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FLORENCE ETHEL BROWN's story

This account has been adapted from "Browns of Kyeburn Peninsula" by Wally Brown - to whom many thanks



Flo was born at Kyeburn Diggings in 1895, the only daughter of Moses and Ellen. Ellen died when Flo was five years old and was brought up by her father and brothers. She played hockey as a young woman and like her brothers was a crack shot with a rifle and used to go rabbit shooting in the summer evenings after tea. She loved horse riding and had a horse called Jet, and, still drerssed in her riding trousers she would climb trees to collect birds' eggs which she would put in her mouth for the descent, selling them for 1s 6d (15 cents) a dozen.

She married James (Jim) Flett on 26th May 1920 at Ossie and Jinnies home in Naseby. Flo wore a costume and Jinnie did the catering 71 John Brown was there as were several others of the family, although it was not a large wedding, the little house was full.

Jim worked with Moses on the claim, but in 1930 Jim and Moses had a disagreement so bad that Flo and Jim parted and went their own way for some years.Whilst living at Kyeburn Diggings Flo contracted tuberculosis, and in 1934 moved to Naseby where she had her bed next to the window and could wave to people as they passed by.

Jim worked as a teamster for the New Zealand Forest Service at Naseby; he lived in a forestry hut during the week and at weekends in a hut in the garden of the Naseby house. He spent the rest of his life around Naseby although he also worked as a teamster at Awamungu in South Otago for a few years.

Flo knitted all the jerseys for the local cricket team in white, blue and gold and was an accomplished needlewoman; her daughter Betty still had some of her work including a beautiful tapestry picture. As with so many of the Brown family, Flo was musical, paying the piano, as well as dancing before she became ill.

They had three boys and one girl, but only the daughter, Betty, survived. Flo and Jim are both buried at Naseby cemetery.



Jim and Flo Flett (Flo with Betty)

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