Hannah was born in 1808 in West Teignmouth, Devon, England. In 1848 she married Johann Otten in Whitechapel, London. This was her second marriage, her first husband was Mr Parkhouse. Hannah and Johann emigrated in the 1850s. Her brother Henry Bragg and his wife Caroline had arrived in Wellington in 1848.
By the mid 1860s, Hannah was running a Boarding Establishment at Claremont Cottage on Willis Street. In 1875, she was seeking a General Servant and the benefits advertised were that she was not at home on Sunday evenings and there were no children.
In 1886 she wrote to the Board of Education complaining of the annoyance caused by children of Te Aro School assembling in front of her house. The matter was referred to the Te Aro School committee.
In 1891, Hannah was again looking for domestic help. She wanted a girl to assist in housework and to reside in the house. Sunday afternoons were offered as time off and that there were two in the family to take care of.
But 1891 was a sad year for Hannah. Her husband Johann died, followed by her sister-in-law Caroline and then her brother Henry. All three are buried at Bolton Street.
Hannah died in 1895 aged 86 at her house on Willis Street. In her Will, she left all of her property to John William Pickergsill who is the second interment in this plot. He was an accountant at the Bank of Australasia and died of pneumonia in 1900, aged 50. We do not know if there was any family connection between the two. John’s wife, Ann Olive, is the third interment in 1909. She died aged 72. The fourth and final interment is that James Frederick Linley, Ann’s son by her first marriage. He died in 1936 aged 71.
Plot: *Ch Eng/B/29
By Julia Kennedy
