Mrs Jessie Allan Walker

Helen Mary Gallagher Posted: 19 Aug 2025

Sheet 274 Mrs Jessie Allan Walker
Jessie Allan Walker (nee Black) was born on 31 January 1853 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Her parents were William Black and Ann Black (nee Waterston). Ann Waterston was born at Little Jacks Close, Canongate, Scotland where she married William Black in 1850.
Jessie was 25 years old when she married Pringle Walker aged 28 years at Innerleithen, near Edinburgh in 1878.
On 29 January 1879 they sailed from Clyde on the “Westland” arriving in Port Otago on 21 April 1879.
Pringle, who was a wool carder, was employed at Ross and Glendining Woollen Mills, Dunedin. They lived in Dunedin for 13 years where their three older children John Allan, William Pringle and Marion Ormiston were born.
The family then moved to Timaru where Pringle accepted a partnership in the South Canterbury Woollen Mills. There were five other partners: John Lane, J Crosbie, J Lillico, J Dalglish and J McRae.
Jessie signed the Women’s Suffrage petition in Timaru in1893.
Interestingly other women signed the petition at the same time: Mrs May McRae, Mrs Rose Lane, Jane McRae, M McLennan McRae (Bank Street. Sheet 274) and Maggie Dalglish (Heaton Street. Sheet 273).
Jessie and Pringle’s youngest son (my grandfather Stanley Crichton Walker) was born in Timaru 8 December 1893.
In 1902 the Walkers moved to Ashburton where Pringle Walker and John Lane took over the Ashburton Woollen Mill. In 1904 they combined with Sarah and Alfred Rudkin of Christchurch forming Lane Walker Rudkin Ltd.
Pringle died in Ashburton 27 March 1930 aged 80 years. Jessie’s youngest son Stanley, home for his father’s funeral, tragically died that same year 6 August aged 36 years. He had suffered complications from mustard gas poisoning in 1917 at Ploegsteert Wood, Belgium, World War 1 and was a Gallipoli veteran.
Jessie died in Ashburton 2 May aged 85 years.
The Walker family graves are in Ashburton Cemetery,

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