The New Zealand Branch
Emigration
Albert Edwin Exley (1852-1918) of Croft House emigrated to New Zealand in 1875. He married Esther Lomax (b.1856), daughter of James Lomax (1823-1914) and Esther Davis (b.1832), who had themselves emigrated from England to NZ.
The Lomax family settled first at Wanganui, New Zealand, later moving to Wellington, New Zealand.
The Davis/Lomax Connection
The connection between the Exley and Lomax families was documented by Rev. M. G. R. Morris in November 1984:
- Esther Davis (b.1832, Farley Hill, Reading) married James Lomax (b.1823, Lambeth) c.1850
- They emigrated to NZ
- Their daughter Esther (b.1856) married “a Mr. Exley” in 1873 — this was Albert Edwin Exley
The Chronicle Compiler
The Exley Chronicle (Typed) was compiled by Edith Ellen Exley (Anna Ethel Exley), William’s daughter, from Croft Road, Blenheim. She sent the notes to her sister “Lillie” (Lillian Louise Wills (1885-1971)) in New Zealand about 1940. The Chronicle header calls her “Anna Ethel Exley” and notes she was Elizabeth Ellen’s sister, though the exact naming is confused in the source. She went to live with her brother Albert in NZ from 1871 [sic; possibly later] until her death in 1944.
NZ Family Tree
Albert Edwin Exley (1852-1918) m. Esther Lomax (b.1856)
├── Albert Errington Exley (1881-1956) m. Lillian Louise Wills (1885-1971)
│ ├── Jack Errington (1905-1962)
│ ├── Lionel Edward (1906-1995) m. Brenda Winifred Wills (1910-1997)
│ │ ├── Robert Ross (1937-2003)
│ │ ├── Patricia Louise (1938-1958) †car accident
│ │ ├── Meryll Anne (b.1941) m. Noel Evans
│ │ └── John Edward (b.1945) m. Katherine Davidson
│ │ ├── Andrew (b.1973)
│ │ └── Helen Patricia (b.1976)
│ ├── Joan Miriam (1910-1977)
│ ├── Dorothy Mary (b.1917)
│ ├── Elizabeth Noeline (b.1920)
│ ├── Beatrice Elaine (b.1922)
│ └── Shirley Margaret (b.1930)
└── George Beulay (1885-1974)
Albert Errington’s Career (from the Chronicle)
The Exley Chronicle (Typed) (page 7) provides detail on Albert Errington’s career:
- Born 25 November 1881 at Wanganui
- Apprenticed to William Neill & Co., Wellington, 1900-1905
- Supervised erection of a gold dredge at Greymouth
- Engineer on installation of electric tram cars in Wellington
- 1903: married Lillian Louise Wills
- 1922-27: engineer installing electric tramway system for Christchurch City Council
- Came to Lower Hutt, Wellington
- 1931: bought a farm at Greytown (venture proved unprofitable)
- 1937: returned to Eastbourne, Wellington
- Worked for the Ford Motor Co.
- Retired, bought property at [?] Bay, built a house there 1947
The Chronicle
The “Chronicle of the direct line of descent from Robert Exley of Halifax” was compiled by Edith Ellen Exley with help from Aunt “Lillie” c.1941. It contained some errors (corrected in pencil) and crucially failed to connect Robert of Halifax back to his father John (m. Eliz. Tonge), a gap that Victor Exley later bridged.
Connection to England
Contact between the NZ branch and Victor Exley was established in August 1985, when Colin Exley of Hales forwarded the NZ pedigree papers to Victor. Victor’s response (Victor Exley Letter Aug 1985) began a correspondence that produced the most significant genealogical insights in the archive.