Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Mary Jane Cavell was born about 1826 in Kent, England — the daughter of Henry Cavell, a shopkeeper, and Martha Waller.
She married Joseph Thomas Erridge, a fisherman, on 1 June1845 in Ringwould, Kent, they had six children, three of who appear to have died in infancy.
The family emigrated to Otago about 1860, they had one more child after their arrival. They lived, at first, in Port Chalmers where Joseph worked as a Police Constable.
In 1871 a bazaar was held in aid of the Church of England building fund. Mary contributed an 'abundance of artificial flowers in pots.' 'To the first look, they appear quite natural , but on closer examination “no smell is there”'.
When Mary signed the suffrage petition the family were living in Rothesay and Joseph was a working as a storekeeper.
Mary died at her daughter’s home on 17 September 1905 and Joseph died following year. They are buried in the family grave in the Northern Cemetery.
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
Free BDM https://www.freebmd.org.uk
GRO England https://www.gro.gov.uk
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