Address and town/suburb previously listed as Oamaru. New details confirmed by electoral roll.
Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Helen Houston was born on 18 March 1868 in Argyllshire, Scotland – the daughter of Hugh Houston, a distillery workman, and Annie Thomson.
Helen’s father died in 1872 and she emigrated to New Zealand with her mother and sister (See 302 Susan Houston) in the late 1870s.
When Helen signed the suffrage petition she was living with her family in Hampden working as a dressmaker.
She died in Hampden on 28 June 1933 and is buried in the Hampden Cemetery.
Her obituary said she 'since a girl, had been closely connected with the various activities of the church. For a long period she was a teacher in the Sunday school, and for the past 21 years had been its superintendent. She also carried on a Bible class, and by her devotion to service and love for her work she readily won the respect of the scholars. Of a quiet and retiring disposition, she was a devoted member of the Presbyterian Church.'
Sources
Family Search https://www.familysearch.org
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
Waitaki District Council https://www.waitaki.govt.nz/Services/Cemeteries
Click on sheet number to see the 1893 petition sheet this signature appeared on. Digital copies of the sheets supplied by Archives New Zealand.
Community contributions