Celebrating the Collections & Archives of Otautau Museum

Sapper Magnus John (Leslie or Les) Thomson # 75440, Engineers :     AT LEFT: “Les” Thomson, outside the old Thomson & Georgeson Factory on corner of Eton & Chester Sts., Otautau (for whole photo, see post on A.D. Thomson) Taken off 2010.67 from Otautau Museum Collection – Photo in Public Domain  Born 1 st December 1988, and named Magnus John, but known as Leslie and called “Les”. His probate names him this way: THOMSON  - Magnus John, also known as THOMSON  - Magnus Leslie of Otautau and Riverton, Retired Builder. The second youngest son of (John) called James and (William) MARGARET Thomson of Otautau, Les had two elder brothers who he may have been named after – 1) John Magnus who had been born five years earlier and sadly died at just 9 months old and – 2) John Leslie who was born just a couple of years earlier and who also tragically died at 9 months old. The children were all born in Invercargill, before t...

Private THOMSON, ALEXANDER DEAN - #42723, Rifleman:    ALEXANDER DEAN THOMSON   (photo from AWMM Cenotaph Site online)   Alex was born 10 September 1890, in Invercargill, recorded as being the youngest son of John (called James) and (William) Margaret Thomson, of Otautau, Invercargill. Although in his Military records and those who copied them, William has been wrongly recorded as his father’s name, when everywhere else this was always just James. It is only at James' burial that we find Alex’s father’s name was John, even though he was known as James. His mother’s name however, strangely seems to have actually been William MARGARET (nee Cheyne), and this is borne out both in Alex’s will – written just before he left for WW1 which names her as such, and also in her own death and burial records, along with her own will/probate. Their first child has Wilhimena Margaret listed as mother, the others just Margaret. I guess l...