Biography contributed by Katherine Blakeley
Mary Agatha Burke was born on 23 June 1864 in Cork, Ireland – the daughter of James Burke, a farmer, and Hannah Haly.
She emigrated to New Zealand with her family and they settled in Greenhills near Bluff where Mary signed the suffrage petition.
She married John Newell, a labourer, in 1893 and they had six children, one who died in early childhood.
John died in 1922, he is buried in the Bluff Cemetery.
Mary died on 12 May 1928, her burial place is unknown.
Sources
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
Invercargill City Council https://icc.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