About the Book

Sunrise Over Whitford Hills tells the story of Firmount, an eighty acre East Tamaki farm on what is now Ormiston Road.

Purchased in 1864 by Everett Thorburn’s great great grandfather, William Valentine Ralph, the farm remained in family ownership for 113 years. The land supported crops, dairy cows, working sheds, family routines and a way of life closely connected to East Tamaki.

The book follows the generations who worked the land and helped shape the rural community around them. It also reflects on the wider family story, including early settler connections, the growth of dairy farming in New Zealand and the changes that shaped rural Auckland over more than a century.

Everett’s story later reaches beyond the farm, into London, music, opera and international dairy cattle breeding. Yet throughout the book, there remains a strong connection to the land, the people and the inherited strengths of earlier generations.

At its heart, Sunrise Over Whitford Hills is a personal record of family, farming, resilience and local history.

Reflections on this unusual period when life again became dependent on an agricultural upbringing

Firmount was more than a farm. It was home to generations of family and a place where daily life was shaped by the seasons, the animals, the soil and the work required to keep the land productive.

Family members arrived early in the settlement of East Tamaki and they relied heavily on the growing town of Otahuhu for business and social connections. This continued through into Everett's education.

By preserving these memories, Everett Thorburn offers readers a glimpse into a way of life that has largely disappeared, but still lives on through family stories, photographs and the places that remain.

What the book explores

  • Family history across four generations
  • The rural work and off farm income of the 19th century
  • Settled dairy farming established between the World Wars
  • An unexpected entrance into professional music theatre
  • A return to intensive town milk supply as Otara's houses were built next door
  • Sale of farm and a move to the opera world of London
  • Reflections on this unusual period of the authors life
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Sunrise Over Whitford Hills

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