Mary Alcorn (1866–1928) was an interior designer and business owner in
Wellington,
New Zealand.
Early life
Alcorn was born in
Hokitika on the
West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to:
Geography Australia
* Western Australia
*Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia
* West Coast, Tasmania
**West Coast Range, mountain range in the region
Canada
* Britis ...
of New Zealand's
South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...
in 1866 to Samuel Wesley and Jane Alcorn (born Andrews). Samuel and Jane had emigrated to
Dunedin from
Ireland, married there in 1865, and then moved to the West Coast.
She had seven younger siblings:
Margaret
Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian.
Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...
, Ethel, Olive, Winifred, John, William and Kathleen.
Samuel was a draper in Hokitika but in 1874 the family moved to Wellington. Samuel bought property in the city on
Lambton Quay opposite the department store
Kirkcaldie & Stains
Kirkcaldie & Stains (known as ''Kirks'') was a mid-sized department store in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1863 by John Kirkcaldie and Robert Stains with a capital of £700. The first store was opened on Lambton Quay. In 1 ...
. He opened a draper shop downstairs and the family lived upstairs.
The drapery business was successful, and the Alcorn children enjoyed a prosperous household with a governess and private schools. This life changed dramatically, however, in 1877 when a fire in the shop destroyed the business and killed a younger daughter of the family, Winifred, aged four.
The family moved to
Ashburton and the children attended school there. Mary worked as a shop assistant after finishing her schooling.
Mary had a great love of music; she played the piano at concerts such as a Wakanui fundraising concert in 1893 and also sang in the church choir at the Ashburton Wesleyan Church. She and her sisters were also accomplished seamstresses, winning prizes at school competitions for their lacework, embroidery and crewelwork.
Business
In 1906, Alcorn and her sister Margaret opened a shop in the new Kennedy Building on Lambton Quay, Wellington called "Liberty's Wellington", specialising in art furniture and furnishings, and started selling goods they imported themselves from
Liberty department store in
London. The sisters also offered professional advice and design ideas for their customers' homes.
Mary and Margaret lived in
Oriental Bay and Mary cycled to the shop each day, which was not a common way for women to travel at the time. Mary extended the business by travelling to England and Europe in 1913 to select goods for the shop herself. She visited potters in
Florence and pewter works in
Birmingham, and also visited
Royal Doulton and
Wedgwood pottery firms as well as making several visits to Liberty's.
In the early 1920s the Alcorns' shop expanded into larger premises further along Lambton Quay, taking over Thomas Pringle's embroidery shop and business. At this time the Alcorns also hired a local artist and embroiderer,
Marjory Mills, to design embroidery patterns for their shop.
Mary died in 1928 and is buried in a family plot at the Bolton Street Cemetery.
Mary's sister Margaret opened a second shop in Burlington Arcade (pictured) after Mary's death, and managed both shops until they failed in the 1930s due to the
Depression.
References
External links
Image of a pewter jugpurchased at "Liberty's Wellington"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alcorn, Mary
20th-century New Zealand businesswomen
20th-century New Zealand businesspeople
New Zealand embroiderers
New Zealand interior designers
People from Hokitika
1866 births
1928 deaths
Burials at Bolton Street Cemetery