Daniel Frederick and Lavinia arrived in Australia in January 1911, having emigrated from England with their five sons: Daniel Richard Terence (Uncle Dick) 12 years old; William John (Uncle John) 8 years old; Herbert Ralph (Pop or Uncle Ralph) 7 years old; Frederick Ernest (Uncle Fred) 5 years old; and Robert Oliver (Uncle Bob) 3 years old.

They lived in Melbourne for a short time and then moved to a migrants settlement block of sixty acres at a place called Nanneella, in Victoria about 30 kms from Echuca They tried farming for two years but almost went broke in the process. The farm was infested with Bathurst Burr that was almost impossible to eradicate. They walked off the farm at the end of 1912 and went to Sydney to live.

For three years the family lived in Stanmore while Daniel Frederick worked at a brick-works nearby. In 1916 Daniel Frederick found work at the State Dockyard in Newcastle and moved the family there. They lived at Tighes Hill to start with and eventually settled in Fawcett Street, Mayfield. The boys all went to Newcastle High School and then branched out into their own fields from there.

Daniel Richard went to Hawksbury Agricultural College. He joined the army during WW1. On his return he took up a soldier settlement farm at Yenda, near Griffith. He was there until 1940 when he bought an orange orchard and poultry farm at Lisarow, near Gosford. The farm at Lisarow was a great gathering place for the family for many years.

William John studied at Sydney University and later in Edinburgh, and became an Actuary. After bringing his bride home from Denmark, they lived first at Lindfield, then Gordon and finally had a house built at Pymble. He spent all his working life and then his retirement in Sydney.

Frederick Ernest studied at Sydney Technical College and Newcastle College for a Civil Engineering Diploma. He joined the Newcastle and Hunter District Water Board in 1923 and was with them for many years eventually retiring from the position of President of the Board in 1970. He lived in Newcastle all his working life but went to Perth after retirement. First one son then the other went to Perth, and settled there. Later Frederick Ernest and his good wife joined them there.

Herbert Ralph studied at Newcastle Technical College and became an Analytical Chemist. He worked for some time at the Sulphide and Lime Works Newcastle, and ended up working for Rylands for many years until his retirement. He lived in Newcastle all his working life.

Robert Oliver studied at Newcastle College in an accountancy course. He later secured a job in by-products department of BHP. Later transferred to Tempe in Sydney to their Sydney Division. He enlisted in the army when WWII was declared. He was sent overseas as part of the AIF Army to oppose the Japanese Army in Malaysia. He became a POW and was imprisoned for about 4 years. During his time of incarceration he was compelled to work as a labourer in the Steelworks in Tokyo. He spoke of living on a diet of weevil infested rice and the occasional unsuspecting cricket and beetle. On his return from POW he was hospitalised for some time. He went back to BHP but was very bitter about the lack of consideration given to employees who had served and began to think of employment elsewhere. He married in 1945. He took up a job in a public accounts office in Coffs Harbour. In 1950 took up a job as Administration Officer and Company Sectretary for the newly established East West Airlines. The family moved to Tamworth and lived there the rest of Bobs working life. He retired to Newcastle where he died in 1992.

Daniel Frederick COOKSEY (known within the family as Frederick as both his father and grandfather were named Daniel) was born in 1864 in Clerkenwell, London. He was the eldest of four children born to Daniel and Jane Ann COOKSEY (nee THORESBY). When Frederick was only 15 months old his brother, William Thoresby, arrived. At three years of age another brother, Ernest Ebenzer was born and at four his sister, Alice Sophia, joined the family. It must have been a very busy early childhood.