Frederick James Stanaway was born on 13 August 1907 in Rehia, Northern Wairoa, Kaipara (Birth Certificate number 1907/15207). He was the fifth son and child of Charles George and Elizabeth Emily Stanaway.

Not much is know of his early years other than that we assume that it would have been much the same as his siblings and other children in the area at that time. We do have a record from the Evening Post dated 4 November 1924, where a Frederick Stanaway received a letter of commendation from the Royal Humane Society for rescuing Maureen Fay Cuthbert from drowning in the Wairoa River on the 22 January. (Note the article states his age as 11 but this I believe was an error and should have been 17).

In 1928 a Court case after local farmer and his son charged with assaulting Frederick James Stanaway (now about 21 years old) at Pahi. It was alleged that Charles George Stanaway used insulting and provoking language to incite Thomas Skelton to commit a breach of the peace. Skelton was convicted, all other charges were dismissed, the Auckland Star 2 February 1928 covered the story, it reads;

A squabble between the Stanaway’s and the Skelton’s at Pahi was followed by a series of charges and counter-charges, which were heard by Mr E. C. Cutten, S.M., in the Police Court at Maungaturoto.

The police charged Thomas Edward Wath Skelton, farmer, with having assaulted Frederick James Stanaway, Bushman of Mamaku, and with having used bad language. They also charged Alfred Skelton, the son of Thomas Edward, with having assaulted Frederick James Stanaway by striking him with a stone.

Thomas E. W. Skelton charged Frederick James Stanaway with having assaulted him by kicking him on the thigh, and also charged Charles George Stanaway with having used insulting and provoking language to incite Thomas Skelton to commit a breach of the peace, and he asked that Charles George Stanaway be bound over to keep the peace.

His Worship convicted Thomas Edward Wath Skelton on the charges of having assaulted Frederick James Stanaway, and bound him over in a surety of £50 to keep the peace and ordered him to pay £4 10/ costs.

All the other charges were dismissed.

From the 1928 Electoral Roll we have Frederick living in the district of Dargaville and was listed as a farmer.

The same year Frederick (21) marries Ruby Winifred Agnew (17) (Marriage Certificate number 1928/4376). We have no records of Ruby’s family other than she was born 6 May 1911 in New Zealand.

Frederick and Ruby have five children, Murray Clifford (1927-1970), Cameron ????, Daphne ????, Beryl ???? and Reuben Frederick ????

The Electoral Rolls from 1935 has Frederick living in the Dargaville area and listed as a farmer, the subsequent Electoral Rolls list as follows

• 1938 – Waihue – Shepherd
• 1942 – WWII Ballot lists as Waihue – Shepherd
• 1949 – Tangowahine – Farmer
• 1954 – Ruawai – Farmer
• 1957 – Silschs Road, Ruawai – Farmer
• 1963 – Paradise Valley, Rotorua – Farmer
• 1972 – No 1 Road, Te Puke – Retired

Frederick dies on 10 July 1977, aged 69 (Death Certificate number unknown) and was buried in Plot 57 at the Dudley Vercoe Drive Cemetery, Te Puke, Pay of Plenty.

After the death of her husband Ruby moves back to Auckland. Where she out lives her husband by some time, she passes away on 7 July 2011 at Cairnfield House, Orewa, Auckland in her 101st year. (Death Certificate unknown).