Mary Elizabeth Sparrow

Brief Life History of Mary Elizabeth

When Mary Elizabeth Sparrow was born in 1872, in Tākaka, Tasman, New Zealand, her father, Eric Sparrow, was 31 and her mother, Lucy Mary Hailes, was 22. She married Richard Thompson on 9 September 1901, in Tākaka, Tasman, New Zealand. They were the parents of at least 2 sons. She died on 3 September 1957, in Hawera, Taranaki, New Zealand, at the age of 85, and was buried in Hawera, Taranaki, New Zealand.

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Family Time Line

Richard Thompson
1847–1931
Mary Elizabeth Sparrow
1872–1957
Marriage: 9 September 1901
George Eric Thompson
1902–1976
John William Thompson
1905–1986

Sources (6)

  • Mary Elizabeth Thompson, "BillionGraves Index"
  • Mary Elizabeth Thompson, "New Zealand, Cemetery Transcriptions, 1840-1981"
  • Mary Elizabeth Sparrow Thompson, "Find A Grave Index"

World Events (7)

1887 · New Zealands's First National Park

Tongariro National Park was the sixth national park established in the world and the first in New Zealand. In the center of the park there lies three active volcanic mountains (Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro). it is home to the famed Tongariro Alpine Crossing day hike and has been recognized as a World Heritage Site for all its natural values.

1893

New Zealand becomes world's first country to give women the vote.

1896 · National Council of Women

The National Council of Women of New Zealand was created as an organization after women won the right to vote. Today works to help achieve gender equality in New Zealand and in 2017 introduced Gender Equal NZ, which is fighting for Zealanders to have the freedom and opportunity to determine their own future no matter which gender they are.

Name Meaning

English: nickname from Middle English spark, sperk ‘fiery particle, spark’ (Old English spearca, spærca, sperca). It may have been used of a lively person or ironically of its opposite (such as Willelmus Dulle Sperke, 1293); or it may have been given to someone who created sparks, such as a blacksmith.

English: topographic name for someone who lived by an area of shrubs or brushwood, from Middle English sparke, sperke, Old English spearca. The term appears in placenames across England, including Sparkhayne and Sparkwell in Devon, a county where the surname Spark is well evidenced.

German: nickname either from Middle High German spar ‘sparrow’ (see Sparrow ) or from Middle Low German sparke ‘spark’. Compare 1 above.

Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.

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