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Research in Other Countries => New Zealand => New Zealand Completed Requests => Topic started by: PtE on Saturday 03 September 22 19:01 BST (UK)
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My sister and a cousin are administrators of another cousins estate, and have discovered that some of the possible beneficiaries are now living in New Zealand. Here in the Uk there are various ways to trace living relatives, but we have no way of knowing what sort of avenues are available in New Zealand that can be searched remotely. If anyone can offer any suggestions it would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
PtE
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Hello
Do you have names for any of the people you seek ? (Not asking you to publish them here ;))
Do you know names of the places in New Zealand in which these persons may have settled ?
* FaceBook (or similar social media site) - a good "first port of call".
* Google search ... "person's name + new zealand" .
* The New Zealand Electoral rolls (voting rolls), are available up to the year 1981 on the ancestry.com website (subscription site but many libraries have a version of this freely available ).
~ Lu
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You say “possible” beneficiaries?? Does this mean the actual beneficiaries are deceased but their share goes to their descendants?
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If you do have names, white pages might find them (if they have a landline) many do not.
https://whitepages.co.nz/
You say “possible” beneficiaries?? Does this mean the actual beneficiaries are deceased but their share goes to their descendants?
Possibly you might find clues here https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/home#/
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Personal message sent........
Minniehaha.
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Worth a search on LinkedIn as well.
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Many thanks for all of your suggestions which I will pass on to the Administrators. I have no details of the people that they are looking for as they are not from our side of the family, but from the deceased cousins father’s side. We did not know him or any of his family, and it seems that the only family still residing in the UK are cousins once removed/and twice removed. They have had no contact with any of their cousins etc. for years if ever, but some were aware that one branch eventually went to New Zealand and they are who the Administrators are trying to track down. I think this is going to be a tough job but some results may come from you suggestions, so thank you again, and if anything else occurs to you please let me know.
Regards
PtE
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Hello PtE
You may by now already have been given this link ?? ... (I'd meant to include it earlier) >
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1609792
... there's an explanatory note ... and these (free) records go through to 1973.
[ At the ancestry.com site - UK and Ireland - Outward Passenger lists ... to 1960 and UK Incoming Passenger Lists ... also to 1960 ].
~ Lu
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Lucy2, thank you for your suggestions, I think the administrators have tried to check passenger lists, but whether on ancestry or family search I don’t know. So, will pass this on to them.
Regards
PtE
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Hello.
Please don't forget that the dead may leave clues to the living. Surname searches of New Zealand National Archives, may produce likely candidates, and wills etc may name beneficiaries and place of residence at the time the will was made, or probated. All starting points for further research. How resent is it thought that the emigration may have taken place?
Alan.
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Hi Alan and thank you for another couple of valid suggestions which I will pass on to the administrators. I don’t know when the emigration took place, as I have indicated, I am not involved with the actual search but just asked for suggestions where ever possible. Having been involved in the administration of a deceased estate in recent years which involved ,Australia, the UK and Canada, I was reluctant to get involved with this one as I know how time consuming, frustrating and hard work being an administrator can be, and quite frankly, I am too old now to get consumed by all the intricacies of the process.
But thanks again for your input
Regards
PTE
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You are welcome.
I too have been an administrator, and or trustee, but fortunately for me, only within NZ. There are a number of volunteers on the NZ forum, that have great expertise, and are happy to assist where they can. Two of us, in the recent, past have also assisted with look ups at our local branch of the NZ National Archives. But due to covid, it's about a year since I made the 100 km trip to Auckland to do research.
Alan.
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Is it up to the administrators to track down distant and unknown relatives especially in different countries? It seems to be a task requiring specialist skills.
How much effort and research is required before putting it in the too hard basket?
It’s an interesting dilemma PtE. :)
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Ruskie.
Fortunately for me, mine involved relatives within NZ and Australia, and there was no great issue tracking down the people we needed contact with. But surprising how far nine siblings can disperse.
Legal niceties, I expect, would be similar in countries who have roots in the former Commonwealth. But could have been refined over time, by the various Parliaments, and judgement rulings setting precedents.
Regardless there is a 'duty of care' that is called upon, by all who find themselves in that position.
Otherwise personal liability can come into play. I presume also the size of the available Estate funds, may be a factor.
A [late] contributing co-founder of another UK based genealogical forum, had a specialized side business providing advice, and searches of UK records, to lawyers involved in settling estates.
He was of considerable assistance to me, when researching pre civil records in Scotland, and the UK, but did not charge those he assisted through a request, placed a upon the public forums. When I PM'ed him offering to meet some SCOTLANDSPEOPLE research he instigated, he replied that being active on the forums, offering help, was his hobby, and NOT an accepted commission for his expertise.
I therefore now offer to pay that experience forward, by offering to do look ups if going to the Auckland Archives to do research.
Alan.
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So something along the lines of an “heir hunter” Alan? There used to be a UK TV series about an heir hunter company. It was often a specialised and complex process to locate any noks.
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"Was" I think always will be, Especially in today's Society with all it's blended families, and less adherence to the formalities of Faiths, Lodges, and Fellowships, who's past records, can provide valuable secondary source material, in support of civil record keeping, and be more accurate than public press reporting.
Alan.
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Yes of course. When I said is “was often a specialised and complex process” I was referring specifically to the stories in the TV series (rather than in general). :)
I don’t know how “normal” people, especially those without any experience of family history research, would ever know where to start to find distant family who they have no knowledge of and who may live in another country. Often times people lose contact even with siblings or first cousins - how to ever find second cousins once removed for example, and you may not even know their names. ;D
Surely not too much can be expected of administrators when it comes to trying to locate distant relatives, or is it dependant upon how big the inheritance is?
Interesting dilemma.
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Try "Papers Past" Free to access via google. You can investigate areas such as Auckland, Christchurch. Does not include recent newspapers.
Best of luck with your search.
clancam37
My sister and a cousin are administrators of another cousins estate, and have discovered that some of the possible beneficiaries are now living in New Zealand. Here in the Uk there are various ways to trace living relatives, but we have no way of knowing what sort of avenues are available in New Zealand that can be searched remotely. If anyone can offer any suggestions it would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
PtE
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HI PtE,
Some years ago I compiled a list of sites that could be used to trace living relatives in New Zealand.
It appears in New Zealand Resources & Offers, but here is the direct link:
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=495373.0
I hope they help.
Regards,
Spades
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Thank you spades,
I am sure that the administrators haven’t investigated some of the suggestions that you have made, so will pass this information on to them. From what I understand the names of the parents who went to NZ are known and possibly some of their children, but these would be grown up now and may or may not still be alive. Then of course, they may have had children who need tracing. I am just glad I am not doing the searching!
Cheers,
PtE