Search

Samuel Leigh was born probably on 1 September 1785 at Milton, Staffordshire, England, the son of Matthew Leigh, an engineer; his mother's name is unknown. Samuel initially belonged to the Congregational church, but…

Francis Oswald Bennett (always known as ‘Os’) was born on 19 February 1898 in Christchurch, the son of William Francis Bennett and his wife, Rose Maria Harrow. His childhood was spent on his parents’ small farm at…

Charles John Abraham is said to have been born on 17 June 1814 at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, England, and was baptised there on 3 July 1814. He was the son of Captain Thomas Abraham and his wife, Louisa…

Hannah Dorney was born in Cork, Ireland, probably on 14 July 1829, the third child and eldest daughter of Elizabeth Lynch and her husband, Thomas Dorney, a shopkeeper. Although christened Joanna, she preferred to use…

Andrew Sinclair was born at Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, on 13 April 1794, the son of John Sinclair, a weaver, and his wife, Agnes Renfrew. He never married. From 1814 to 1818 Sinclair studied medicine and surgery…

Ann Fletcher was born on 27 February 1833 at Leigh, Lancashire, England, the eldest of seven children of John Fletcher, a clogger, and his wife, Mary Brown, both of whom were members of the Society of Friends (Quakers…

Samuel Shaw, an early campaigner for the eight hour working day, was baptised on 10 January 1819 at Littlebury, Essex, England, the son of Zechariah Shaw, an inn-keeper, and his wife, Susannah. In December 1847 he…

Elizabeth Fairburn was born on 29 August 1821 at the Church Missionary Society station at Kerikeri, the daughter of Sarah Tuckwell and her husband, William Thomas Fairburn, a CMS lay missionary. The family moved to…

John Buchanan is said to have been born on 13 October 1819, at Levenside (Strathleven), Dunbartonshire, Scotland. He was the eldest of four children of William Buchanan and his wife, Nancy Somerville. He was educated at…

Harriet Louisa Campbell was born on 1 July 1829 probably at Edinburgh, Scotland, the daughter of Grace Elizabeth Hay and her husband, James Campbell. On 4 June 1851 at St Quivox, Ayrshire, Harriet married Thomas Robert…

Charles Decimus Barraud was born in Camberwell, London, England, on 9 May 1822, the 10th child (of 12) of William Francis Barraud and his wife, Sophia Hull. Barraud wanted to become a doctor, but his father, a clerk in…

Francis Dart Fenton was born at Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England, probably some time between 1820 and 1825, the son of Francis Tarrant Fenton and his wife, Frances Ashby. The Fentons were an old Yorkshire legal family:…

Margaret Moxon was born on 18 August 1808 in the parish of Sculcoates, Hull, Yorkshire, England, the daughter of Margaret Heaton and her husband, John Moxon, a businessman and banker. She was well educated, and became…

Iwikau, the second surviving son of Herea, the first Te Heuheu Tūkino, and the child of Rangiaho, of Ngāti Maniapoto, was born late in the eighteenth century. Like his older brother, Mananui, he became a great warrior,…

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…

Frederick George Gurnsey was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales, on 18 January 1868, one of eight children of Anna Maria Griffin and her husband, Henry William Gurnsey, a tin plate worker. His childhood was largely…

Hēnare Wiremu Taratoa was a leader of Ngāi Te Rangi of the Tauranga district. He was born about 1830; a photograph taken of him about 1860 shows a young man possibly in his 30s. His mother was Hera; his father's name is…

Fanny Rose Porter (Poata), who was best known by her stage name, Te Rangi Pai, was born at Tokomaru Bay, according to family sources on 11 January 1868. She was the eldest of nine children of Herewaka Porourangi Pōtae (…

Taukē, of Te Inu-ā-wai hapū of Ngā Ruahine, a section of Ngāti Ruanui, was born probably in 1810 or 1811, in Waikato, where his mother was being held in captivity. When Taukē was born she thought of killing him to spare…

Charles Emilius Gold is said to have been born at Woolwich, London, England, into an army family, on 6 January 1809. His parents' names are unknown, but his father served as a senior artillery officer at Waterloo, and…