George Hendrie (11 Jan 1889 - 11 Dec 1971)

George Hendrie (11 Jan 1889 - 11 Dec 1971)

George Hendrie was born on 11 January 1889 at Hindley Street Gawler Ward, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia to Harry Robert Hendrie and Elizabeth Mary Hendrie (nee Allman). The family always celebrated George's birthday on the 1st day of the year with his year of birth being 1887.

He was born in Hindley Street (Gawler Ward).  In this street was the "Lolly Palace", the family confectionary business which Harry, his father, rang successfully for about 33 years and the family lived behind this business.  George had two older brothers and two older sisters when born.  All others were deceased.

George's mother died when he was six years old and his father remarried a lady that called "Mater".

His father had insisted when George was young that the family stay together, and so they were all taught to play musical instruments.  They performed as a band at country venues (one was Broken Hill) and out the front of their house on Sunday nights when they moved to Hughes Street, Mile End.  George played the trumpet, the uphonium (very large trumpet), probably the cornet and the piccolo also.  When Arthur, the eldest, about 14 years older than George left home, things changed.

George was, at age, 13, "booted out" from home to earn a living and went north to ride the boundaries for the likes of Sir Sidney Kidman on one or more of his numerous properties.  George worked at Mumpiowi, Mullawertna, Millparinga, Innaminka, Arrabury briefly and Cordillo Downs.

On these occasions he would have spent time catching up with his cousins, one of whom was Hedley Pridham.  There were connections at Aldinga and one particular time as the story was told, both George and cousin Hedley (Les?) were trying to attend a social function in the old church there.  They were not allowed in, so, not to be outdone, they caught a rabbit and dumped it into the huge boiler which was prepating water for the cups of tea.  Noone enjoyed the furry tea they were later poured in the evening!

George and brother John (Jack) would often go into Adelaide and hassle their brother-in-law, Wally Heberley who owned a deli on East Terrace near Botanic Corner. 

George met future wife Jinny at the Adelaide Central Markets.  Jinny from Wheaton Street, Plympton and her sister Ida went together one morning to the central market in the city. The girls were in the sideshows section of the market when George sidled up to Jinny and asked her if she'd like him to have a shot for her on the sideshow (something similar to the open mouthed clown seen these days). He won her a washbowl set (these had a large jug, bowl and toilet bowl), very fashionable then. So the romance began.

At the time George was working at Harley's Foundry (sited in part of West End Brewery).  Both Ida and Jinny were live-in house maids, Jinny in a two storey house in Oaklands near Hendrie Street and Ida for people in Plympton.

Once engaged, she wore a beautiful gold engagement ring with 5 Ceylon sapphires, still held in the family to this day.

George married Jane (Jinny) Bain on 27 April 1912 at the Methodist Church, Plympton, Adelaide, South Australia. It was on the corner of Mooringe Avenue. Reverend T. Geddes White solemnised the marriage and a union of almost 56 years began. Witnesses were George's brother, John (occupation: driller), and Jinny's sister Ida.

This photo was taken in 1985 of the church George Hendrie and Jane (Jinny) Bain were married at.  Uniting Church, Mooringe Avenue, Plympton.  The original church was the marriage place.  They were married in 1912.

Jinny and George had four children:

Dulcie Gladys Hendrie - Born 17 Apr 1913 at Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia.
Harry William Hendrie - Born 10 July 1916 at Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia. Died 18 May 2000 at Christies Beach Nursing Home, Christies Beach, Adelaide, South Australia.
Ida Joyce Hendrie - Born 1 May 1918 at Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia.
Margaret May Hendrie - Born 3 Nov 1923 at Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia.

1 ALBERT STREET, EDWARDSTOWN

They bought a house from Mr Myman, the builder, at 1 Albert Street, Edwardstown for 330 pounds and they were paying 15/- a week.  In later year's George built on the back porch.  This was used by Jinny for cooking.  Bill Charman helped George build the addition. At Albert Street, George had built a shed, a backyard toilet and a backyard aviary. They had a wonderful garden which allowed them to be reasonably self-sufficient.

The family would gather for dinner every Sunday to enjoy Jinn's wonderful apple and apricot pies and passionfruit cakes.  Occasionally, George would sit at the head of the table and announce to everyone "Look what I started!"

The children would run up and down the passage until reprimanded, then by told to "get outside" or if it was dark, to sit down and be quiet.  A central passage nearer the front of the house had a room off either side, originally bedrooms, but later a bedroom and a lounge.  The passage opened into a larger dining/lounge space with another room off to one side - another bedroom.  In this room, Harry slept and later as a teenager, he shared it with his Grandfather William Bain, Jinny's dad who came to live after the death of his wife.

Yet later again, Bill Carman, eldest grandson and Dulcie's son, used it.  The dining room had in its corner a rocking chair which had been Jinny's mother's chair.  Then from the larger room down a step into the addition/kitchen on one end of which was a bathroom.  The toilet was a separate small brick square in the middle of the back yard and the laundry was found in the shed at one end.  There had also been additions to this shed and some of the birds were kept in there too.

GEORGE'S SIBLINGS


George's brother Arthur married Jeannie we think, went to London, worked in Australia House during WW2 but also spent much time in WA.  A few children and probably a son were born to them.  Harry Robert may have been in Port Pirie (or maybe just daughter Rita with husband Ralph was there).  Harry had married Cordelia Wray (Auntie Corrie) and had 4 daughters.

Lillie May married Frank Barclar, and had a son Max.  They lived at Gawler half way up the hill on the left on the road out to Lyndoch/Yaldara.  The house had a big verandah. Lilly was a superb chocolate and lolly maker till she died, clearly having been very involved in the Lolly Palace business.

Max later lived at Strathalbyn and had a daughter I think.

Jack witnessed the Hendrie/Bain wedding.  He was close to George - they would go into Adelaide and see Wally (sister May's husband) who owned a deli near Botanic Corner (North Terrace, East Terrace corner).  They had a son Lionel b. 1916, the same  year as Harry William.  Lionel lived at Glenelg and died around 1998.  Harry had been to see him in the mid 1990s.

May married Walter (Wally) Heberley.  No children were born to this couple.

Elizabeth (Dolly) lived at Torrensville and married Len Pridham.  They had a son Les whom Harry Hendrie admired because he always had more than Harry - they were rich.  Les had a crystal set.  Dolly had a copy of sweets recipes. Les was second in charge of the ABC.

Florence (Florrie) married Arthur Andrews and a daughter Lorraine was born to them.  Florrie may have been born around the time of her mother's death.

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George was a strict disciplinarian who would say things just once and expect them to be adhered to.  Young Harry was expected to help feed the poultry, chop the wood, carry gear for his mother whom he adored, go to the shops, catch the rabbits (on Bailey Reserve as we now know it), and sell the same to the neighbours to help the family income.  He would be required to pick the fruit from trees in their own or family garden, stack the fire ready for the new day, have the water boiling in the large drum ready for the washing and scrub anything that he was told to.

George only said things once to Harry, otherwise the bike would go up in the rafters for one month, then Harry would be sent off to Bottroff's (general merchandise shop in Edwardstown opposite Castle Plaza) again and again for the tiniest items insuring that he missed his bike.

When Harry was 5, George became the Edwardstown Institute Secretary (1921) and continued till at least 1949 that he is aware of.  Tuesday and Friday were Libery nights at the Institute in the front left hand room.  People paid 2 shillings and six pence or 25 cents a quarter to belong.  Harry had to lug a box of books to the station on a wheelbarrow and then return with a different box of books back to the Institute.  He was paid 3 pence.  That is 2 cents!  This building was on the corner of Neville Avenue, a red brick building which has now been demolished.

When George ceased this secretarial position, a gold watch was given to him.  Harry told Doreen in October 1987 that the watch case has within it another watch case to stop dust getting in.  It is solid gold.  Ray now has it.  The chain has 9 c gold marked on each link.  Harry though that it would have been worth $500 at that time. 

George's son Harry related that this father had the "patience of Job".  He sat one day waiting to catch a bird in a trap he had made.  He had his pipe in his mouth and the string ready to pull.  He sat right through the day with no lunch, then late in the afternoon, "ping".   He loved birds and Doreen recalls that in retirement he always had a budgie in the kitchen, usually sitting on his shoulder. "Peter" was a favourite.  She remembers his cockatiels too.  They were kept in the shed.  He loved his garden as well, particularly his prize sized dahlias.

The four children all attended Edwardstown Primary School.  Harry and Joyce, being closer in age, would go together.  Harry "dinking" Joyce across the handle bars on his bike later when he had one.  Joyce was smart - a good maths student.  Harry was continually in trouble, blamed whether naughty or not.  They would sit for their "Quali", that being their Qualifying Exam done by Grade 7 students.  Joyce topped the girls and got a gold medal.  Meanwhile sister Dulcie, older, was becoming an apprentice ("doing her time") as a tailoress with Parton and Brown.

Father George was a moulding machinist by trade and worked for a long time at Pengelly's at South Road, Edwardstown and would bring home his pay in handsfulls of souverigns which was not unlike our dollar coin.  Pengelly's was renowed for holding their own against the Chinese labour in the furniture trade.  Mr Mathias was factory manager for 30 years, then set up his business where H. Bone and Son are now (2008).  By 1910 Pengelly's had moved into assembling bodies of vehicles.  In 1929 trams began in Adelaide and Pengelly's were assembling them. Harry, aged 13, could remember them starting.  They towed the trams to Glenelg and put them on the tramline down there.  George would tell Harry William when the trams were coming out of the factory and he would sit at Moody's on the footpath out front.  Moody's was on South Road near Albert Street.  They would watch them tow the trams out.

George's connection with the firm Pengelly's, Edwardstown, is recorded in the book "History of Marion on the Sturt" (Alison Dolling) - a copy is held by Doreen and signed by Alison who was given information by Nita Hendrie.  There were many accidents on the factory and this is recorded in the book.

"But for the watchful eye and diligence of George Hendrie, there would have been more accidents.  At six o'clock every morning from Monday to Saturday, before the main body of workmen arrived at 7.30, he would check and oil the machinery underneath the factory floor.  Then he returned home for breakfast before setting out again for the factory."

At one stage we know that George was on 1/2 or 1 day a week's work when things were tough.  Harry wasn't too old when Roy Ellis from across the road in Albert Street and asked Harry to stain his kitchen floor with Condy's Crystals.  He said that he wouldn't pay Harry but he's take him to the races instead.  A bet was placed for Harry and he won 100 pounds legitimately - an enormous amount back then.  He gave his mother 80 pounds and she was able to pay Bottroff's grocery bill, Clarke's bill (butcher) and the electricity bill.  George and Jinny didn't believe that he had won the money honestly but Mr Ellis confirmed it.

George was not a very tall man.

George was a saw doctor.  Doreen can remember seeing him sitting out the back near the little shed door, sharpening someone's scissors or knife.

He had a remarkably dry sense of humour.

Somehow George could always produce his yardstick ruler (1 metre long) which folded into 4 parts and doubled over.  There was a particular way to re-fold it and he would get any grandchild present to try it and refold it. 

On the 23 October 1926 at Maughan Church, Adelaide, George gave his sister Florence away in her marriage to Arthur Andrews.

George gives away his eldest daughter, Dulcie Gladys to Reginald Carman on ? 1934 at the Methodist Church, Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.

 

Around 1938 - George and Jane (Jinny) Hendrie (nee Bain) with eldest grandchildren Yvonne and Bill

George gives away his second daughter, Ida Joyce to Walter Fagg on 29 June, 1940 at the Methodist Church, Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.  Walter died on 29 June 1941 at War.

1943 - George and Jane (Jinny) Hendrie (nee Bain)

George gives away his youngest daughter, Margaret May to Melville Charlie DeBoo on 30 December 1944 at the Methodist Church, Edwardstown, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. 

They remained at Albert Street until about 1960 when they sold out to the Avoca Hotel and moved to 11 Price Street, Edwardstown, the street opposite Castle Plaza.   The Avoca Hotel, whose back corner met Hendrie's backyard corner, offered them either 3 or 4,000 pounds.  They accepted and moved to 11 Price Street, a mile further south and still just off South Road. Price Street is opposite what we know as Castle Plaza.

Dulcie and children, then Joyce and Beverly lived with George and Jinny for a while. Dulcie when without Reg and Joyce when Wally was lost to the war.

Around 1968 - 4 Generations. Left to Right
George Hendrie, Harry Hendrie, Scott Hendrie, Keith Hendrie and Ray Hendrie
Photo taken at 4 Collins Avenue, Woodlands Park (Edwardstown)

George saw her wife Jane (Jinny) die on 20 March 1968 at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.  Harry and Nita were on a Pacific cruise when on arrival back in Sydney was notified that Jinny was in hospital.  They rushed back to Adelaide to discover she was ill and lost her.

Following Jinny's death, George was lost.  He was over 80 and it was decided that he should spend time with each of his children in their homes for about three weeks apiece.  This, however, became very confusing and disorientating for him, so that Harry eventually said he was to come to his home full time at Morphett Vale.  Nita, not in perfect health herself, found it increasingly difficult to tend to his needs, particularly because he had begun to suffer dementia some time previously.

Harry at last conceded with the agreement of his sisters that George needed care in a nursing home and so he was moved to Hawthorn Private Hospital in Denning Street.

George died on 11 December 1971 at Denning Street, Hawthorn, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, one day after this great daughter Natalie was born. Harry always felt that Natalie took his place. Denning Street was just a stone's throw away from where George's own grandmother, Jemima Allman, had died.

Denning Street, Hawthorn.  The Private Hospital where George Hendrie spent his last 3 years.