Patricia Keiller on the Caccia-Birch family. The Birch brothers coming to NZ, 1860s, leasing land in upper Rangitikei. First European settlers in the area. Merino farming, cob house, gorse hedge. Marriages, wife from Yorkshire, expanding the house. Only cob house remaining in the North Island. Link to Caccia family, an Italian Count. Erehwon. Caccia-Birch name. Keiller connection. Freehold purchase finalized in 1905. Family disputes and rifts. Nga Tawa school. Purchase of Woodhay (Caccia Birch House), later gifted to the nation. Maintenance and future use of the house. Later family movements. Hair ball from a cow’s stomach.