By Roselyn Fauth

One night in early Timaru, the newspaper nearly vanished... The Timaru Herald office caught fire.

Flames tore through the building where the town’s stories were written and printed. The presses, the ink, the type, the records of the town’s daily life were suddenly at risk of disappearing.

In the confusion and smoke one small tragedy was recorded. The editor’s dog died in the fire. The newspaper reported it. But while reading through the pages of the Timaru Herald on Papers Past, something else slowly became obvious.

Some lives appear everywhere in the newspaper. Others barely appear at all. The name Kerr appears repeatedly in the history of the Timaru Herald. But one person connected to the newspaper appears only briefly.

Her name was Elizabeth Kerr. So I went looking for her...

The newspaper grew alongside the town of Timaru.

The Timaru Herald was founded on 11 June 1864 by Alfred George Horton and Ingram Shrimpton.

The first issue was printed on an Albion press in a small detached kitchen beside the hotel run by former whaler Samuel “Yankie Sam” Williams on the corner of George Street and Main South Road.

In those early years the newspaper was more than simply a source of news. It was a critical voice for the region. Settlers in the Timaru and Gladstone districts believed they were not receiving a fair share of public spending from the Canterbury Provincial Government. The newspaper became an important platform for advocating for local interests. By the 1870s the Timaru Herald had grown into one of the country’s most influential regional newspapers.

Then in 1887, the paper entered a new chapter. It was purchased by Edward George Kerr.

The Kerr family became central to the newspaper

Edward George Kerr bought the Herald in 1887. Edward George Kerr was already the owner of another Timaru newspaper, the South Canterbury Times.

After purchasing the Timaru Herald in May 1887, the two papers were run from the same Sophia Street premises. The Herald was printed in the morning. The Times appeared in the evening.

Eventually the South Canterbury Times closed in 1901, leaving the Timaru Herald as the dominant newspaper of the district. For decades afterwards the newspaper remained closely associated with the Kerr family. But while Edward Kerr’s name appears regularly in the newspaper’s history, the life of his wife appears only briefly. And yet her life sat quietly behind the newspaper itself.

Elizabeth Goldthorpe began life in England. A girl from Cheshire.

Elizabeth Goldthorpe was born about 1848 in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England, the eldest daughter of Joseph Goldthorpe and Kezia White. The 1851 census records the family living on Cross Street in Dudley, Worcestershire. Her father worked as a travelling draper, selling cloth and goods as he moved between towns. Elizabeth was three years old.

Like many families of the time, the Goldthorpes eventually emigrated to New Zealand, joining the wave of British settlers travelling to the colony in the mid-nineteenth century.

Elizabeth married Edward Kerr in colonial Christchurch in 1867

On 25 September 1867, Elizabeth married Edward George Kerr at St John’s Church in Christchurch. The marriage notice appeared in The Press the following day. Edward was described as a storekeeper of Kaiapoi. The young couple began their married life in a colony that was still developing rapidly.

Elizabeth raised a large colonial family. Twelve children grew up in the Kerr household. Several daughters later married into well-known South Canterbury families, linking the Kerr family to wider social and business networks in the district. Their children included:

Laura Elizabeth Kerr
Mary Ann Kerr
Maria Margaret Kerr
Maude Margaret Kerr (later Le Cren)
Edith Agnes Kerr (later Wilkin)
Edward George Kerr
Henry Stanley Kerr
Charles Eustace Kerr
Albert Ernest Kerr
Evelyn Kerr (later Arthur)
Francis James Kerr
May Kerr
Ethel Harlan Kerr (later Nicholls)

Through these marriages the Kerr family became connected to many of the families shaping early Timaru.

The Kerr family home in Timaru was called Harlau.

Elizabeth spent her final years at Harlau. By the late nineteenth century the Kerr family were living in Timaru at their home called Harlau.

The name appears in Elizabeth’s death notice: “At her residence, Harlau, Timaru, Elizabeth, the beloved wife of E. G. Kerr; aged 55 years.”

During these years Elizabeth raised her large family while her husband ran one of the region’s most influential newspapers. Every day the Timaru Herald printed the public life of the town.

Meanwhile the private life of the Kerr household unfolded at Harlau. Children growing up... Letters arriving. Meals prepared. Lives shaped in the ordinary rhythm of family life.

Those moments rarely appeared in the newspaper. The newspaper recorded major events during Elizabeth’s lifetime.

Timaru was changing rapidly

During Elizabeth Kerr’s lifetime the Timaru Herald was recording a remarkable period of change. Timaru itself was transforming from a small coastal settlement into an established regional town.

Among the events reported in the newspaper were:

1864 – The founding of the Timaru Herald
1866 – Telegraph communication reaches Timaru
1876 – The newspaper becomes a daily publication
1882 – The Benvenue and City of Perth shipwreck disaster
1887 – Edward George Kerr purchases the newspaper
1893 – New Zealand women gain the right to vote
1900 – The Herald installs linotype printing machines

While the newspaper recorded the public story of the town, Elizabeth lived the private one. Elizabeth’s life appears only briefly in the newspaper record

A short death notice marked the end of her life. Elizabeth Kerr died at Harlau in Timaru on 28 May 1903, aged 55. Her death was recorded in the Timaru Herald. But like many nineteenth-century women, the record of her life in the newspaper was brief. A marriage notice... A death notice... And little else.

Standing at her grave in Timaru Cemetery, the search for Elizabeth ends peacefully.

Eventually the trail of records leads to Timaru Cemetery. Some graves there belong to men whose names filled the newspapers of the day.

Merchants. Politicians. Ship captains. Public figures... Elizabeth Kerr’s grave is quieter. Standing there, one thought keeps returning. 

The Timaru Herald has been printed since 1864. For more than 160 years it has recorded the daily life of South Canterbury. But the woman who helped raise the family behind that newspaper appears only briefly in its pages.

If newspapers decide what becomes history… who decides what the newspaper notices?

Sometimes maybe its the most important lives are not the ones that did not fill the front page. Sometimes they were the ones quietly lived beside it.

Sources

Research for this article drew on the following historical sources:

Papers Past – National Library of New Zealand
Historic articles and notices relating to the Kerr family and the Timaru Herald.
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers

Examples used in this research include:

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19420629.2.42 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19340705.2.106 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19170721.2.27 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19091104.2.8 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19270816.2.27 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19310305.2.29 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19340205.2.32 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19380805.2.11 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19390213.2.102 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19251125.2.70 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19061017.2.19 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19310805.2.12 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19360611.2.39 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19301006.2.32 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19321223.2.11 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19420818.2.21 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD19210927.2.3.1 

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THD18971105.2.8 

Timaru Herald historical timeline and history

Timeline of The Timaru Herald
https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/68622234/timeline-of-the-timaru-herald 

History of The Timaru Herald
https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/69873632/history-of-the-timaru-herald 

FamilySearch genealogical records

Elizabeth Goldthorpe Kerr profile
https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/M4MF-HNL/elizabeth-goldthorp-1848-1903 

WikiTree genealogical profile

Elizabeth Goldthorpe Kerr
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Goldthorpe-214 

1851 England Census

Household of Joseph Goldthorpe, Dudley, Worcestershire
https://www.familysearch.org 

Marriage notice

The Press, Christchurch
26 September 1867
Marriage of Edward George Kerr and Elizabeth Goldthorpe
(Referenced via historical newspaper archives)

Timaru Cemetery Records

Timaru District Council Cemetery database
https://timaru.govt.nz/community/cemeteries 

New Zealand Suffrage Petition database

New Zealand History – Ministry for Culture and Heritage
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/politics/womens-suffrage/petition 

Detailed Timeline: Elizabeth Goldthorpe Kerr, the Kerr Family, and the Timaru Herald

1820s–1840s: Elizabeth’s family background in England

1822
Kezia White, Elizabeth’s future mother, is born in Buxton, Derbyshire, England.

c.1823
Joseph Goldthorpe, Elizabeth’s father, is born in Chester, Cheshire, England.

1 January 1847
Joseph Goldthorpe marries Kezia White at Saltersford-cum-Kettleshulme in Cheshire.

1848–1851: Elizabeth’s early childhood

c.1848
Elizabeth Goldthorpe is born in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England.

Macclesfield at the time was an important centre for the silk industry, and many working families were connected to textile trades.

1850
Elizabeth’s brother Joseph Goldthorpe is born.

1851
The 1851 England census records the family living on Cross Street, Dudley, Worcestershire.

Household members include:

• Joseph Goldthorpe (travelling draper)

• Kezia Goldthorpe

• Elizabeth Goldthorpe (age 3)

• Joseph Goldthorpe (age 1)

• Silas Goldthorpe (infant)

Joseph’s occupation as a travelling draper meant he likely moved regularly between towns selling textiles.

1850s–1860s: Migration to New Zealand

Late 1850s–early 1860s (exact date uncertain)
The Goldthorpe family emigrates to New Zealand, part of the large wave of British migration to the colony.

These migrants were attracted by opportunities in farming, trade, and new colonial settlements.

1864: The Timaru Herald is founded

11 June 1864

The first issue of the Timaru Herald is printed.

Founders:

• Alfred George Horton

• Ingram Shrimpton

The newspaper is printed on an Albion hand press in a detached kitchen beside Samuel “Yankie Sam” Williams’ hotel in Timaru.

The newspaper initially appears weekly.

1866–1876: The Herald expands

1866

The arrival of the telegraph allows faster communication.

The Timaru Herald begins publishing twice weekly.

1871

The newspaper becomes tri-weekly.

1876

The Timaru Herald becomes a daily newspaper.

This reflects the rapid growth of Timaru as a commercial and agricultural centre.

1867: Elizabeth marries Edward Kerr

25 September 1867

Elizabeth Goldthorpe marries Edward George Kerr at St John’s Church, Christchurch.

Edward is described as a storekeeper from Kaiapoi.

The marriage notice appears in The Press the following day.

1868–1892: The Kerr children are born

Elizabeth and Edward eventually have twelve children.

1868 – Laura Elizabeth Kerr born
1870 – Mary Ann Kerr born
1872 – Maria Margaret Kerr born
1874 – Edith Agnes Kerr born
1876 – Edward George Kerr (junior) born
1878 – Henry Stanley Kerr born
1880 – Charles Eustace Kerr born
1882 – Albert Ernest Kerr born
1884 – Evelyn Kerr born
1886 – Francis James Kerr born
1888 – May Kerr born
1892 – Ethel Harlan Kerr born

Several daughters later marry into prominent South Canterbury families including Le Cren, Wilkin, Arthur, and Nicholls.

1882: Major maritime disaster reported by the Herald

14 May 1882

The ships Benvenue and City of Perth are wrecked during a violent storm off Timaru.

Local surfboat crews attempt dramatic rescues.

The disaster becomes one of the most famous maritime events in Timaru’s history.

The Timaru Herald reports the tragedy extensively.

1887: The Kerr family buys the Timaru Herald

1 May 1887

Edward George Kerr purchases the Timaru Herald.

At the time he already owns the South Canterbury Times.

Both newspapers are run from the Sophia Street premises:

• Herald – morning paper

• South Canterbury Times – evening paper

This firmly establishes the Kerr family’s role in the region’s media history.

1887–1901: The Kerr newspaper era

The Kerr family manages both newspapers.

Timaru continues to grow as a port town and agricultural centre serving South Canterbury.

1901

The South Canterbury Times closes, leaving the Timaru Herald as the dominant newspaper.

1890s: Personal tragedies in the Kerr family

1887

Henry Stanley Kerr dies aged 9.

1890

Laura Elizabeth Kerr dies aged 21.

Such losses were sadly common in nineteenth-century families.

1893: Women gain the vote in New Zealand

1893

New Zealand becomes the first self-governing country in the world to grant women the right to vote.

The surviving suffrage petition records do not include Elizabeth Kerr’s name.

However many women supported the movement informally even if they did not sign the petition.

1900: New printing technology arrives

The Timaru Herald installs linotype machines.

This revolutionary technology replaces hand-set metal type and greatly speeds up newspaper production.

The Herald becomes one of the first newspapers in New Zealand to adopt the technology.

1903: Elizabeth Kerr dies at Harlau

28 May 1903

Elizabeth Kerr dies at her Timaru residence Harlau, aged 55.

Her death notice appears in the Timaru Herald:

“At her residence, Harlau, Timaru, Elizabeth, the beloved wife of E. G. Kerr.”

She is buried in Timaru Cemetery.

1905–1906: The newspaper becomes a company

1905

The Timaru Herald Company Ltd is formed.

The company is largely controlled by members of the Kerr family.

16 October 1906

Edward George Kerr dies.

Probate records describe him as:

“Edward George Kerr, journalist, of Timaru.”

20th century: The Kerr legacy continues

Elizabeth and Edward’s son:

Edward George Kerr (1876–1942)

later becomes managing director of the Timaru Herald Company.

The Kerr family continues to influence the newspaper well into the twentieth century.

Today: The newspaper and the memory

The Timaru Herald, founded in 1864, continues to be published today.

But the life of the woman behind the newspaper survives mainly through:

• census records

• family records

• cemetery inscriptions

• scattered archival references

Her story reminds us that behind many public institutions stand lives that were rarely recorded in the headlines.