Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley.
Jemima Henderson was born in 1871 in New Zealand – the daughter of William Henderson, a weighbridge keeper, and Annie Smith.
When she signed the suffrage petition Jemima was living at the family home in Duncan St, Dunedin working as a dressmaker.
She married William Kerse, a stock dealer, in 1904.
In December 1916 they were living in Otautau in Southland and had 3 children, one had died in infancy.
The family drove to the Aparima River for a picnic and William was teaching his son to swim. While taking his son across the river on his back William sank below the water and drowned. The boy was saved by onlookers but they could not reach William.
In June the following year Jemima gave birth to a daughter.
She later moved to live in Invercargill where she died on 3 April 1964. She is buried with William in the Calcium Cemetery, Southland.
Sources
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
DCC Cemetery Records http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/facilities/cemeteries/cemeteries-search
Family Search https://www.familysearch.org
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
Southland District Council https://www.southlanddc.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