Laura Mary Ann Griffin was born in the small village of Broughton in Hampshire, England on 25 March 1864. She was the eldest child born to Henry Griffin, a gardener and Ann (Annie) Lancely Strong. She emigrated with her parents and siblings onboard the Duke of Edinburgh which arrived in Lyttelton on 17 November 1875. The family settled in Waimate.
Laura moved to Tinui (then known as Tenui), Wairarapa in 1894 which was where two of her sisters were living. She worked as a housemaid.
She married John Robert Stooke, an English labourer, on 19 December 1894 at the Tinui Registry Office. They did not have any children. John and Laura moved to Napier shortly after their marriage. In 1895, Laura developed pulmonary tuberculosis. She died from tuberculosis and gradual exhaustion on 16 June 1897 in Napier and was buried in an unmarked grave at Old Napier Cemetery on 17 June 1897.
Her death notice in The Hawke’s Bay Herald on 17 June 1897, page 2 read:
STOOKE – At Napier, on Wednesday, 16th June 1897, after a long and painful illness, Laura, beloved wife of J. R. Stooke, daughter of H. Griffin, Waimate, aged 33 yrs. "Gone to be with Jesus". The funeral will leave her late residence, Napier Terrace, to-day (Thursday) at 2:30pm.
Laura’s grave has recently been located and a plaque erected.
John returned to England after his wife’s death and then emigrated to Canada where he re-married and had a son.
Biography contributed by Sarah Semple (great-great niece)
Sources:
- Birth certificate – General Register Office, England
- Passenger list – Timaru Herald, Issue 1277, 3 November 1875, page 2
- Marriage Certificate – NZ Department of Internal Affairs
- Death certificate - NZ Department of Internal Affairs
- Death notice – Hawkes Bay Herald, 17 June 1897, page 2
Images
Laura Mary Ann Griffin (courtesy Vivienne Walker)
Laura and John R. Stooke (courtesy Vivienne Walker)