Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Mary Grant Storer was born about 1870 in Dunedin. She was the daughter of Henry Smith Storer and Mary Gadsden Grant. Mary’s parents were married in Australia and the family spent time in both Victoria and Dunedin.
On 29 January 1896 at St Peter’s Church, Caversham Mary married Samuel Wilson Geddes, they had four children and lived at Naseby where they ran the Empire Hotel until 1905.
The family then moved to Port Chalmers where they ran the Marine Hotel. In 1907 they moved to the Gridiron Hotel in Princes St, Dunedin, a 50 room establishment. Samuel held the licence for the Gridiron until 1920 when he started working as a land agent. In 1932 Samuel again obtained the licence for the Gridiron Hotel which he kept until 1935.
Samuel died in 1938 and Mary on 7 August 1939. They are buried together in the Andersons Bay Cemetery.
Sources
Papers Past https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
BDM online NZ https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz/
BDM Victoria https://online.justice.vic.gov.au
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