Grace Margaret Laurenson

Grace Margaret Robertson (nee Laurenson) with daughter Elizabeth
Marriage Certificate. Image: Scotlandspeople
Gilbert LAURENSON note to his sister Grace. Gilbert traveled overseas too, to both New Zealand and Australia, before settling back in Lerwick and latterly Edinburgh. This article sourced from Jo Hilder.

Grace, also know as Grizel, was the oldest child of Fleming and Elizabeth and she was born on the 1 November 1831 at Bressay, Shetland, Scotland . She would have spent her younger days both at Bressay, then at Scalloway, which is on the west coast until the family moved again, but this time to Fort Charlotte in Lerwick.

Grace is listed as being a Dressmaker aged 19. At some point, she met James Robertson, who was a sailor and married him on the 12 November 1857 at Lerwick. She and James had a daughter together, before Grace emigrated to New Zealand on the ‘Victory’ in 1865.

Grace and her daughter were taken by lighter from the ‘Victory’ to Oamaru Harbour and were welcomed by James in the dinghy.

It would be good to point out that several of her siblings also emigrated to New Zealand – James and Fleming, and that some of other siblings left Shetland for mainland Scotland.

Grace and James had 6 children with all of them surviving to adulthood.

BornNameChildrenDiedNotes
6 Aug 1858Elizabeth523 Dec 1924Dunbar/McBride
8 Feb 1866Grace513 Nov 1947 Young
24 Nov 1867James Allan31 Nov 1944 Hyslop
21 Oct 1869Katherine Paterson522 Jun 1924Frame
1 Apr 1871Fleming721 Jul 1934Ross
20 Mar 1875 Janet413 Jan 1953 Hyslop

Grace died at ‘Chalgrove’ farm, Waianakarua on the 16 June 1895, predeceasing her husband by 5 years. She is interred in Otepopo Cemetery.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XX, Issue 6283, 17 June 1895, Page 2
Block 3 Plot 12, Herbert (Otepopo) Cemetery