Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Margaret Cooper Barton was born about 1850 in Renfrewshire, Scotland – the eldest daughter of James Barton, a blacksmith, and Isabella Brown.
She married William Telfer on 31 December 1872 in Old Kilpatrick, Dunbartonshire and they had three children before they emigrated to New Zealand about 1880.
They had a further seven children, three who died in infancy, and they settled in Dunedin where William worked as a boilermaker.
When Margaret signed the suffrage petition the family were living in Water St, Maori Hill.
Margaret died at her home on 5 July 1893 – she is buried with three of her children in the Northern Cemetery.
What happened to William after this is unclear.
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