Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Margaret Telford was born in 1868 in Workington, Cumberlandshire, England – the daughter of Robert Telford, a shoemaker, and Jane McConvey.
Margaret’s mother died about 1852 and, in 1857, the family emigrated to Adelaide, South Australia on the Monsoon.
Their stay in Australia was not long as they arrived in New Zealand about 1860 and settled in Waiwera, South Otago.
Margaret married John Perry, a sawmiller, on 20 September 1867 in the Warepa-Kaihiku Parish.
They had nine children and, when Margaret signed the suffrage petition, were living in Tapanui.
John died in 1901 due to falling over a bannister at the Commercial Hotel, Dunedin and Margaret died at Tapanui on 6 February 1924.
They are buried together in the Tapanui Cemetery.
Sources
Clutha District Council https://www.cluthadc.govt.nz
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
GRO England https://www.gro.gov.uk
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz