Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Amelia was born about 1831, probably in England. She is possibly the Amelia Coles who married Charles Bilson in Wiltshire, England in 1854.
Amelia and her husband Charles emigrated to New Zealand and were living in Dunedin in 1862.
They had two children in Dunedin and when Amelia signed the suffrage petition the family were living in Frederick St and she was a widow.
Charles, a contractor, had died in 1892.
Their son Frederick worked as a fishmonger and Amelia worked in the fish shop. She was prosecuted in March 1901 for selling stout with oysters, without a licence. All the liquor on the premises was seized and Amelia was fined.
She died later that year on 13 October and is buried with Charles in the Northern Cemetery.
Sources
DCC Cemetery Records http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/facilities/cemeteries/cemeteries-search
Otago Nominal Index http://marvin.otago.ac.nz
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
Free BDM https://www.freebmd.org.uk
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