Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Helen Marshall was born about 1830 in Scotland.
In 1858 she emigrated to Otago on the Jura and, on 13 March 1862, she married William Wilson.
William was a widower with three daughters who ran an iron foundry.
Helen and William had six children and when Helen signed the suffrage petition they were living in Allandale Rd, St Clair, Dunedin.
William died in 1901 and Helen died at their daughter’s home on 14 June 1912. They are buried in the family grave in the Southern Cemetery.
At the time of Helen’s death their son John was serving as Mayor of Dunedin – John Wilson Ocean Drive is named after him.
Helen and William’s portraits feature in the Toitū Otago Settlers Museum portrait gallery and more can be found about them here.
Sources
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
DCC Cemetery Records http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/facilities/cemeteries/cemeteries-search
NZ Yesteryears http://www.yesteryears.co.nz
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
Presbyterian Research Centre https://www.presbyterian.org.nz/archives/
Find a Grave https://www.findagrave.com/
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