Paul Peillon died in the Brunner mine disaster

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DescriptionGeoff Head

My great-great grandfather Paul Peillon died in the Brunner mine disaster at the age of 49.
Paul was born in Lyon, France and arrived in the West Coast in 1866. In 1882 Paul (then aged 36) married Rose Cooper aged 21 years. Both had lived at Maori Creek where Rose's father was a carpenter. Paul had searched for gold in Notown and Maori Creek, later renamed Dunganville. They had three children, Paul George, Catherine Rosalie and Charles Clement. About 1890 when gold ran out he and his family moved to Dobson and he worked in the Brunner coal mine as a hewer.
Paul's family in Lyon had maintained contact and they sent clothes for his children to wear. Nessie Rolls recalled that her father Clement refused to wear them because they were too smart and he wanted to be dressed like the other children at school. In 1886 Paul became a naturalised New Zealander.
Paul was buried in the mass grave for the victims of the Brunner Mine Disaster at Stillwater on 29 Mar 1896.
After Paul's death, Rose married Thomas Robinson (grandfather of Liz Hay), a widower with seven children in 1898. They went to Paris and briefly to Lyon for their honeymoon. Thomas and his brother James started the Robinsons cordial factory in 1890 firstly in Taylorville, later in Hokitika.
The attached photo of Paul Peillon as a young boy was taken in Lyon, France.ContributorGeoff Head

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PersonPaul PeillonEventBrunner Mine disasterCoalmining

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Date Created12th May 2022

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Paul Peillon died in the Brunner mine disaster