Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Mary Dickie was born on 6 November 1844 in Fenwick, Ayrshire, Scotland – the daughter of David Dickie, a farmer, and Eliza.
She emigrated to New Zealand about 1863 and married Andrew Potts, a farmer, in 1867.
They had 10 children, one who died in infancy and lived, at first, at Glenburnie Bush and later at Woodside before they retired to Tapanui where Mary signed the suffrage petition.
Andrew died in 1896 and Mary died on 28 October 1922. They are buried together in the Tapanui Cemetery.
Her obituary said 'In the early days when kindly help was needed, especially in times of sickness, Mrs Potts was ever ready to render sympathetic help. She was a woman of high Christian character, and always lived up to her profession.'
Sources
Tapanui Burial Register
Clutha District Council https://www.cluthadc.govt.nz
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
Family Search https://www.familysearch.org
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.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