cousins Graham (Sam) and James at the old house in Victoria Ave any confidence that I have in my memory is from the time after that when the Sneyds went off to Takapuna and my parents, moved to a house in Koraha St in Meadowbank. Having said that, there are two events that hover on the extreme limit of my memory. One, when I chased Graham down the hall and in attempting to escape from me he crashed into a glass door, resulting in a severe gash to his arm... I suppose there was lots of blood and I bet Aunt Cherry had something to say! The second event was the removal of Graham and James’ tonsils, performed by the GP on the kitchen table. I remember some screams!. I wonder if there was a cheap rate for doing two at a time.

At this time Granny bought a small faintly art-deco-ish house in Stirling Street and some years later my parents built a house in Sonia Ave. Both of these were quite close to the old family home in Victoria Avenue and this proximity meant that I saw quite a bit of Granny when I was young. I have vivid memories of her house. There was a formal drawing room filled with the residue of the furniture she had brought from England. A large china cabinet with many small treasures, among them a set of pale green venetian crystal glasses which had a lovely ring to them when tapped and ‘sang’ beautifully when the rim was rubbed with a damp finger. My mother and Cherry took half each after Granny died and years later after my mothers death I gave the survivors, two I think, to Cherry to replenish the attrition her share had suffered. There were the ‘Louis the Something’ chairs and the better of two long-case clocks that later went to Takapuna. There was a box of exquisite miniature doll’s house furniture of which more later.

Granny’s bedroom, or G-Granny as James would have it, contained two major points of interest. One was the commode, a throne-like mahogany chair which sat beside the double bed. A hinged lid covered the ’business’ section beneath which there was a drawer which contained the enormous, heavy china piss pot. This was not emptied as regularly as it should have been, a fact which announced itself as soon as one entered the room. On one wall hung a photograph of James Shiner Bond in an oval wooden frame. I well remember occasions when Sam and I, probably my cousin James too, took turns firing a bow and arrow with a rubber sucker to score points for hitting poor JSB. Many years later when I was cleaning out the house at Sonia Avenue after my mother died I found this photo under the house, worm eaten and rotten. I nearly threw it on the large bonfire which I had burning merrily in the middle of the back lawn. The restorers did a great job on the photo itself and in a new mahogany frame today it hangs in my study in Dunedin looking just as impressive as it originally did.

At the sunny north side of the house was a small living room and an even smaller sunroom. The living room was where Granny Bond held court. I really do remember her with affection although it is true that when her patience had been tried by rambunctious young boys beyond the limit she could give a really impressive and scary tongue lashing. So that’s where my aunt Cherry got that gene I guess. This was not a common event however and mostly I remember her as a benign, amorphous large lump, always in black clothing, sitting, for she did not move easily, in an equally large amorphous arm chair. She played games with us. ‘Snap’ which got noisier and noisier and frequently degenerated into arguments. During World War 2 a board game called ‘Sink-the-Nazi-Navy’ was a favourite, successful hits being accompanied by noisy shouted sound effects. Bombing the Nazi navy game had an unfortunate spin-off. Back to that beautiful dolls house furniture. Today these would be highly sort after collectors items such was the detail and fine workmanship. Did I do this alone or were some of my dreadful cousins also guilty, but I do remember bombing the furniture. How sad, Just as well Granny was a bit deaf. And it must be said forgetful. She never really knew who was who among her grandchildren and just used the first name she thought of or tried several in hope of one being right.

As I got older I would often walk around to her house, it was only five minutes away and spend time with her. For a while she was taking a correspondence drawing class and we would do some drawings together. She had much more talent in that direction than I. She told me stories from her past but these have left me now. One, which I suppose is verifiable if true (James could do it I’m sure), is that Granny was related in some way to George Leigh Mallory, the charismatic and enigmatic mountaineer who lost his life on Mt Everest in 1924. Also that as a young woman she had been to Darjeeling, the setting off point for the long trek into Tibet that led to the northern approaches to Mt Everest. I think she told me that she had even been on part of this trek but that does seem a bit unlikely. Nevertheless, it sparked my interest in Mt Everest and over the years I’ve read just about every book on the subject and on George Mallory.

I used to cut her grass to supplement my pocket money and in my mid-teens I became one of her drivers. She had a rather nice Standard 14 saloon car although she didn’t drive herself. I think my mum used to take her grocery shopping and sometimes I would be called upon if I was home from boarding school to drive her up to the Victoria Avenue shops. Mostly to the chemist and the newsagent where I think she bought raffle tickets. This was in the days when the only lottery was in Australia and some newsagents and barber shop windows displayed the sign “We post to Hobart”. This was code for the lottery which I think was technically illegal.

My secondary school years were spent as a boarder at Kings College and so my visits to Granny became sporadic. Granny died in December 1955. At the time I was at my summer university recess job being a steward at the Milford Sound Hotel. I had not returned to Auckland for some time and didn’t know she was ill and nobody thought to tell me when she died. I am really sorry about that for I genuinely liked her and she not infrequently filled some emotional gaps in my own family life.

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