Biography contributed by Chris McLennan
Margaret Munro was born in 1822 at Dyke, Morayshire to Alexander Ross and his wife Sophia Raff. She married John Munro, a blacksmith of Fearn, Ross-shire, and they produced a family of ten children there, seven of whom reached adulthood.
Following the death of her eighth child aged one week, Margaret went down to Edinburgh and did six weeks training as a midwife at the infirmary, before returning to Fearn and having two more children. Presumably she worked as a midwife in the community.
Sometime after 1871 the family moved to Glasgow in search of work for the older boys, and in 1885 Margaret, John and their youngest son emigrated to New Zealand to join the two older sons who were by then settled in Palmerston North.
One other son, working as a ship’s carpenter, died when his ship was lost in a storm at about that time time, and the eldest daughter, already married with a family, stayed in Scotland. The two other daughters came to Palmerston North with their families independently. The younger one also signed the petition.
Margaret worked as a midwife in Palmerston North until the late 1890s when she had a stroke, and died some time later in 1903. She is buried at Terrace End Cemetery with her husband and infant grandson.