I whānau a Hana Rata (Hannah Retter) e rua marama i mua i te hainatanga o te Tiriti o Waitangi, ā, i mate ia i te wā tonu e whakanuia ana te kotahi rau tau mai i taua Tiriti. He huānga ia nō roto mai i tētahi o ngā whānau o te takutai moana whaka-te-uru o Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington), arā, i puta rātou i te moenga o ētahi Pākehā whaiwhai tohorā me ētahi wāhine Māori. He kaihokohoko a Tāmati Tīkara (Thomas Stickle) te matua tāne o Hana, ā, ko tōna rohe hokohoko ko tērā mai i ngā kāinga o te hunga whaiwhai tohorā o Poihākena (Sydney) ki Te Moana-a-Raukawa (Cook Strait). Nō roto mai tana wahine a Turikatuku i a Ngāti Pāriri hapū o te iwi nei o Muaūpoko, ā, ko tō rātou whenua i te taha tonga o te roto o Horowhenua. He maha ngā wā i haere ai a Turikatuku mā runga waka i te taha o tōna hoa tāne, ā, e ai ki tētahi kōrero o muri mai, i whānau a Hana i Poihākena i te 12 o Tīhema 1839. Tokotoru anō, nuku atu rānei ngā tamariki a Turikatuku, ā, ko te āhua nei, i hoki mai rāua ko tana tama, ko Pēne (Ben), te tungāne o Hana ki Horowhenua, noho ai.
I noho a Hana i te taha o tōna matua i te wā i mutu ai tā te matua mahi kaihokohoko. I ngā tau whakamutunga atu o te tekau tau 1850–1859, ko ia te kaiwhakahaere mahi i te hanganga i te rori mai i Pōneke (Wellington) whiti atu i ngā paehiwi o Remutaka (Rimutaka), heke atu rā ki ngā kāinga o te hunga ahu whenua, he pāmu itiiti nei ā rātou i Te Wairarapa. Ko tōna kāinga i Te Taitai (Taita) i Te Awakairangi (Hutt Valley) i taua wā. Nā te auau tonu o te ngaro haere ōna me te kore hoki o tana whakaae kia mahue kōwao noa a Hana i te taha o ngā tamariki Māori i reira, tukua ana e ia a Hana kia tiakina e Mihi Buck, te hoa wahine o te rangatira o te hōtēra rā, o te 'Travellers Rest' i Te Taitai. He makiki ngā whakaaro o taua wahine rā, me te aha, poua ana e ia te āhua o te whare riko kore ki roto i a Hana.
I te 9 o ngā rā o Oketopa i 1861, ka moea e Hana Tīkara a Hōhepa Hāpimana Rata (Joseph Chapman Retter) i te whare o te minita o te Hāhi Perehipitīriana, o John Moir. O tō rāua whānau, tokorima he tama tāne, tokotoru he kōtiro. Nō te tau 1871, ka haere a Hōhepa Rata ki te mahi mā William Waring Taylor i runga i tana whenua rahi i Rangitīkei, ēngari nō te tau 1886 i waimarie rāua ki te whakamāhorahora i tā rāua noho. Nā tōna whaea ka whai pānga a Hana ki te whenua i Te Hou, arā, ki tētahi poraka whenua pakupaku noa nei o Ngāti Pāriri i te taha o Horowhenua moana. Ina koa tonu te whakaaro o te whānau kia noho rātou ki taua wāhi. He wā tino waimarie rawa atu mō rāua tērā, nā te mea e whakaaroaro ana te kāwanatanga ki te hoko whenua mai i taua rohe, ā, me te mea anō e whakaotioti haere ana hoki te hanganga o te huarahi tereina i waenganui i Pōneke (Wellington) me Manawatū, arā, ko ēnei ngā mea e tino puta ai he oranga ki taua rohe.
Nā Maata (Martha), te mātāmua o ngā tamariki wāhine a Hana i tuhi ki roto i tana rātaka ngā āhua o tō rātou tau tuatahi ki reira. He mea hanga e rātou he pahī papa rākau, ka monokia ki te uku, ā, he toetoe te rauwhare mō te tuanui. Puta ana he oranga ki a rātou i te whenua, arā, he kau ruarua nei wā rātou, he heihei, he māra kai me ngā hipi 60 te nui. Ka mutu ko ngā ika me ngā manu anō o ngā repo, o ngā ngahere, o ngā roto, o ngā awa me ngā takutai hoki e whāngai ana i a rātou ki te kai. Ko te nuinga o ō rātou hoa noho he Māori, ā, he whanaunga tonu hoki nō Muaūpoko me Ngāti Pareraukawa. Ko ngā Pākehā i reira ko te whānau Somerville, he tēpara hōiho kōti nei tā rātou i runga tonu i te ākau, (taro ake nei katia ai taua tēpara), tae atu ki te whānau Makitānara (McDonald), ko tō rātou whare tonu te poutāpeta. Ko ētahi tonu hoki ko ngā kaimahi rerewē kei tērā taha o te roto i te wāhi taihoa nei ka tū te tāone o Taitoko (Levin). He iti noa nei ngā marama i muri i te taenga atu o te whānau Rata ki reira, ka whakapuaretia te rerewē tereina mai i Pōneke ki Manawatū. Nō reira ka āhei rātou ki te haere ki ngā mahi rērehi hōiho i Te Awahou (Foxton) me ngā hui anō i Te Papa-i-ōia (Palmerston North).
I te tau 1889 ka oti te hanga tētahi kāinga noho nei ki Taitoko, ka hokona e te mātāmua o ngā tamariki tāne, e Pererika (Fred) he whenua hei whakatū whare mōna i te tāone, i whakatūria atu hoki e ia he mahi pūtia mīti māna ki reira. I te tau 1896 ka whakawhitiwhiti whenua rāua ko tana pāpā, ka haere a Hōhepa ki te tāone ki te mahi kani rākau i te mira a te whānau Prouse. Ko Christina te hoa wahine o te rangatira o te mira, he wahine mātātoa nei ki te whakaora, ki te āwhina tūroro hoki. Whakamīharo ana a Christina ki te tuakiri pai o Hana, tae atu ki tōna mōhio ki te tiaki tūroro. Nō te tūnga o Henry McKenzie hei tākuta tūturu ki Taitoko i te wā o te tau 1900, ka whakawherea e Christina Prouse a Hana kia haere tahi ki te mahi mā te tākuta hei tapuhi whakawhānau māna, me te tāone hoki. Atu ki te tau 1926, kua 86 tau nei tōna pakeke, e kaha tonu ana te mau o tōna nei whakapono Mihinare, e whakapau ana anō hoki ia i tana kaha ki te āwhina i te iwi whānui, e tokomaha haere ake ana. He wahine kaha a ia ki te pīkau i ngā kawenga o tōna hapori. Ko tōna kāinga he kāinga wātea ki te katoa, ā, i reira i whakatipua e ia ētahi o ana mokopuna i roto i te ngākau aroha, pākaha hoki. Kua kore kē ia e kōrero Māori i taua wā nei.
I te matenga o Hōhepa Rata i te tau 1926, ka noho a Hana ki te taha o ana tamāhine. Kīhai ia i pāngia e tētahi mate kino nei, ā, he hāereere tonu tana mahi ki ngā kanikani katoa me ngā kōnohete tae rawa ki te wā i tata tonu mai tōna matenga, arā, i Taitoko i te 2 o Ākuhata i te tau 1940, 100 tau tōna pakeke. Tokotoru ana tamāhine me te tama i mahue ora mai i a ia. Ki ngā tangata o Taitoko, ko 'Granny Retter' tā rātou karanga i a ia, te wahine nāna i mohimohi ngā tīpuna whāea, ngā tamariki hoki o taua tāone, ā, ko ia anō hoki te tauhere atu ki ngā rā o nehe o te ao Māori, Pākehā anō hoki.