The Life Story of Constance Green

our house at Hawkill Gardens ( before the Austhorpe Lane house )






Let’s Buy a Shop 1955-1960


Dudley had started to have trouble with rheumatism in his arm and difficulty
climbing up and down ladders, so he thought he would like work in a Grocery
Shop. He thought a small business to begin with and then when it was large
enough to support a family, he would retire from his decorating business and
take over the shop full time.

My sister Edna and her husband Alf helped us enormously in our move
and starting the new business, a grocery store in Wood Lane on the main road
from Leeds to Rothwell, with a hospital and new houses on our side and old
houses and rows of terraced houses on the opposite side.

My customers were a friendly lot and very trusting, sending their children
to shop with a list and money. I always wrote the items and costs on paper for
them and saw them safely back across the road. We had a large concrete
forecourt to the shop and there was a narrow front garden, a back sunken
garden with pond and then a large lawn area and a small orchard with apple and
cherry trees.

To one side of us, there were houses and to the other side there were
fields. Down at the back of our long garden there were more fields, growing oats
and wheat, and sometimes providing a home for the pit ponies, blinded from
their use in the darkness of the mines.

Wood Lane Green’s grocery shop and house, front view







window display with ship and figures painted on window by Dudley

To learn more about the grocery business, I went to Night School and did
very well in the exams, passing with a distinction in Groceries at the Institute of
Certificated Grocers.
I was also awarded Equal Third Prize and the Havinden Cup and Prize, a
Trade Calculations Prize. This was on 13th June, 1956, and there was an article in
the local paper about it, complete with photo and silver cup, so all my customers
were delighted and stopped telling me what to do!
We became busier and I converted the shop to self-service, one of the first
in the area to do so. Time went very quickly and I no sooner opened up at 8am
on Monday morning than it was closing time at 8pm!








Philip Hart, Connie and Wendy, admiring the silver cup trophy

being presented with the ‘Havinden’ silver cup trophy in Leeds




( dated !8th June 1958 )

at top left: Dick (Winnie’s first husband) Connie’s father, Charles Kirk (seated)
Connie’s sister, Winnie, Connie’s friend Doreen, Connie

and near the front: Wendy, Connie’s sister, Annie, Connie’s mother Eliza
Kirk and young David.

David and Wendy attended the Rothwell Council school and had plenty of
friends. But, after a few years, the strain of standing all day was beginning to
affect my health and my doctor advised me to get another job.




Wendy, now a schoolgirl, aged 4

Connie, David & Wendy ( Yorkshire )



Wendy ( about age 8 ) with her friends in Wood Lane, who took

part in the concerts she made up for the neighbours, including
songs and poetry recitals.

David & Wendy ( about 9 and 6 yrs old )

The Strangeway’s family and the Green’s family took a holiday on the island of
Guernsey in the Channel Islands. Here’s Annie Strangeway and Connie Green
relaxing on one of the beaches there.




Connie and Edna with our good family friends, Fred and Annie Strangeway
( their daughter worked with me in the shop & their son Malcolm was the same
age as David and his best friend )

Living in Cornwall 1960-1963


We had managed to have two holidays in Cornwall while I was a shopkeeper as I
trusted my employee, Mrs Hart, to be in full charge and look after the shop for
me while I was away, earning a percentage of the profits each time. Before we
sold the shop, Dudley also tried his hand at shop keeping but actually hated it,
couldn’t stand being inside all the time and in one place. So we decided to sell up
and move to Cornwall.
We bought a new detached bungalow at Trescobeas on the outskirts of
Falmouth, at 22 Venton Road. Dudley went to work for a Falmouth firm of
decorators and I worked for H.E. Boaden & Co. of Market Strand, Falmouth, a
firm of chartered accountants. I started work there on 23rd May 1961 as a Wages
and Audit clerk for a 30 hour week, paid 6 pounds per week with 2 weeks paid
holiday and no Saturday morning work.
It was lovely to have our home to ourselves now, no shop attached, no
decorating shed attached. We bought a boat, a 16 ft cruiser with 2 engines for
different speeds and also two oars and a dinghy. We carried the dinghy on top of
our car so we could row from the shore to the boat, when it was moored in Port
Navas Creek. Our second mooring was in the Truro River at Mylor Creek and the
third was in Falmouth Harbour.





Dudley on our boat, the Trident, at Port Navas Creek, Cornwall, 1962

Back view of our garden in Venton Road, Falmouth. Dudley put the paths in and
the fishpond and garden beds. At the bottom of the garden were fields, which
you could walk through to Swanpool Beach. 1960-1963



Connie & Wendy at Poldhu Cove, Cornwall

We stayed in a cabin on the grounds of Mandalay while looking for a house to
buy near Falmouth




The weather was much warmer in Cornwall. David and Wendy ( age 13 and 10
years old when we moved to Cornwall ) went to different schools. David went to
the Trescobeas Comprehensive School, which was nearby and Wendy went to
the Falmouth Girls Grammar School in town, both of them riding their bikes to
school.

My work situation was the most glamorous, a building by the pier with a
bay window, overlooking Falmouth Harbour. I enjoyed my walk to work each
day, usually through Falmouth Park with its tropical trees such as mimosa (or
acacia) dracena and banana palms; and some very beautiful magnolia trees.
Dudley and I used to meet at lunchtimes and he would call for me in our
VW Combi van (caravan car) and we would go to a nearby beach. He would have
a quick swim while I put the kettle on the calor gas stove for a cup of tea and
made sandwiches. He enjoyed this aspect of working in Cornwall but it was
another matter when he had to work on the outside of the seaside hotels in the
middle of winter when it was cold and damp and windy. He did some superb
decorating in the Falmouth Hotel, especially in the Gardenia Room, also some
very fine graining work on many doors around the town.

Dudley’s friend from work, Ted, used to help Dudley with the boat and go out
fishing (trawling) with him. There was a lot of boat maintenance required,
including painting and scraping the hull. It was called Trident and we had some
good times sailing it and it was also very popular with our friends and relations
when they came to visit. David and Wendy did all the work of rowing us back and
forth in the dinghy and they sometimes took their friends out in the dinghy.
One sunny day, we took some stale bread for the birds and sailed along
the Helford River to Gweek Creek where we put the anchor down for a while and
David and Dudley rowed the dinghy to a small beach to dig for bait worms.
Suddenly Wendy told me the tide must be going out as she could now see the
bottom of the river. We measured it with a stick – only 6 inches! – so we shouted
for Dudley and David to come back, but it was too late: the tide had gone out,
leaving us stranded for four hours. David did some sunbathing on the cabin roof,
Wendy rowed the dinghy up Frenchman’s Creek and we were so hungry we ate
the old bread we’d brought for the birds. But it was very quiet and peaceful
there, we didn’t see another soul the whole time – I wonder if it’s like that now?



Dudley with Alf & Edna, on one of their visits to see us down in Cornwall

Winnie & Connie peeping up through the cabin roof on The Trident, 1962,
in Cornwall ( the royal yacht Britannia – with 3 masts – in background )



Edna’s husband, Alf, & their son Alec on our boat The Trident,
sailing on the Helford River, near Falmouth, Cornwall

Connie & Dudley on a Cornish cliff top walk

Alf & Dudley, Cornwall

Connie, David, Wendy, Kath, Alf, Dudley at one of the Falmouth beaches



back view of our VW Combi van in front of “Round House” in Roseland, Cornwall.

Alf, Edna, Wendy, Connie in Cornwall, about 1960



part of our boat in right foreground – looking towards some of
the cargo ships in Falmouth Harbour

top: Wendy (far left) Dudley, David, Connie – front: Edna’s husband, Alf,
family friends Kath and Harry, at Land’s End, Cornwall
below: Harry, Edna, Kath, Wendy, Alf

Dudley in Kimberley Park, Falmouth





My sister Winnie’s first husband, Dick, with son Michael, next to our
boat, the Trident, on the River Fal near Mylor Bridge, Cornwall, 1962

Wendy standing on Stonehenge, 1963, just before we left for Australia
(no one has been allowed near this ancient monument since then! )



Connie in Cornwall

On 29th October 1961, my father died. This was a shock to us, we were unaware
that he was ill, but I believe he had a stroke and died in his sleep overnight. I
telephoned and sent flowers but Winnie and Edna didn’t think I should travel up
there for the funeral. I still feel guilty for my absence.



David played soccer with his school friends in a field near our home and this is
where they were joined by two latter Day Saint missionaries: Elder Max Lunt of
Duncan, Arizona and Elder Stephen Cochrane of Salt Lake City, Utah. Two nicer,
cleaner living young men ( about 20 or 21 ) you wouldn’t see. After a while we
were introduced to them and David, 15 years old at the time, told us he would
like to join their church.

We waited a while to make sure he was sincere but finally could raise no
objections. I read most of the LDS literature and, whilst I could not agree with a
lot of it, I did think that no smoking, no drug taking, no swearing and other
similar restrictions were very good rules. David was baptised by Elder Cochrane
in the sea at a local Falmouth beach one morning and we attended the ceremony.
Wendy joined the church a little later and was baptised by Elder Lunt in
Plymouth where there was an LDS chapel with an indoor baptismal pool.



I liked living in Cornwall. There were lots of coves and beaches and quaint old
buildings. I have fond memories of Looe, Fowey and Liskeard. It was very
interesting discovering the ancient stones and burial places on the moors. We
didn’t travel around a lot in the holiday season when everywhere was full of
tourists but September onwards was delightful. It was lovely to be able to drive
in and out of Saint Ives, for instance, without being behind a queue of cars and
we were often on the Falmouth beaches during the Christmas holidays ( winter )
when it was still sunny and warm and we had the whole beach to ourselves.

Dudley continued playing lawn bowls and I travelled with him to such places as
Penzance, St Austell, Truro, Redruth and Helston.
The firm I worked for ( H.E. Boaden ) had a lot of seafront hotels as
clients and part of my job was making up the wages for their staff and taking the
wage packets to them every Friday afternoon. This was an enjoyable walk, often
up the long flight of steps ( Jacob’s ladder ) from the high street up to the
magnificent view of the whole harbour and then down the other side to the sea
front hotels.

We wish her well in her new venture and unhesitatingly recommend her to any
prospective employer. ( signed H.E. Boaden )

1963 Let’s Go to Australia



Dudley was not altogether pleased with his working conditions in Cornwall and
when there was a huge campaign in the press for emigration to sunny Australia,
he was impressed. David and I wanted to stay living in Cornwall but Wendy, like
Dudley, fancied this new adventure in Australia so it was two for the move and
two against. Since Dudley was the main wages earner, it was only fair that he
should have the main choice. So we filled in all the forms and applied for
emigration. Our compulsory medical examination was held in Falmouth and was
a farce. The doctor was drunk, in fact he kept sneaking a drink during the
examinations but we didn’t report him as we wanted our approval to go through
as soon as possible.

Dudley put a for sale sign up on our gate and that same night a fellow
came along and bought our bungalow and paid in cash! We thought he might be a
bookie to carry such large amounts of cash around, but everything with the sale
went smoothly and we had a quick journey up to Yorkshire to say goodbye to our
many friends and relatives. Dudley’s mum blamed me for taking her son so far
away from her and would not be consoled.

We had to take our VW Combi caravan car to a merchant boat in London,
but we sailed on the Fairsea ( Sitmar Line ) from Southampton. In fact, Dudley
made sure we arrived at the Southampton soccer ground in time to see his
beloved Leeds United team play their match! As the Fairsea liner left the dock,
they released colourful streamers and played Vera Lynn singing: “We’ll Meet
Again, don’t know where, don’t know when…”

For the first week of the voyage, Dudley, Wendy and David were very
seasick and so I had to do everything for us. Our sleeping arrangements were far
from ideal. At first David and Dudley shared a cabin with a father and son from
another family and Wendy and I shared a cabin with the mother and daughter of
the same family. However, the mother was very ill and never left the cabin so we
did a swap so that her husband could look after her. (Unfortunately, as soon as
we reached Port Said at the start of the Suez Canal, she died. Most of the
passengers were unaware of this but Dudley had to call for the doctor in the
middle of the night when she died, so we couldn’t help being involved. The
burial, at sea, had to wait until the liner reached the end of the canal and we
heard the murmur of a short service and the splash of the coffin entering the
water about 4am. )

We were able to leave the liner for a short while when we reached
Gibralter and had a look at the water catchment area and fed the tail-less
monkeys with all the other tourists.

When we entered the Mediterranean, there were calm seas and blue
skies. Seasickness over, Dudley and David enjoyed playing all the deck games
and entering all the sports competitions. I watched them some of the time but
had to sit on the equipment box so didn’t stay very long. Next I went looking for
Wendy to make sure she was in good company. She had made friends with the
members of a group or band of boys who had their guitars and played all the
latest British pop songs, including those of the Beatles. They spent most of the
time practising and she was singing for them. She was 13 years old then and
most of the boys were 15 and 16 years old so she was having a very good time!

The quality of the food on board was good but it was continental style
cooking with oils and spices, which was very different to what we used to – even
the cups of tea were not to our taste.

When we reached Aden, we went ashore, hired a taxi and did some
shopping: a radio for David, tape-recorder for Wendy, food mixer for Dudley and
a portable typewriter for me. I was appalled by the houses of the poor, in the
hollows of the hills we passed on the way into town – they were mostly made of
packing cases and a great contrast to the concrete high-rise buildings of the
richer residents of the town.

On November 22nd, 1963, when we docked at Fremantle on the coast of
Western Australia, we were informed of the shocking news of President
Kennedy’s assassination and found it hard to believe, as we had great hopes for
his ongoing leadership and what people were calling a new “Camelot”.

We visited King’s Park in Perth, where it was so hot that our ice creams
melted before we could eat them, then we were back on board the Fairsea,
bound for Port Adelaide, South Australia.

Our sponsors, a building firm, RDC, secured motel accommodation for us
for a few weeks at Para Hills while we looked for a house to buy. We decided the
show homes of RDC were as good as any and bought a low-set three bedroom
one at 216 Kesters Road, Para Hills, with a good-sized carport and garden back
and front. We paid half the price in cash and the rest on mortgage. We kept 2,000
pounds in the bank for travelling in case we didn’t like living in Australia, but
everyone settled down happily except for me, and what was the use of me
upsetting the whole household?




Connie on deck, The Fairsea, 1963

David, Wendy and Connie on deck, The Fairsea, Sitmar Line, 1963

Here are some extracts from Dudley’s account of

So We Decided To Go to Australia ( written in 1964 )



Everyone in England remembers the 1962-1963 winter. It was one of the worst
on record. It didn’t miss Cornwall, although we didn’t have the snowfall that
other parts of England had. So, one day in mid January when there was a full
page advert on sunny Australia, that started me on the quest of emigration to the
sun. The family say I persuaded them all to agree and off went the application
forms.

By some coincidence, the day before embarkation in Southampton was the same
day our football team, Leeds United, was playing there and they sent us off in a
good mood with a rattling 4-1 win which put them back at the top of the table.



First impressions of our ship, the Fairsea: gleaming light coloured walls, polished
floors with handrails, well lit corridors and everything spotlessly clean. The
Fairsea is not a large ship compared with the largest ocean liners such as the
Canberra, Oriana and the like, but it’s pretty large, about 15,000 tons.

The two days immediately after our embarkation can be forgotten as far as I’m
concerned. We were sailing down the English Channel and the Bay of Biscay
where the boat was rolling and wallowing in the rough seas. Any thought of food
or drink was revolting and the continued retching from the stomach and a
splitting headache developed. What miserable creatures we are at such times.
Still, after the sickly and unstable feeling passed away leaving me weak and
shaky, I was very relieved and able to look forward to the rest of the sea voyage.

When we reached the Gibraltar Straights, the air became warmer, the sea
smoother and the sun came out. Everyone poised with cameras at the ready on
the port deck, but a mist came down and all we could see of the famous Rock of
Gibraltar was a faint outline. Rocky land could be seen on both sides, mostly
mountains and barren but interesting. Before nightfall, a city came into view on
the African coast , built on the hills and down to the shore, one building had a
dome and minarets around it, probably a mosque.

Sleeping in the bunks was now less of a problem as the ship pushed steadily
through the smoother waters.
There were four meals a day, for example:
Breakfast – fruit juice, porridge or cereal, bacon, sausages, eggs, Finnan haddock
or kipper fillets, prunes, toast, marmalade, tea or coffee
Lunch – soup, hors d’oeuvres, hamburger, creamed potatoes, fried onion rings,
ice cream, fresh fruit, coffee or tea
Afternoon tea – bread, butter, jam and tea
Dinner – soup, cheese croquettes and chips, roast chicken, turnip and peas, rice
pudding and chocolate sauce, cheese and biscuits, coffee or tea.

Ell. You can imagine lounging about all day for three weeks and eating all that
food, I could see myself rolling down the gangway at ort Adelaide. So I cut out
some of the course and cut out afternoon tea then walked as much as possible,
played Tenni-quoits and table tennis in an effort to keep my weight down.

Deck games were available during the day and bars were open, with good prices
for the drinks. Wines and liqueurs ranged from 10 pence to 2 shillings a glass,
while beer and Guinness were from 1 shilling to 1 shilling and sixpence. In the
evenings there were two cinema shows, three Bingo sessions and a variety of
dances in the main lounge.

Sailing through the Mediterranean was just a dream: smooth waters, blue sky
and sunshine almost every day until nightfall. Some days we could see the low
outline of the coast of North Africa, occasional islands and passing ships, mostly
tankers. So there we were, sailing on a millionaire’s cruise , eating good food,
playing table tennis and deck quoits, chatting with various families – and all on a
ten-pound emigration scheme! All the ten-pound Pom families we spoke to were
optimistic and cheerful about their prospects in a new Australasian world,
hopeful their children were going to bigger and better opportunities.

At Port Said, the great invasion began. Small boats, laden to the gunwales with all
types of merchandise, and with their owners throwing up lines to waiting
passengers and shouting ‘Hi, there – want to buy a carpet?’ in loud and
entreating tones. Whilst they were engaged in small bargaining bouts, others
swarmed the aboard with cases full of wares – baskets, ornaments, leather cases,
bags, cheap jewellery, sandals, shoes, slippers, oriental tables etc. These were
spread out invitingly on the side decks and the merchants began shouting,
haranguing and gesticulating. It was like Petticoat Lane gone mad.
The boats alongside the ship were at least 30 feet below but, from the
ship’s rails, it was easy to see what they had to sell. You indicated what you
wanted to buy, then the trader would fasten the item to a rope line or put it in a
straw basket and you would hoist it up from your end of the rope, examine it and
shout down the price you were willing to pay, haggling back and forth until you
got a good price. Some of the goods were shoddy and cheap but the inlaid
marquetry tables and Indian carpets were good.
We left Port Said at 9.30pm and joined other ships in the convoy to go
through the first half of the Suez Canal. The weather was still lovely and quite
warm even at night. Moving down the canal, we could see the banks on either
side. The land was flat, sandy deserts stretching into the distance. At times, you
could see peasants working in green, irrigated fields. On the Egyptian side of the
canal, we saw an airfield, with military planes that looked like Russian ‘Migs’
parked on the runways. There was also the occasional fisherman with modern
rod and tackle, and groups of dirty tents with camels grazing outside.
Suez was a cleaner looking place than Port Said, with white stucco tiles
and houses without windows. Some of the gardens were well stocked with trees
and shrubs and sometimes a lawn. Buses were running up and down the streets
and a cinema was showing ‘Cleopatra’! The port had ships of all kinds: fishing,
freight and Egyptian customs ships. On the far side of the port, gleaming with

silver paint, were dozens of petrol tanks. But we didn’t stop at Suez and soon we
were leaving it behind and sailing into the Red Sea.

The first day in the Red Sea was sunny and warm and, by lunchtime, the
temperature had risen to 84 degrees. It was pleasant, however, because of the
cooling breeze. It was grand for deck games and swimming, and swimming
trunks and bikinis were the order of the day. The next day was hotter still at 86
degrees. In the afternoon, a gale sprang up suddenly and rain sent sunbathers
running for the shelter of the indoor lounges.
All through the Red Sea, we kept the cooling wind, but it was easy to over
expose yourself to the sun and get sunburnt before you realised it. The nights
were very dark because the moon rose late, and it took some time to distinguish
between the sea and the sky. It was lovely walking along the decks in the
warmest wind I have ever known.
We usually went to bed between 10.30 and 11.30pm and I always got up
at 7am and had a walk on deck before breakfast, and once or twice did P.T.
(physical training) with the younger ones. David and Wendy often went to
breakfast on their own because the cabin was so small, it was difficult for
everyone to get washed and dressed at the same time. After breakfast, it was
back to the cabin to tidy up and gather items we need up on deck - books,
sunhats, rugs, swimming gear.
Our next port of call was Aden and word had gone around that electrical
goods could be purchased cheaper here than anywhere else. The next day, in the
dawn light, we went ashore. In the harbour there were many other ships,
including the Oriana and ‘Albion’, an aircraft carrier. Lots of the buildings we
saw were of the Mediterranean type, creamy square blocks, but further behind
them was a shack town, where the poorer Arabs live in tea chests, oil drums and
anything else that will give a little shelter. The streets were reasonably wide but
not very clean, lots of paper and litter lying in the gutters and an old goat nosing
around in it looking for anything to eat. The people are jet black with thin
features and crinkly hair, mostly of wiry physique and of medium height. Many
of the women were veiled and clothed in the Arabic style from head to foot.

We left the ship by launch and, as soon as we landed on shore, were
surrounded by Arabs shouting: ‘where you want to go?’ and ‘want a taxi,
mister?’’ We continued walking towards the main streets but one little Arab kept
following us, jogging by my side and giving a running commentary on everything
we passed, and in between, beseeching me to take a taxi with him to the city
where he knew of a shop which sold fine, transistor, cameras, and above all: ‘Will
give receipt, mister, very honest.’

He was a scruffy little blighter but at least he had a smile, so we agreed to
take a taxi, which was a Holden, a pretty big Australian made car. Connie, Wendy
and David sat in the back and I sat next to the driver. The little Arab got in beside
me too, so I was sandwiched between the driver and our self-appointed guide. I
wasn’t too keen about this as neither of them looked very clean, but I couldn’t do
much about it. Away we went at a brisk pace, passing most traffic on the road,
accompanied by much tooting on the horn.

Soon we left the port behind and were on the open road, flanked by rocky
hills. The thought crossed my mind that we could be taken far away, robbed and
then stranded. However, when we reached the top of the next hill we started to

descend into the city of Aden. And the car pulled up outside a shop that sold
radios etc in the window. As soon as the car stopped, the little Arab jumped out,
opened the doors and ushered us into the shop before anyone else could get to
us. Inside the store was a marvellous selection of goods, mostly made in Japan.

We ended up with a tape-recorder for Wendy, a radio for David,
typewriter for Connie and a Kenwood mixer for me, all for the total price of 45
pounds sterling. It was getting very hot so we headed back to the ship with the
little Arab and the Holden taxi driver who charged 25 shillings for the fare. I gave
the little Arab a tip of five shillings.
When we left Aden, the weather was very pleasant, the extreme heat
tempered by the movement of the ship, which created a breeze. The Captain
soon announced that we were leaving the African continent behind and sailing
across the Arabian Sea and then the Indian Ocean.
In the evenings, the air was still very warm and some of the sunsets were
like rainbows. One evening I was standing on the Games deck, watching the sea’s
surface very closely when I thought I saw a little white bird flying just above the
waves, then disappearing into the sea. To my amazement, more popped up,
flying parallel for about 15 feet then back into the sea. I’d always thought that
flying fish were bigger and shot up out of the water in shoals, but I expect there
are different species and we may see larger ones later on.

The sea was now as smooth as glass and we were averaging between 360
and 380 miles per day. Every day there was a news sheet posted on the notice
board with items from all over the world plus the programme of on board events
for the day. On Sundays, all the English soccer results were posted up and I
rushed to see how Leeds United had fared, still at the top of Division 2. Almost
very day, as we sailed further south, we had to put our clocks forward half and
hour. We were now getting close to the equator and the temperature remained
in the high eighties.

We were seeing flying fish every day now and they were gliding
enormous distances. I watched some from the top deck and they flew until I lost
sight of them, at least 300 yards. While I was watching them, a small pod of
porpoises chased each other, jumping in an arc for at least a quarter of a mile. I
never grew tired of watching the sea.

We crossed the equator during the evening and next day we had a
crossing of the equator ceremony on the sun deck, then in the evening there was
the Equatorial dinner. This was turkey and cranberry sauce, followed by a
dramatic turning off the lights as the dessert was carried in – a series of Baked
Alaska cakes, set alight and paraded by the waiters up and down the aisles as all
the diners clapped. It was an impressive sight.

During the week Australian documentary films were shown followed by a
quiz and general discussion. During the day, in spite of the Indian ocean’s heavy
swell, David and I played some of the competitive games now in full swing. We
were both knocked out of the table tennis and David beat me in the second round
of shuffle board.

The heavy swell and rolling motion of the ship made many passengers
sea-sick. The swell was very noticeable in the lower deck’s lounges – if you
looked through a porthole, you would see the sky one minute and then, the next,
all you would see was the ocean for several seconds and then up again.

In the sporting events, David had played and lost his next round in the
deck tennis. I got to the semi-final of the mixed shuffle board competition – my
opponent was a former captain of England’s hockey team. However, I did win the
final of the deck quoits.

Two nights before we were due in Perth, there was a terrific storm. The
crew had fixed canvas sheets to the deck rails but the sea still washed onto the
decks. It was worse when we went to bed, and it took us all our efforts to stay in
our bunks. The anchor and chain lockers (just in front of our cabin ) kicked up a
terrible noise as they moved about so we didn’t get much sleep.

When we docked at Fremantle, we could see Perth lit up with bright
coloured lights and the water front road lined with the white lights of the cars’
headlamps.

In the morning, our sponsors (M.T.D) took us on a bus tour and the
temperature was in the nineties! We were very impressed by the Perth
University – what a fine example of craftsmanship in wood, stone and glass. The
grounds had well kept lawns and the Jacaranda trees ( blue and purple ) and the
Christmas Fire trees ( flaming orange ) were a blaze of colour. From King’s Park,
there was a beautiful view of the city of Perth with its clean streets and tall
buildings. Back on the ship, it was a real shock to hear of the assassination of
President Kennedy, such a good man taken from us in such a tragic manner.

Our next stage of the journey was five days sailing through the Great
Australian Bight to reach our final destination in Outer Harbour, Adelaide on
time, again at night, on November 27th, 1963.

Looking back on voyage of over 4 weeks, I think it would have been better
in a faster ship over 3 weeks with English cooking. Still, compared with the
dangerous voyages of the first settlers, we were indeed fortunate and it was the
beginning of a new life for us all.



trading boats at the Suez Canal 1963

1964 - back to my story (Connie’s)


We purchased our home at Para Hills, northeast of Adelaide, in South Australia. It
was a decent sized home with 3 bedrooms, gardens and shops nearby. Dudley
quickly got a job as a painter in the city of Adelaide. David and Wendy made new
friends especially at church and their new schools, but I found it just about
impossible to get a job.

Wendy & David outside the LDS chapel at Prospect, Adelaide



Eventually, Roy and Mary Dyson gave me a job at Stuart House, where they were
in charge of caring for disadvantaged boys aged between 10 and 16 years. Their
parents were either ill, in prison, alcoholic or unable to look after them for some
other reason. Roy was the superintendent and Mary was the matron. I think my
mother would have been shocked by the kind of work I did, so I glossed over the
nature of it when I wrote home to my family.

I was engaged as a ‘maid’ – in other words, a slave! It was easily the worst
job I have ever had. My work consisted of cleaning out six lavatories every day,
six showers with all the tiles to wash down, about twenty beds to make, any dirty
sheets to be washed and hung out to dry, any wet mattresses to be sponged and
put into the sun on the balcony. Floors had to be mopped and carpets vacuumed.
Once a week all the wardrobes had to be moved away from the walls and
vacuumed behind, and once a week all the staircase walls had to be cleaned.
There was also a lot of dusting and clearing things away.

After a couple of months, Roy asked me to help him with a difficult letter
he had to send to Head Office, so I obliged. This was such a relief to him that he
asked me help him on a daily basis and persuaded Mary to transfer me to be a
downstairs maid so I’d have time to do the office duties as well. There was a

religious atmosphere there with prayers every morning, grace at every meal and
on Sundays everyone went to church, each to their own denomination.

My next job was as a bookkeeper with the firm of Texas Instruments, in
the new town of Elizabeth, noted for being populated by British migrants mostly
working at Holden’s motor factory. A lovely girl called Betty, from Sheffield,
Yorkshire, started work there the same day as me.

In 1965, Dudley had aspirations to help youngsters so, when Roy
mentioned there was a vacancy for a warder at Magill Reformatory, he applied
and was accepted. He wanted to teach the inmates a trade such as painting but
there was no interest from them and he found they were a bunch of rogues and
the school children the worst. Dudley wrote to the Department with suggestions
for improvements but the replies were too slow in coming and he left work
there, with the Department’s regrets.

Dudley now got a position as Painter and Signwriter with the Salisbury
Council. He was much happier with this, worked mostly by himself, had a large
workshop and ran the department his own way. It was only ten minutes from
work by car, so his working day was shortened and he managed our weekly
shopping each payday.

When I started work at Texas Instruments, Bob, who lived near us on
Kesters Rd, gave me a lift in the mornings and Dudley picked me up in the
afternoons. It was decided by the Texas Instrument’s secretary to put everything
on computers to make our work easier, whereas, in fact, the reverse was true
and we had to do more work!

Wendy & friends in back yard, Kesters Rd, Para Hills


Wendy (in Adelaide)

David, Wendy, Dudley, Connie - in our back garden at 216 Kesters
Road, Para Hills, South Australia.





In this garden Dudley planted a peach tree and we had so many
peaches, each season, there were lots of peaches for ourselves to eat
and lots to give away. They were the biggest, juiciest and best tasting
peaches we’d ever had.

1966, my first holiday, back in England


Mary Dyson asked if I would accompany her on a six months trip to the U.K.
Dudley wouldn’t agree to 6 months so we decided upon 4, but as there was a
liners strike while I was over there, I was actually able to stay in England for five
months.
We sailed on the Arcadia and Mary spent a lot of her time with a group of
religious people (parsons and their wives) doing bible studies. I gave them a
wide berth – and still do. Whist and scrabble competitions were great fun for
me, plus the evening dances and some of the shows put on by the staff.
I enjoyed our short stay in Fremantle where we were entertained by Roy
and Mary’s friends and taken to Cottisloe (a beachside suburb) and Perth. Our
next stop was Cape Town, where I was able to visit my friend Cynthia’s relatives.
They had a black servant, Bill, who lived in a shed at the back of their property.
All the house’s windows were burglar proof because, whenever the owners were
out, Bill invited lots of friends over and they couldn’t be trusted.

At this time, apartheid was in full swing and there were large placards
everywhere, pointing out where whites must stand (at the front ) and where
blacks must stand (at the back ). Cynthia’s mother and sister took me to see their
local beaches (all shark-netted) and also to the ‘Valley of a Thousand Hills ‘ with
its kraals, a native type of round house. We were welcomed by the natives in
traditional dress and dance, very spectacular, and put on especially for the
tourists. I didn’t want to go up Table Mountain by cable car as I am afraid of
heights but they did take me, by car, the long way round, amongst vineyards and
orchards.



Our next port of call was Durban and then up to the Suez canal. This time,
I went overland from Suez to Cairo – we often saw the liner on the canal in the
distance. We had a special tea in Ismalia, visited a lovely synagogue and enjoyed
a trip to see the Sphinx and the Great Pyramids. I remember that it took all our
strength to climb the stairs inside one of the pyramids.

Back on the ship and our next stop was Naples where we enjoyed walking on the
old fashioned cobbled streets until three youngsters rushed down the hill and
knocked me over. The curb hurt my back and I had difficulty walking but Mary
got help to return me to the ship. My next trip in Naples was by car from the pier,
on the Amalfi run to Sorrento then a return on the autoban. This car ride was
horrendous! – hundreds of bends, narrow turns, the horn sounding all the time
and me holding onto the seat and closing my eyes!






on the Amalfi coast, Italy

the Amalfi coast, Italy



While I was in England, I stayed mainly with Edna and Alf (in Yorkshire) and had
a really good time – they are always very hospitable and go to great trouble for

all their guests. The worst thing was that I put on weight as Edna sees we get

plenty of home cooking, not forgetting Yorkshire puddings, chocolate cakes with
fresh cream and other goodies.

Mary, sad to say, fell ill and died while visiting her family (also in
Yorkshire). Her husband Roy got over here before she died, but she was in a

coma by then and did not know him. In hindsight, I think Mary knew before we

left Australia that she was not as well as believed and had come home to say her
final goodbyes to her people.

The Sultan of Jahore’s Palace Gardens, Jahore, 1973

1973, another holiday in England



In 1973, I had another delightful holiday in England. Wendy had two young
children by then. Sarah was born in March 1971, and Katy in August 1972. So
they were about 23 months old and 7 months old when I arrived. Their family
home was in Broadstone, near Poole in Dorset, but Paddy had taken a position in
South East London, which meant he could not be at home during the week and
only at weekends occasionally. So he asked me to come over and offered to pay
my plane fare. Since I had planned on coming later in the year, anyway, I paid
my own fare and just extended the holiday to 11 months. Dudley came over for
the last 13 weeks, which was his long service leave.

Dorset is a very pretty county with villages like Milton Abbas, full of
thatched roofed cottages and the centuries old Milton Abbey in beautiful gardens
with wild daffodils under the trees.

Katy and I - in front garden of their house at Broadstone in Dorset

Katy and I - at the park in Poole, Dorset






Sarah & Katy ( Katy wearing one of my hand knitted pom-pom hats! )

Katy & Sarah, in back garden, in some of the clothes I knit for them

in their back garden, Broadstone, Poole, Dorset

Sarah in one of my knitted specials


Wendy, Katy & Sarah at Milton Abbas, Dorset

Sarah & I, watching the fish in the pond (Dorset). Sarah wasn’t too keen on the
stepping stones. ( Sarah wearing another of my famous knitted garments! )


Wendy, Katy & Sarah at Winterbourne, Dorset 1974

Italian Holiday


In early May, we went on holiday to Italy. Wendy and I suggested a quiet beach
resort, away from tourists and safe for young children, but Paddy decided we
must go to Lido de Jesolo and stay in a skyscraper by the seafront in a busy
tourist area, exactly what we wanted to avoid.

The hotel owners - and Italians in general - were besotted with babies and
young children, often making a big fuss and stopping us on the street, saying
‘Bella bambina’!

top: Wendy & Sarah/ below: Wendy & Katy on the beach in Italy

The highlights of my holiday were the visits to Venice, which was easily reached
from Lido de Jessolo. I spent a lot of time in St Marcus Square, attaching myself to
a tour group part of the time, and was fascinated by the workings of the Clock
Tower and the beautiful building of the Basilica. I went inside the famous Palace
of the Doges, where they were making a film.

gondolas outside the Palace of the Doges

The gondolas were very expensive so I opted for the waterbus, or vaperetto, and
travelled down the full distance of the Venice canal. It was very interesting to see
the Ponti di Rialto (Rialto Bridge) and Ca’ d’Oro (House of Gold) – a museum –
and other famous buildings I’d only read about.






We had a special trip to the islands of Burano, Murano and Torcello and were
privileged to visit a glass factory and see the glass blowing and the beautiful,
world famous, glass creations. It was exciting and a little frightening watching
the glass being made.

There was a furnace in the centre of a vast room, with openings all around
it, through which the glow of molten glass could be seen. The glass blowers
seemed to be throwing fiery blobs of hot glass on the ends of a rod, rolling the
rod on the ground, then passing it on, twirling it through the air, then passing it
to another man who’d put it to his lips and blow to produce a long bubble of
glass.

I felt safer when we went to the cutting and polishing part of the factory
where rows of girls were doing intricate work and the results were bright and
shiny. In their display shop, I chose a ‘mille de flors’ paperweight, full of different
swirls and colours of glass.

Katy & Sarah on beach in Italy






While living at Broadstone, I found a temporary job at Plessy & Co, in the office of

the draughtsman’s department. It was by far the easiest and best job I have ever
had. I was able to reconstruct the filing system which made it so much easier for

everyone and they thought I was the ‘bee’s knees’ and couldn’t praise me enough

or do enough for me, they were so glad I was there! I was asked to stay on
permanently but had to refuse, of course, as I lived in Australia.


There were good lunch meals available, at Plessy & Co, and then, when I’d

finished a day’s work, Wendy always had another meal ready for me. I worked

full time all my life, until I was 60 years old, and this was the first time I’d come
home to a meal, instead of having to start making one and do other chores as

soon as I reached home!


We didn’t stay long in Dorset after Dudley arrived because we had to go and visit

our other friends and relatives, both in Falmouth and in Yorkshire.

1976-1977, Para Hills, S.A. to Redland Bay, Qld.



As Dudley was either bowling or golfing when he was not gardening, we didn’t
spend much time together, except when we went to the Senior Citizens Club, so I
was very pleased when they started dancing classes there and persuaded him to
attend. This was on Thursday mornings for two hours and the club was only a
short walk away from home. It cost us the massive sum of ten pence each! We
practised Progressive Old Time dancing and there were always more women
than men, so some women had to take the men’s part. Every week we were
taught a new dance and, as it was progressive, we all had to dance with everyone
else, so we all gradually improved and Dudley was very enthusiastic, dancing
around with the best. So much so, that we went to another dance session as well,
at Salisbury on Fridays. We actually gave a dance exhibition at the Salisbury Mall
for Seniors Week and it was shown on television!
Unfortunately, during one dance session, I got extremely dizzy and had to
retire. X-rays showed that the bones at the top of my spine were degenerating, so
I had to be careful – and no more twirling about.
We moved to Redland Bay, Queensland, in 1977 and soon after settling in,
we enquired about dancing classes there and found one at Wynnum. Their old
time dancing was ‘new vogue’, very different to what we were used to, and since
everyone else was fairly expert at this, we found we were holding them up. Also
it was quite a distance to Wynnum by car, so we gave it up.


Edna, Alf and Winnie, relaxing in our garden at Redland Bay

my brother Charlie, wife Anne, son Jeff on phone to me (from England)