| Mary Kathleen Gould (nee Fitzgerald) born 26 Jul 1882 Fitzroy (16186/1882) died 11 May 1965 Alexandra (9194/1965) buried 5 May 1965 Box Hill Cemetery Parents Frederick Hamilton/Edith Elizabeth (nee Barns) [notes by Nancy Leslie nee Thomas] .GOULD FAMILY HISTORY The reason this story is being recorded is that I believe it could entertain members of the family in years to come. The story could be enhanced if other family members join me in making the facts real by expanding on this information. I am hoping that you ,like me, feel proud of our ancestor's strength of character, and also their mental and physical endurance. They survived when they had so little in the way of possessions. Their love for each other and their great pleasure in their bush land surroundings sustained them through times. I feel it is that right for me to write as I was there and experienced, the war year and the post war years. I can remember some details even though I was a small child. I have such joyful memories of my Uncle and Aunts and Cousins. This could be because I was my Mother's constant companion through a lot of her life and she chose to take a positive and loving view of family members. My Mother, Annie created the excitement she felt each time we had contact with family members. I sincerely hope you can assist me in making this story a success. FAMILY TREE PHOTOS OF FAMILY TREASURES. PHOTOS OF FAMILY MEMBERS FAMILY STORIES Edith Mary Kathleen FitzGerald, known as Kathleen or Kitty to her friends Kathleen attended the Richmond State School, corner of (Wellington parade South), Bridge and Punt Rd ?, (a red brick building now residential but the building is still there). She grew to about 5ft 7ins and slender. She became proficient in most practical skill particularly needlework. She worked at Government house akthough I'm not sure what occupation she. She told how she especially admired the 'aid de compt'. Perhaps she fancied one. Photo It was fashionable, at that time, to wear whalebone corsets. As a young adult and it was expected that she should pull her waist in tightly. She told me she envied the clothes we wore which were so sensible and pretty without being uncomfortable. She did not like clothes to be revealing at all. Wedding photo, At the age of 27 she married John Gould. Her Wedding gown measured a tiny 17 inches skirt waist. This would have been quite painful when you consider a normal slender waist would be at least 24 inches or more. The gown, still in existence, made of fine cotton with hand made lace and embroidery. Kitty was called on to do a lot of sewing for cousins and others at her Aunt Mary's home in….? So she became accomplished as a seamstress and that is why this gown is such a treasure. Christening Photo In this photo she nurses her Baby Ruth. The christening gown worn by Ruth was made by Kit and is also in my keeping, in perfect condition. Note the high fine lace collar and fine kit is wearing. Kathleen no doubt, made the outfit. Photo of Ted and Nancy Thomas Some times My brother and I were left with my grandparents while Mum took off for the day out with dad. Dad worked in a partnership for many years delivering vegetables to establishments along the valley, from the Victoria Market in Melbourne. Later he delivered supplies for Dowdles Marychain Guesthouses. This included catering supplies and building materials for Marysville's new guesthouse Marymeadowsl. A Grandmothers advice. (Things Kathleen told me.) She and I spent a lot of time together. We met when I was born and me being a regular chatterbox, we had lots of talks. She was a wise woman and she shared her wisdom with me as follows. 1.Nancy, you will always be happy. 2.Never stay too long when you visit people because you will hear things which will not be of benefit. 3.Don't worry if you can't sleep--just lie quietly or get up and make a cup of tea, then sleep. 4.Something you can't find will turn up soon, more than likely. 5.Go for lots of long walks, this will keep you healthy and wise as you solve problems when you walk. Falls Road House. We lived at the"Melbourne" end of the town of Marysville. Our house was opporsite the Catholic Church and the Gould's lived in Falls Road. Falls Road property was ….acres, some of which was bush, the rest being apple, pear and peach trees as well as raspberries, potatoes, and a hen house and stable for the horse. We spent a lot of time at Falls Road because my Dad, Les Thomas was often away working, driving trucks or in the bush falling trees. My Mother Annie would often help Grandma, as there was such a household of men to feed (3 sons and boarders) and in the summer, raspberries to pick. My mother was an ace picker and her cooking was good. THE KITCHEN… The large table with a form along one side and kangaroo chairs along the other, a dresser of large proportions, a marble slab on a small table for making pastry and a book case filled the kitchen. In one corner was the one fire stove and in the other corner was the enamel sink with a cold tap. Annie also read to her Father who, because of an eye defect, found it hard to see the newspaper. This was a very busy household. It wasn’t such a big house but a lot of people came and went along the passage to the kitchen. The family numbered 7 children who either lived there or near by. Then there were visiting relatives or friends of people on business. It was very difficult to keep the passage clean and shinning as there was mud almost up to the door. In Summer there was a very dusty road to contend with. This was most unfair to Grandma who loved fine things. Shank's pony. We walked to the Grandparents house along the dusty or muddy road, depending on the season. Trees flanked the narrow road. When we were tired and small we rode in our pram or were sometimes carried. When we were older and walking, Mum and Dad had ways of making a fun game of walking the distance quickly. One idea was to have races, and another, at night we would try to step on parent's shadows in the moon light as they ducked and dived for us for us to catch them. Another idea was to hold hand and look into the sky, where an endless parade of clouds, stars and moon entertained us. Mum and Dad would interrupt our gaze to warn us pending puddles reflected in the gloom. In summer, when dust covered the road, we were kept busy looking to see which animals had crossed the road. Totally smooth tracks meant snakes, small fleur'd' le's on either side of the smooth tracks were lizard prints. Other scurries were bandicoots or larger ones wallaby. Mum had us busy and on the look out. Mum and Dad were probably as worn out as we were at the end of a long day. Grandmar also used a trick of giving us a large slice of cake to eat going along. We see how long the cake lasted if we ate it slowly. It often lasted to the football ground. The cake was medira or marble cake of a fine texture and moist. Grandmother made it by the "acre" (or so it seemed to me) along with pies pasties and jam tarts for lunches for the men working in the bush or on the road in trucks. Photo of Jack Gould, born 1876 in Doncaster where the Gould family, of (14.children) grew an orchard. Gould St in Doncaster marks where the Family lived and worked. Due to expediency of work and availability of teachers, Jack said he attended school for only 6 days. This was remarkable as he could spell better than anyone and loved books and poetry. He was an excellent story teller. In the photo, Jack wears a felt hat which he called a caidi. He sits in a wheelbarrow he had just built. It's such a fine barrow with its curved handles. His ability in bush carpentry, handle horses and growing things was legendary. I can remember Mum asking Ted and I what we liked to do best. I think Ted liked to be with his Uncles best but my great love at that time was to run bare footed through the soft earth behind Grandfather as Dick the horse ploughed between the fruit trees. It felt great. Another thing I liked a lot, when I was still very small, was to sit below the raspberries, where the irrigation trickled, and thread ripe raspberries on each small finger. Other members of the family, wearing shady hats, were picking in the hot sun, while I sat in the cool shade. The wheelbarrow photo with Jack are Grandchildren, Nancy and Ted Thomas, and in the background, Falls Road and the chicken house, also Uncle Lloyd's first vehicle, an Oldsmobile utility which was gold in color. We were so proud of that vehicle and we sometimes rode in the back. Jack loved to entertain friends, yarning as he smoked his pipe. The smoke would grow thicker as the tale grew more improbable. His vegetable would be a focal point on occasions. The very largest freshest vegetables or fruit, displayed under his chair were passed off as "small ones". There were occasions when he would take a visitor to "see how the crop was doing". Of course he had "planted" a large example before digging. "A while to go yet" were his words. Marysville's soil is red and friable, perfect for root vegetables. Everything matures late because of the cool mountains, especially Falls Road as the shadow of Red Hill falls across that land, leaving frost in the gullies. Fruit trees mature late too and fruit tree grows much too woody. No one would dispute Marysville's ability to grow trees. None the less the guesthouses and others bought the produce. The best crop is raspberries. John also used his horse and scoop to make tennis courts, swimming pools, and croquet lawns. He also chopped and delivered firewood. Photo of Jack and the drag saw. VISITORS One regular visitor to Jack front door for a yarn session, was Jackie Lewis. Jackie was a famous Forest Ranger. He was of short and stocky build with peculiar wire black hair sprinkled with gray and standing on end. His skin was tanned like leather. He had a breathless way of speaking. His cheerful disposition and appearance made him a lovable character to all. He was South African by birth and lived in Warburton where he had an amazing garden of rare Australian plants. He had a permanent camp beside the Steavenson River, near the bridge in Marysville, now marked by beautiful fur trees. His many admirers would offer him a lift to his home but he always declined. It could be true that Jackie could reach home, travelling as the crow flies, before they could deliver him. His knowledge of Australian wild life was second to none. City Newspapers ran a few stories about Jackie Lewis. The Chair and fairyland This photo shows cousins Jillian Rooke and Ian Goding sitting in a chair made by Jack. It was made from the trunk of the king tree fern. Jack had cleared a path to the Steavenson River, which runs parallel to Falls Road where tree ferns grow. The path was made for his older Grandchildren Kathleen, Beverly and Robert Rooke and of course Nancy and Ted Thomas. to run through. And run we did. It felt more like flying as we swooped like fairies and yelled like Indians. We played all sorts of noisy and whispering games. In quieter moments we could look up to the blue sky and see the lacey fern canopy. This was indeed fairyland. The earth beneath our feet was moist and muffled the sound our feet. It was Summer, we did not encounter leaches or snakes. Snakes are not happy when there is lots of noise. They don't really like humans. The truth is we did not think of any danger anyway. We felt totally free. With in months the bush would have grown back, such is the lushness of Marysville's rain forest. It was fun while it lasted. To me it was a gift as good as any I have ver received. I'm not sure how strong the King fern chair was. I don't remember it surviving . FITZGERALD FAMILY A visit to the home of Alison Loft (nee FitzGerald) at 22 Primrose St Nth Blackburn 7.2.02 My Fathers parents. Elisabeth ( Eliza)(nee Barnes) and Fredrick FitzGerald Dad was second youngest of five. His name was Francis These were Elisa and Fred's children Edith Mary Kathleen, Fredrick Croften, Albert John Louis, M. John Gould……….… M. Gladice…………………………………………………. Francis William Hamilton, Joseph. M. Florence Bains Edith Mary Kathleen, known as Kitty. At an age unknown, Kitty went to live with her Aunty Mary Carr in Canterbury. We think this was due to the size of the family home. It suggested that four boys were "right" but Kit would be better with Eliza's sister Mary who had Daughters. Kitty was good at needlework of all kinds and could help with Aunt Mary's haberdashery shop and with the dresses for the family of girls. Later Kitty went to work at Government House. At this stage we don't know what role she played there. Kitty did say that "the aid de comps" were just wonderful. Perhaps she had her eye on one of them. Kitty had a friend called Annie Gould. Annie was a music teacher and one of a large family who were orchardists in Doncaster. Annie had a Brother called John or Jack. Kit married Jack and went to live in Healesville. Kit and Jack had 7 children Ruth, Evelyn, Annie, Louisa, Lloyd, Ralph Dan. FREDRICK CROFTEN FITZGERALD Fred trained as a meat inspector. (See photo) This was considered a good position. He went to live in Queensland where a lot of meat is grown. Members of the family visited him at various addresses. One house he lived in was at Mt Gravatt where Aunty Glad grew her prize dogs, a good-sized property. The house had 200 ornaments and photos of dogs. Fred had one son Freddie. The Kennels had boarding dogs too. Albert John Louis FitzGerald Bert trained as a policeman. He was one of ten policemen sent into the city of Melbourne when the police went on strike. They wore hard hats. This was a very dangerous time for everybody especially Uncle Bert. Francis William Hamilton FitzGerald Frank as he was known began his training as a meat inspector. He answered back to the training officer and was disqualified. Frank then became a storeman for the Merchants Rolfes. He then went into business, with a partner and friend….. in confectionery, crn of Commercial and Glenferrie RD. And still with the same partner, he went into a hardware shop in Glenferrie. Frank was a smoker and had raspy voice. He was good-natured and had a sense of humor. Joseph FitzGerald Joseph was killed in the 1st World War. This was a huge tragedy and the family grieved for a long time. THE NAME FitzGerald The name was spelt with a capital G in the middle of FitzGerald , from what beginnings, we are unsure. It is a burden to be explaining everytime how the name had to be spelt. Non the less we persevere. I remember that after Church and Sunday School, our family visited my Grandparents Elizabeth (Eliza) and Fredrick) The address was 12 Brougham St (Brome) Kew. This single fronted timber dwelling, (see photo). was a humble two-bedroom abode not big enough to raise 5 children. The rent was about 12/6 per week at that time. . One of my jobs when I visited Grandma was to wipe the knives. I was warned that they were sharp enough to cut off my fingers and I was very worried about this. We were only children and a most repulsive duty for me was, on leaving for home, was when I had to kiss Grandfather. The problem was that I invariable tripped over Grandfather's iron clad leg, which was straight out in front of him, ready to be tripped over. After that obstacle, came the kiss on smoke encrusted whiskers, yuck. The up side of this was that I received a boiled lolly for my effort. A 'reward'? I can't remember any hobbies but perhaps they read books. I think grandfather was part French and had been a sailor. I'm not sure how he got to have his leg in irons, as we used to refer to supports of that kind. We lived at 35 Wangaratta Street Richmond. My Pocket money was a halfpenny, (pronounced hapenny). I once made the mistake of asking for another hapenny on Saturday. Never again! What did it buy? The photo of our family, Dad and I next to my Brother Lindsay, and Mum with my Sister Margret on the bike. ( In the background,) is our suburban back yard and the "sentry box", or the out door toilet. The joke was that no other country would attack Australia while we had that number number of sentry boxes. Then the photo of the car, (an Austin), Left to Right) Mum's sister auntie Alice and cousin Louisa next to Dad and Mum (Florence). The man driving the car is Alice's Husband, Uncle Alfred Harding. This photo was obviously taken in Marysville. In our Families Richmond home, address, we had visits from family members. There was Uncle Fred and Aunty Glad with her prize winning show dogs from Brisbane, come down to the Melbourne Show. The dogs were of the popular dachshund breed. They sold well to specialized dog fanciers. We also had visits from our Marysville relatives. That Family I enjoyed very much was the Gould family. Aunty Kit came to visit, perhaps twice a year when she needed to buy supplies for the house and business matters as well as a visit to her eye doctor. Our Mother died……. and Dad really enjoyed his Sister Kit's visits too. Dad would sneak out to by her an ice cream. Kit maintained the only thing better than an ice cream was two ice creams. All the FitzGerald family were very strict when it came to protocol and manners. Very proper with money, paying accounts on time and generally being honest and God fearing. I am greatful for this trait as it saves a lot of worry along the way. Another family trait, or should I say a failing is that some of us make statements a little too honest for folk of gentler nature. This is a great way of losing friends and not such a comfort. This could have been why I felt so comfortable with the Gould Family. They have similar traits, speaking straight, looking to "take the micky", and have a bit of fun. Lindsay Born 26.8.22 My Brother Lindsay became the Repatriation Officer in charge of medical supplies to New Guinnea We thought he was so clever. He died before he should at 55. Lindsay had a really nice wife. Alison born 28.2.23 After leaving school, I was lucky enough to attend Stotts Business College for one year. I worked as a bookkeeper and then as private secretary for Berkowitze Fine Furniture in Bourke Street Melbourne. I really enjoyed my work and met all sorts of people, some of whom were well known. Berkowitze served their staff sandwiches for morning tea and some Jewish friends would turn up for "chicken" sandwiches which were really ham in them. Delicious! I married Keith Loft. Margret born 2.2.26 My Sister did not need to attend Stotts. She was employed in the office of retailers Foy and Gibsons. She married Tom Delzoppo. |
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