Makers: Alana, Victoria, Marina and Clare Cramond

Panel number: 90

Petition Sheet Number: 93

Person honouring: Ellen Cramond

Relationship to makers: Ellen is the second wife of James Gunn Cramond, whose brother Alexander Cramond is the ancestor of two of the makers, and the ancestor of the husbands of the other two makers.

Ellen Cramond (nee Hall), the daughter of a printer, was born around 1856 in Islington, London. There is a gap in her history until 1884 when she married James Gunn Cramond in Dunedin. James’ first wife had died leaving six sons. 

James was a blacksmith and businessman who represented the Leith Ward of the Dunedin City Council from 1886 until his unexpected death in 1891. Ellen and James had three children, Florence, Violet and Norman during their seven year marriage. 

Ellen was widowed in her thirties with eight children to support (her eldest step son had left home), and James had died intestate. She began protracted legal petitions to the Supreme Court to sell estate assets to support the children. 

Ellen signed the Women’s Suffrage Petition, giving her Dundas Street address and she subsequently registered on the 1893 Electoral Roll. 

She stayed in Dunedin until the 1920s then moved to Timaru to her son Norman who had been wounded in the Great War. Ellen died on 2 February 1943 at Waitati and is buried with her husband and other Cramond family members in the Northern Cemetery Dunedin.

There are many descendants of Ellen’s stepchildren and although Ellen’s daughters each had one son she does not appear to have any direct descendants. How she came to New Zealand is a mystery, but from snippets of information, it seems Ellen strove for fairness facing her challenges with resilience and courage.

Panel materials: All materials are recycled. The wool is from an old family blanket, the tray cloth corner and green and purple fabric came from a Hospice shop, the boucle scrap is from a childhood coat made for one of the makers about 50 years ago, the lace, sacking, threads and buttons are all leftovers from our supplies.The panel depicts 44 Dundas Street, Ellen’s home for many years and has the suffrage colours of purple and green. The thistle is the link to Dunedin Scottish heritage and her fellow signatories. The buttons acknowledge Ellen’s six stepchildren and her three children. The pen and ink represent her submissions to the Court seeking access to funds following her husband’s death.