Sophia Ashley was born Sophia Roberts in 1824 in Ideford, Devon, England to William Roberts, Shoemaker and his wife Elizabeth Bottrell. She was baptised on 2 September 1824 in the Bozeat Parish church, Northamptonshire, England.
The Roberts family departed England on 5 October 1839 on the barque ‘Duke of Roxburgh’ and arrived in Port Nicholson, Petone on 8 February 1840. A son, William was born during the voyage to New Zealand.
Sophia Roberts married James Joseph Thomson on 24 December 1840 at Wellington. Sophia and James had nine children.
James Thomson died on 4 March 1862 on board the schooner ‘Henry’ at Sumner, Christchurch. He is buried in the Lyttelton cemetery. An Inquest heard that he was found dead in bed. The Verdict of the Inquest was that he ‘died by the visitation of God’.
Sophia Thompson remarried on 5 October 1869 in Christchurch to Thomas Kelloway. He died a few days later, on 17 October 1869 and is buried in the Addington cemetery, Block O, Plot 378C.
Sophia Kelloway, Widow age 47 years, Nurse remarried on 9 March 1872 to Asariah Ashley, Bachelor age 46 years, Grocer on 9 March 1872 at the residence of Rev C Fraser, Christchurch.
Electoral rolls from 1880-1884 record that Azariah Ashley was a Gardener living in Arthur Street, Wellington. From 1885-1890 he was living in Victoria Place, Wellington.
Sophia Ashley signed the 1893 Women’s Suffrage Petition in Wellington. Her address was given as 18 Arther [sic] street, Te Aro.
Sophia Ashley died in 1897 age 73 years. The funeral cortege left her son’s residence 142 Cuba street, Wellington. She was originally buried in Karori cemetery, Wellington, Sec CH Eng/E/34. She is no longer in this Plot. As with many others interred in the late 1890s-1920s, she will have been re-interred into public land at the foot of the plot or between the rows as her plot was not purchased. This was done under licence at a period where the cemetery ran out of room.
Plot: *Ch Eng/E/34
Azariah Ashley’s date and location of death has not been confirmed.
By Wendy Napier-Walker
Sources:
Ancestry – Public Family Trees
Ancestry – New Zealand electoral rolls
Bozeat, Northamptonshire Church of England Baptisms 1813 – 1912
NZ DIA Marriage Index 1840/1721 Sophia Roberts/James Thomson
Colonist newspaper 6 May 1862, pg 3
NZ DIA Marriage Microfiche Index 1869/1198 Sophia Thomson/Thomas Kelloway
NZ DIA Marriage Index 1872/6452 Sophia Kelloway/Asariah Ashley
NZ DIA Death Index 1897/3015 Sophia Ashley
Wellington City Council cemeteries Office Manager
