Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Elizabeth Woolliams was born about 1855 in Gloucestershire, England – the daughter of William Woolliams, a carpenter, and Priscilla Mace.
Her mother died in 1861 and her father re-married a few years later.
In 1875 the family emigrated to Otago on the William Davie.
Elizabeth married William Broadbent in 1885 and they had two children – when she signed the suffrage petition they were living in Gore.
In 1895 William was with the Allen family (See 74 E W Allen) when they drowned at Stewart Island. This experience affected him badly. It 'appeared to have preyed on his mind, as since then he developed symptoms of the deepest melancholy.'
He went to Dunedin for treatment and died there in 1900, aged 38.
Elizabeth died at her son’s home in Dunedin on 21 August 1932 – she is buried with William in the Gore Cemetery.
Sources
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
Family Search https://www.familysearch.org
Free BDM https://www.freebmd.org.uk
GRO England https://www.gro.gov.uk
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
Find a Grave https://www.findagrave.com/