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Luke Adams was born on 21 May 1838 in Fareham, Hampshire, England, the son of William Adams, a brickmaker, and his wife, Jane Barber. After serving an apprenticeship as a potter, Adams married Sarah Jane Churcher at…

David MacNish, whose surname was sometimes spelled McNish, was born probably in 1812 or 1813 in the parish of Trelawny, Cornwall, Jamaica. He was the son of David McNish, an estate overseer from Kirkcudbrightshire,…

When she died in 1893, aged 31, Eleanor Catherine Mair, better known as Kate Sperrey, was acclaimed as 'one of the best portrait painters New Zealand has produced.' That she has since been virtually forgotten says less…

Joey Mātenga Ashton (Āhitana), sometimes called Joseph, was born in Greytown, Wairarapa, on 3 June 1907, the only child of Kiti Karaka Rīwai (Rēwai) and her husband, Te Ao Āhitana Mātenga (Joseph Ashton), a labourer.…

Mary Muller  was one of the earliest advocates for women’s rights in New Zealand. Drawing on her own experiences of a disrupted childhood, a failed marriage and the loss of property, she developed a critique of…

Henry Ah Kew was born in Auckland on 22 September 1900, the son of James Ah Kew and his wife, Mellie Guey, also known as Mary Fong. Henry’s father, whose Chinese name was Yan Kew, was born in the Chinese province of…

By his own account Henry Burling was born at Stratford, Essex, England, on 1 May 1801, the son of Thomas Burling, a soap-maker; another account suggests he was born on 5 October 1807, the son of James Burling and Joanna…

Henry Charles Goffin was born at Plymouth, England, on 8 March 1885, the son of Harriet Amelia Bickle and her husband, Henry Goffin, a barge owner. His father had been converted when the Salvation Army first arrived in…

Ana Matawhāura Hato was born in Ngāpuna, Rotorua, on 30 December 1907, one of three children of Hato Mae Ngāmahirau, of Ngāti Whakaue, and his wife, Riripeti Te Opehōia Eparaima, of Tūhourangi. Her close relatives…

Mabel Annie Fielding was born on 1 July 1902 at Pleasant Point, Canterbury, the youngest of the seven children of Frederick Fielding, a farmer, and his wife, Mary Davis, both immigrants from Britain. After Frederick was…

Isabella Coupar (the second name, Flora, was added later) was born at Ninewells near Dundee, Angus, Scotland, probably in 1842 or 1843, the daughter of Margaret Mitchell, a jute spinner, and Robert Coupar. Her mother…

Matilda Alice (known as Alice) Jeffrey was born at Alexandra, Victoria, Australia, on 5 January 1875, the fifth child of Ann Scale and her husband, John Jeffrey, a farmer. Growing up in extreme poverty, she absorbed…

Mabel Rose Newton was born at Southbridge, near Lake Ellesmere, Canterbury, on 26 February 1883, the daughter of Annie Donald and her husband, Frank Newton, a tanner. She was the eldest of six children and helped her…

René (Renee) Mary Shadbolt was born on 26 April 1903 at Duvauchelle, Akaroa Harbour, the daughter of Ernest Francis Shadbolt, a sheepfarmer, and his wife, Ada Mary Shaw. Her early years were spent in small rural…

Fred Thompson Bowerbank was born at Penrith, Cumberland, England, on 30 April 1880, the son of Joseph Bowerbank, an ironmonger, and his wife, Mary Farrer. After attending Penrith High School he studied medicine at the…

Viva Bedlington was born at Auckland on 12 March 1893, the daughter of Elizabeth Jane Meldrum and her husband, Percy Bedlington, a surveyor. Her paternal grandfather, William Bedlington, had surveyed much of the…

George Jobberns was born on 2 June 1895 near Te Moana in rural South Canterbury, the son of John Jobberns, a farmer, and his wife, Elizabeth Helem. His primary education at Te Moana was followed by secondary schooling…

Charles Elliott Perry was born in Melbourne, Australia, on 19 May 1871 to Charles Stuart Perry, an Anglican clergyman, and his second wife, Esther Walker. After attending schools in Melbourne, he gained second-class…

A gifted teacher and an educationalist concerned with increasing women's opportunities, Stephanie Grace Young was known and admired beyond the schools in which she taught. She was born on 13 July 1890 at Amberley…

William Turakiuta Cooper (sometimes known as Wiremu Te Apatū Cooper) was born at Muriwai, Poverty Bay, probably in 1885 or 1886, one of twin sons of Robert Cooper and Mere Morera (or Christie). Both parents were of…