FitzPatrick (1862 – 1931) was born in King William's Town, the eldest son of James Coleman FitzPatrick, who was a judge of the Supreme Court of the Cape Colony, and Jenny FitzGerald. Two of James Coleman FitzPatrick's other sons were killed in action – Thomas in the Matabele Rebellion and George in the Second Aglo-Boer War.
Percy was first educated at Downside School near Bath, England, and later at St. Aidan's College in Grahamstown.
After his father's death in 1880, James Peter FitzPatrick (later self-selected Percy) left college to support his mother and her family. After working for some time as a clerk in Cape Town's Standard Bank, he travelled to the Eastern Transvaal (now Mpumalanga) goldfields where he worked as a storeman, prospector's assistant and journalist as well as an ox-wagon transport-rider from the former Lourenco Marques (now Maputo) to Lydenburg and Barberton. An account of FitzPatrick's adventures during this time, Jock of the Bushveld, published in 1907.
Sir Percy FitzPatrick died in Amanzi, Uitenhage 1931, aged 68, from undisclosed causes. He was buried at "The Look Out" at Sunlands where you will also find the cache GC1DPMY.