E. S. Becroft

Signed family name

Becroft

Signed given name

E. S.

Given address

Port Albert

Sheet number

Town/Suburb

Port Albert

City/Region

Auckland region

Notes

Biography contributed by Bernadette Siebert

Susan Emily Becroft was born in 1850 in Middlesex, England, one of the eleven children of John Becroft and Mary Anne nee Jeffreys. John was a carpenter and the family lived around London. In 1859 Mary Anne died and in 1862 John left England with nine of his children (aged 4 to 18) to emigrate to the new colony of Albertland, north of Auckland. On arrival John married widowed Sarah Jerome, who had travelled on the Matilda Wattenbach with the Becrofts, and helped John with his children.

Emily Susan (as she was known) lived with her parents at Port Albert. When her father John died in 1892 at Port Albert, he left her half of his property together with her brother John. Emily was involved in the local area. In 1894 she was installed as an officer for The Hope of Albertland Lodge (a temperance society). She exhibited at numerous Port Albert Annual Show – in 1912 she won first prize for an apple pie, and second for her flowers. In 1916 she won prizes for pears and peaches (taking after her father who was a renowned orchardist).

By 1922, Emily had moved to Kingsland, Auckland and then to Mt Eden. On November 17, 1930, at a private hospital, Auckland. Emily Susan Becroft died, 'daughter of the late John Becroft, late of Port Albert, aged 79 years. Funeral will leave Sibun's Mortuary, Khyber Pass, at 2 p.m. to-morrow (Wednesday) for Waikumete Crematorium.' As per wishes, her body was 'disposed of by cremation instead of by burial in the earth'. She was commemorated on a family headstone in the Helensville Cemetery. Her probate left five nieces and nephews 100 or 200 pounds each, then the rest and residue to the Auckland City Mission, her estate was worth 2 000 pounds.

E. S. is the sister-in-law of 24 Emily BECROFT, 24 Florence M BECROFT, 24 Mrs L P BECROFT