Historical information
Mrs Emily Ruth George of 26 Scheele Street, with husband, Joe. Emily & Joe were English migrants; they bought their home in 1919. Daughter Marie was born in 1914 when they are listed in the electoral roll at 'Hasland', Croydon Road, Surrey Hills; his occupation is given as a boilermaker.
Emily (nee Sturgess) - d 15 November, 1960; buried Box Hill Cemetery - M-199A-0034 along with daughter Marie. Possible birth c Oct 1880, Birmingham (not confirmed); marriage c Jan 1905, Chesterfield, Derbyshire.
Marie George became a school teacher and was on the staff at Chatham Primary School for a number of years. She died in February 1989.
Mrs George was known for her hospitality.
Anecdotes: On one occasion the government was to build six houses opposite in an area which was mostly paddocks. The materials were delivered and a caretaker allocated to guard them. He arrived with his wife to find a meagre tin shed as ‘home’. Mrs George responded by boarding the couple, for a very minimum amount for the six months.
A rather different anecdote involves the droving of sheep from Lower Plenty across paddocks and tracks, through Doncaster and down Union Road to the station en route to the Richmond abattoirs. This was a seasonal activity and the men (and sheep) used to rest in the paddocks in Union Road, at the corner of Weybridge Street – behind the Georges’ home. When Mrs George heard the sheep, she would go out and fill the drovers’ billies with tea, handing out thick cheese sandwiches made from her homemade bread.
Physical description
A black and white photograph of a man and a lady dressed to go out and standing in the street. There is a car parked on the other side of the road in the background.
