Les came to this world on the 23 Apr 1899, at Riversdale in Southland, New Zealand. He was the youngest child of Kate and Robert and was born at a time when Robert was finishing up as a journeyman blacksmith, before the family would move to Balfour to a new home and Robert setup as a blacksmith in his own name.
Les attended Balfour School and received a certificate for attendance in 1908. He changed to Gore High School (opened 1908) in 1911 and in the same year attained his Proficiency Certificate.
In 1912, he also got a part-time job at the Balfour Post Office which continued until June 1914 when he was moved to the Invercargill Post Office, then to Dunedin and finally Christchurch. His family had already moved (by 1913) to Wyndham so an educated guess here is that Les potentially stayed with his Uncle Jim and their family at Balfour before moving towns. Milton (his cousin) was a couple of years older than Les, but Les and he were in the same classes together at school.
With the outbreak of World War One, Les applied to the Army, but was turned down due to his age. Instead, he found a different avenue, namely the Merchant Marine (the term Merchant Navy appeared in the 1920s) which took him on as a seaman. I am not sure of his exact age, but he would have been around 15 years old.
World War 1 – Merchant Marine
Les’ stint with the Merchant Marine would have several components. During WWI a lot of time was spent on Troop Ships traveling from New Zealand to Egypt in particular.
Sailing the Pacific
According to the NZETC website, minesweeping in New Zealand for WWI was limited to 2 vessels, that were appropriated trawlers, namely the Nora Niven and the Simplon. Perhaps the mine in the photo above could have been around New Zealand waters as there were mines laid around Farewell Spit and the 3 Kings Islands. Several ships were lost due to those mine fields.
Les would spend the many years at sea working on island traders around the Pacific. There are many records of him coming and going through various ports such as Papeete, Sydney, Rarotonga, San Francisco as well as coastal New Zealand. There are dozens of sailings across the Pacific, especially in the RMS Maunganui
Les worked the route between Wellington and Christchurch on the ‘Tamahine’ until he moved south to Waianakarua. In August 1933 he fell from the upper deck to the lower deck onboard the ship. I wonder if this was the catalyst to move on from shipping to something else?
Marriage
Les was based at Wellington as can be seen in Electoral Rolls from 1922 onwards and his occupation listed as Seaman. During the times he was at home, he would meet Grace Frances ROBERTSON, a pupil of music who was studying in Wellington at the time.
In August 1933, Les suffered a fall into a cargo hold on board the SS Tamahine. He sustained injuries to his back and side and I suspect that the injuries might have pushed a move to a shore-based lifestyle. That is not backed up by data at this stage.
Life at Waianakarua
By 1935, Les and Grace had returned to Waianakarua. Grace held music lessons in Oamaru, while Les turned his hand to farming. It is a little unclear, but the property that Grace and Les lived on was given to them by Grace’s father, Fleming.
From at least 1935 onwards, Les’ occupation is given as Poultry Farmer. Aside from the chickens, there were also cows on the section to supply milk and a large vegetable garden. The post-depression years had a major influence on everyone and Les and Grace were no different in their frugality.
Family grows
In 1940 Grace and Les welcomed a son to the family. Due to privacy, I cannot say much more on this topic.
Heading up the Poultry Unit at Lincoln College 1943
In July 1943, the Stark family headed to Lincoln to oversee and manage the new Poultry unit established at the College, especially to increase the flow of eggs for soldiers serving and to generally increase the protein levels in the community.
This would be Les’ last move as he would remain the head of the Poultry Unit until his death 19 years later.
Final Years
Les died at home at Lincoln College on the 5 May 1962 aged 63. The cause of his death was Bowel Cancer which must have been the most miserable ending to his life. Les was cremated at Harewood Crematorium and a plaque erected at the Woodlawn Memorial Gardens in Linwood, Christchurch.
Sadly, the 2010 Christchurch earthquake tipped the wall over that contained the plaque, but it has been subsequently resurrected.
Obituary
