Biographical information provided by Briar Barry for the He Tohu exhibition:
Clara was born on 14 September 1857 in Ashburton, Canterbury, to parents Thomas and Mary Taylor. She married William Thomas Lill in 1876. William was born and educated in Lincolnshire, England but immigrated to New Zealand on the Mermaid in 1867. He worked as a thresher and then on the Government railways for six years, before buying land to farm. Clara and William were stalwarts of the Willowby community where their eleven children were born and raised. Clara died on 16 April 1932 in Ashburton.
Related images:
William Thomas and Clara Lill (centre) and family at their Golden Wedding, 20 September 1926.
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