Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Elizabeth Wingate Brownlie was born in 1861 in New Zealand – the daughter of James Brownlie, a farmer, and Helen Dalziel.
She married Gordon Sheed, also a farmer, on 29 April 1886 at Knox Church, Dunedin and they had eight children.
The family farmed at Wairuna, near Clinton in South Otago, where Elizabeth signed the suffrage petition.
In 1911 Elizabeth and Gordon left for 'a trip to the Homeland'. They were 'entertained to a social in the Wairuna Church vestry' where they were presented with 'a very handsome travelling-rug”'and a 'beautiful lady’s handbag'. They were 'likely to be in London at the time of the Coronation'.
The travellers returned six months later and another social was held in the Wairuna Church to welcome them home.
In 1913 they sold the farm and moved to Timaru where Gordon died in 1915.
Elizabeth remained in Timaru where she died at her home on 12 June 1943, she is buried with Gordon in the Timaru Cemetery.
Sources
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
Family Search https://www.familysearch.org
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
Timaru District Council https://www.timaru.govt.nz/
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