Helen Wilson (writer)
Helen Mary Wilson (née Ostler, 4 May 1869 – 16 April 1957) was a New Zealand teacher, farmer, community leader and writer. She was born in Oamaru, North Otago, New Zealand in 1869.[1]
Political life
Wilson was active in the Women's Division of the Farmer's Union and one of the early Dominion Presidents. She founded the Piopio branch of the organisation in 1927.[2]
Interviewed for a radio program during the 1950s, Wilson recalled the process involved for women in New Zealand in obtaining the right to vote and also discussed the Married Women's Property Act.[3]
Books
Wilson was the author of several books, including the autobiography "My First Eighty Years."[2] This book is regarded as a New Zealand classic.[4]
Personal life
Wilson spent several years in the North Island town of Levin with her mother, prominent businesswoman and women's suffrage campaigner Emma Ostler.[4] Helen Wilson married politician Charles Kendall Wilson on 16 May 1892.[5] She lived for most of her adult life in Piopio in the Waitomo district of the North Island. She moved to Hamilton in 1942.
References
- "Helen Wilson: The status of women", in "Women, the Vote and Equality" (audio recording). Wellington, New Zealand: Radio New Zealand.
- "My First Eighty Years by Helen Wilson - AbeBooks". www.abebooks.com. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
- "Helen Wilson: The status of women", Radio New Zealand.
- Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Wilson, Helen Mary". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
- Jones, Bronwyn. "Wilson, Helen Mary". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.