Thomas and Annie Scrivener nee Sutton
Thomas Scrivener was born in Ipswich Suffolk in 1830. His occupation in the 1851 census is listed as carpenter and joiner. Thomas emigrated to New Zealand with his parents Thomas Snr and Sarah on board the ''Tasmania'', arriving in 1853. The journey out must have been an exciting one, as the passengers experienced an attempted mutiny by the crew at Madeira.
Annie Sutton was born c.1835. It is not currently known at what point the Sutton family emigrated to New Zealand. Thomas was married to Annie Sutton at Wellington in 1856. Accounts of the number of children Thomas and Annie had varies, between four to seven, possibly indicating that several children did not survive into adulthood. In 1888, Thomas is recorded as a signatory to the petition to Governor Grey asking for the formation of a new province in the Wanganui / Rangitikei district. Annie died in 1878, while Thomas lived on until 1919. They are both buried in the Wanganui Old Cemetery. Thomas' obituary in the Wanganui Chronicle on 13th January 1919 reads: By the death of Mr Thomas Scrirener, who passed away at the residence of his son (Mr Edwin Scrivener), on Friday morning, Wanganui loses one of its earliest settlers. The deceased, who had reached the ripe- old age of 90 years, arrived in Wangauui with his parents in 1849. and resided there to the time of his death. Soon after arriving in Wanganui he entered into partnership witli the late Mr Joseph Jones, who carried on for many years a building and contracting business. There are still standing today two of the buildings which they erected in the early fifties - one in Watson Street, near the corner of Ridgway Street, and another near the River Bank end of Glasgow Street. Subsequently Mr Scrivener went into the ironmongery business on the site now occupied by the Bank of New Zealand. The attractions of flax lured him into what proved to be then a most unprofitable industry. He started a mill on the property recently used by the Wanganui Golf Club at Mosston but like others in the district, the venutre proved disastrous. Deceased then went farming on the No. 2 line, and some years afterwards retired. The Scrivener family at one time owned the two blcoks of land between the Avenue and Campbell Street;. bounded by Liverpool and Dublin Streets, on portion of which the Girls' College now stands. The late Mr Scrivener took a keen interest in church matters, and was for many years organist of the old Methodist Church in Ridgway Street, was also a member of the Choral Society. He was a keen observer, a great reader and frequently contributed to English periodicals. He also took a great interest in horticulture, and was a member of the old Wanganui Horticultural Society. On three different occasions Mr Scrivener re-visited the scenes of his youth in the Old Land, and travelled over Europe. He also toured New Zealand for many years, and practically lived on his bicycle being quite a familiar figure in various places regularly visited. He leaves three sons —Messrs Edwin (Wanganui). Alfred (Waikato). and Henry (Christchurch). |