Mary Jane and William Hill arrived in New Zealand under a NZ government emigration scheme. William came out first, likely in 1886. There is a passenger record of a W.H.Hill arriving into Port Chalmers at this time but at this time no way of confirming whether that is our guy. What we definitely do know is that Mary Jane and her young son Thomas arrived in Wellington on the “Arawa” in early September 1887 after leaving Plymouth England 6 weeks earlier on 16th July 1887. The comment on the passenger list states “To husband” so we know William was already here. I’ve also recently discovered that Mary Jane’s older brother William Woodward joined her on the trip.
The SS Arawa Passenger List – 1887
The Evening Post 17 Aug 1887
