Ian Hutchison FYFE  -  FHM Open Day, 2010

[Copyright: Dawn Chambers]

Thanks to Dawn Chambers for the photograph of Ian, taken 2010 at FHM Open Day.

Ian was a very dedicated member of the Hutt Valley Branch, joining the branch in 1984.  A regular Heritage Volunteer at Petone Library, a fountain of knowledge concerning Scottish research and always willing to help anyone.

He manned the Scottish Interest Group table at many Family History Open Days, and nothing was too much trouble for him to assist people who were just getting started on their research or to exchange knowledge with other interested parties.

I have happy memories of Ian Fyfe at the NZSG Scottish Interest Group of Greater Wellington's annual research afternoons in the Hutt Valley.  He was a regular attender from our first winter afternoon get together at the Hutt Bridge Club rooms in July 2003, and a reliable stalwart on our organising committee from 2005 to 2018.

For four years from August 2006 our weekend research afternoons were upstairs in the Thompson block at St Orans College where Ian had a caretaker responsibility, facilitated our booking and College security. 

The meeting room at the Petone Library was our annual research venue from August 2010 with Scottish resources from our group, from SIG resources in Auckland and sharing of his personal Scottish resources and keen knowledge.

Ian was always involved with any Scottish family history activity in the Hutt Valley and particularly at the Hutt Valley Branch combined family history days in the autumn of 2012 and 2013 at Petone Library.  Ian certainly "did his bit" for sharing Scottish genealogy in the Hutt Valley.

For auld land syne
Pen Brown, Convenor, SIG-GW 2002-2013

Blackbridge Memorial

The information on this Blackbridge Cemetery website was researched and recorded by Ian Fyfe.

It records the names and lives of all the people, and others involved in the development of the Presbyterian Chapel in the Hutt, most of whom came to New Zealand in the mid-19th century.

Many of them came from Scotland, but there are also several folks from England, at least one from Ireland, one born in India and even one from Paris.

Many of these people had quite an impact on the development of the Hutt Valley and this webaite has some of their stories.

Although the cemetery was closed early in the 20th century, a memorial stone was erected about 1950, containing the names of those who were known to be buried there.

This record of these families will continue to be a valuable resource for genealogists in future.