01.04 Ann (Ayson) Watt 1839 - 1924

Ann Watt, the second daughter of Peter Ay­son, was born at Glenshee, Scotland, on 20 May 1839, and came to New Zealand with her par­ents in1853.

 

In 1864 she married John Watt and went to live on his farm at Kaihiku.   John Watt was born at Bruceton,near Alyth in Scotland, on 2 August 1829.   When he was 23 years of age he left Scotland for Victoria in Australia but after nine years there he decided to come to Otago.   He brought sufficient capital to enable him to purchase and develop a property at Kaihiku and to assist the progress of many others who were less fortunate.  In a quiet man­ner he assisted his neighbours who were in financial difficulties.   By the intelligent use of his land in cropping and grazing and by ad­ding to the area as opportunity offered he eventually owned 800 acres of highly productive land.

 

By careful selection he built up a pure Merino flock that was eagerly sought after by breeders throughout the country.   In 1889, when the Government was opening up large areas of new country in the North Island, John Watt and his brother-in-l aw, James Davidson, went to the Masterton district to in­spect some of the bush land in what was then known as the Forty Mile Bush about 30 miles north of Masterton .   So keen was the demand for this land that the sections had to be bal­loted for and fortunately for both of them they failed to draw the sections, that they had in­spected in the ballot.   This part of the block afterwards turned out to be of very poor quality when the bush had been felled, it failed to hold the grass.

 

Ann and John had a family of three sons and six daughters.

 

Both Ann and her husband took a keen in­terest in the development of the Kaihiku and Waiwera districts.

 

Although John did not aspire to a seat on the Councils of the district he was ever ready to assist in other ways.

 

Both were keen Church workers and were held in the highest esteem for their many sterling qualities.

 

John died on 24 November 1889 and Ann died at Mosgiel on 1 April 1924.   Both are buried at Warepa .

 

 

Children of Ann and John Watt.

 

Duncan Watt

Peter Ayson Watt

Janet Watt

Annie Watt

John Watt Jnr

Douglas Watt

Margaret Ayson Watt

Helena Anderson Watt

Elspeth Mary Watt