Emily Acland
Emily Weddell Acland (Harper, 1830 – 24 July 1905) was a pioneer settler in New Zealand and a watercolour artist. She remains a prominent figure in colonial New Zealand history for questioning gender roles within domestic settings. Her paintings of early Christchurch are held in the collection of the Christchurch Art Gallery.
Also recorded as Emily Harper · Emily Weddell Acland · Emily Weddell Harper · Mrs J B A Harper
Emily Acland
Acland family member · http: gallery.archives.govt.nz/v/christchurch/Acland/MBphotos/Acland+Family+Group+1.jpg.html · Public domain
- Name
- Emily Acland
- Born
- 1830
- Died
- 24 July 1905
- Spouse
- John Acland
- Full name
- Emily Weddell Acland.
- Nationality
- Colony of New Zealand
- Occupation
- painter · mountaineer · collector
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wikidata · Q64361953 · wikipedia · Emily Acland
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Emily Acland • Born — 1830 • Died — 24 July 1905 • Spouse — John Acland • Relatives — Henry Harper (father) Leonard Harper (brother) Bessie Acland (daughter) • Illustration — Standing from left: Lucy, Harriet and Emily; sitting: Bessie, John and Rosa (1890)
Biography
Biography
Acland was born in 1830, the eldest daughter of 15 children of her parents Henry Harper, who became Bishop of Christchurch (serving from 1869–1890), and Emily Harper (née Wooldridge). The family arrived in Christchurch on 23 December 1856 on the Egmont. On 17 January 1860, she married politician John Acland at St Michael's Church in Christchurch. John Acland owned land in the Canterbury high country at Mount Peel, and the couple farmed there together. John even made Emily her own garden bed at Mt Peel for her own use not long after announcing their engagement. They had 11 children of whom two died in infancy. Acland became a keen mountaineer and the Emily Falls in Peel Forest are named after her. Acland also went on fern collecting expeditions. Acland died in Christchurch on 24 July 1905 after a short illness. She was survived by her three sons and five daughters.
J.B.A. Acland and Emily Acland with their daughters; Lucy and Harriet (standing); Bessie and Rosa (seated), 1890.
Acland family member · http: gallery.archives.govt.nz/v/christchurch/Acland/MBphotos/Acland+Family+Group+2.jpg.html
Places
Named by the record
Places
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England.
Birth place
Christchurch.
Death place
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Emily Acland, revision 1314224631 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Bainbridge, Annette. Married life in a New Zealand garden. Australian Garden History. 28. 3. 15–17. 2017. 1033-3673.
- 2.Christchurch from near the Gloucester Street Bridge. christchurchartgallery.org.nz.
- 3.Harper, Henry John Chitty. Colin. Brown.
- 4.Harper, Emily Weddell (Mrs J. B. A. Acland) 1830–1905 NZETC. nzetc.victoria.ac.nz.
- 5.Private lives and public records. gallery.archives.govt.nz.
- 6.Emily Falls and Rata Falls Tracks. Department of Conservation.
- 7.When Ferns went Viral: New Zealand Women and the Global Fern Craze. The Garden History Research Foundation. 2021-12-15.
- 8.Obituary. The Timaru Herald. LXXXII. 12740. 3. 26 July 1905.
References
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References
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reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 25 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Paintings
19,456 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Emilio SalaArtist
- Emilio Sánchez-PerrierArtist
- Emilio SavonanziArtist
- Emilio VillaArtist
- Emily Beatrice BlandArtist
- Emily ClarkArtist
- Emily CoonanArtist
- Emily Cumming HarrisArtist
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