IT was the year Titanic sank with the loss of 1500 lives and Paramount Pictures was founded in Hollywood.
It was also the year – a little closer to home – that Maisie Florence Napper came into the world at Penshurst in Sydney.
Maisie, born on January 30, celebrated her 100th birthday late last month with a series of events in the Milton-Ulladulla region attended by friends and family.
Messages flooded in from around the world including letters of congratulation from Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, Governor-General Quentin Bryce, Prime Minister Julia Gillard and leader of the Federal Opposition, Tony Abbott.
Maisie was the first of five children born to Charles and Florence Napper.
One of her sisters died from meningitis in childhood while a brother passed away about 10 years ago.
Two younger sisters are still alive and one of them - in her 90s - was able to join Maisie's recent birthday celebrations.
Maisie's first husband, Bill, passed away in 1976.
They had three children together - Peter (Gregory), Tim (Gregory) and Jan (Evans).
Maisie remarried and moved to the local region with second husband Ron Evans 20 years ago in search of warmer weather.
She still lives on her own in Ulladulla with in-home care provided by Sarah Claydon IRT.
Son Tim Gregory told the Times last week that his mother still enjoyed relatively good health.
Maisie’s birthday celebrations kicked off on Friday, January 20, with a morning tea hosted by her friends at the Southern Shoalhaven Meals on Wheels’ Vision Impaired Group.
Maisie, who suffers from Macular Degeneration, has been a member of the group since it formed in 2006.
Throughout the morning she reminisced about her life as a dressmaker and her particular passion for wedding gowns.
In her spare time she played tennis and also learned to play the piano.
Maisie also kept everyone entertained with her story about the bolting of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the fact that it had to be exactly the right temperature before they could join the two ends.
The bridge was officially opened on March 12, 1932, and Maisie has fond memories of walking from end to end with thousands of other people.
The celebrations continued last Saturday, January 28, with a birthday party at the Uniting Church in Ulladulla attended by family and friends from country NSW and Gympie in Queensland.
Someone even made the trip from Canada to help Maisie mark the occasion.
Mr Gregory, who spoke on the day, she he was "delighted" that so many people had travelled great distances to join the celebrations.
He said his mother had lived in an era of great change.
Trips that had once taken a full day using horse and sulky could now be completed in less than an hour using a motor car.
Air travel had grown from Tiger Moths to A380s carrying 450-500 people. As a young woman Maisie got to experience one of the earlier forms of air transport, taking a joy flight with Charles Kingsford-Smith from a cow paddock in Mascot.
An early wireless was a piece of furniture in the corner of the room which ran on a car battery. Today you can carry them around in your hand, Mr Gregory said.
Phones have gone the same way - from public phones to mobile phones we carry around in our pocket.
Television was introduced and went from black and white to colour. Images of man landing on the moon were beamed into lounge rooms around the world.
Mr Gregory also listed his mother's many achievements.
She developed a love of music and at an early age gained her ALCM followed by her LLCM from the London School of Music.
She has continued playing the piano and organ throughout her life and still plays at a monthly service at IRT Sarah Claydon.
She was also a gifted seamstress.
As a youngster Mr Gregory said he could remember his mum travelling to Sydney to check out the latest fashions. She would make patterns from newspaper and help dress the who's who of Camden.
He said his mum also played a "pretty mean" game of tennis.
"Mum, you have loved during interesting and rapidly changing times and as a family we are proud of your life and your achievements," he said.
Maisie's celebrations continued the following day (Sunday) with a function after the weekly Uniting Church service.
On the Monday she attended a high tea at Milton Bed and Breakfast hosted by IRT Sarah Claydon and attended by a number of IRT employees.
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