This website makes information about our pioneers and their descendants available to family members.

Family historian Janice Griffin wrote "The Griffin Book" in 1987. Her research has been added to by family members from their personal notebooks and photos, so ensuring our history is not lost.
Any errors - please advise so they can be corrected and any information or photos that can be copied and added, your input here would be great.

Entry to the Griffin New Zealand Taranaki Site Here
 
 
We thank Madge Wren and her descendants for their preservation of this important historic Griffin photo - a brilliant staged display believed to celebrate the  completion of Arthur Griffin's first haymaking after moving from Riverlea to Inaha, in 1913/14. The photographer is not named.
Although unable to identify individual family members, it is likely Arthur is centre on the stack top, and that many of the family are presant. Speed of operation was required when timing is dependant on good drying weather - two mowers had been used. Previous, the cut grass spread on the ground would have been was left to dry for a few days and winnowed (ie turned to assist drying) before buckraked in to a central point - 3 have been used in the photo which, for Taranaki, indicates quite a large paddock.  Operated by the horse in the middle pulling a wire rope  a McCormick Deering stacker is seen with it's cradle in the air, now empty after lifting the hay to the men on top. The last hay load is waiting on the tumbler-sweep buck-rake centre front  - only the most experienced men were responsible for the building the stack.