Family Treasures: - Uncle Willie's violin

This beautiful violin is one of my favourite old family treasures. It once belonged to my great, great uncle, William WALLIS, but has been in my possession now for about 35 years.

William WALLIS

William Stewart WALLIS was born in Riverton, New Zealand in October 1884. He was the eldest of five brothers of my maternal great grandmother, Mary Elizabeth SCHULTZ (nee WALLIS). William, or Uncle Willie as he was known to the family, never married and spent most of his life living with my great grandmother and her family. Like two of his younger brothers, Uncle Willie spent some of his life as a racehorse trainer, and also worked as a labourer. From what I have been told he was a very, very lovely, quiet man who worked hard and loved spending time with his horses and also his nieces and nephews. He died after a short illness in October 1968 at the age of 83 and is buried in the Gore cemetery.

William WALLIS  (1884 - 1968)

I have no idea when or where Uncle Willie got his violin from, all I know is that he could play it beautifully. I never heard him play it as he died before I was born, but I was very fortunate to be given the violin by my great grandmother when I began to take violin lessons at the age of eight or nine. I took lessons for about seven years but you would never really say I was that good at it. Sure, I read the sheet music and played the tunes that were put in front of me, but I never really mastered it and never learnt to play by ear like so many of the wonderful old family violinists did. To listen to someone who can play like that is just beautiful. I doubt that you could ever call my violin playing “beautiful”, probably quite the opposite, but I tried and I have been left this beautiful violin as a legacy of that effort. Maybe I should have stuck at it for a bit longer. Maybe someday I might pick it up again and start to play again. Maybe ……. !!!

I was told by my late nana that my great aunt Nora SCHULTZ (Uncle Willie's niece who also lived in the same household) played the violin too, so perhaps this is the violin that she played also.

I have no idea of the value of this violin but to me it’s value is immeasurable. It belonged to my great, great uncle Willie and that alone makes it valuable beyond measure. It has writing inside it that says “Antonius Stradiuarius, Cremonenlis, Facebat Anno 17..  Made in Germany”. A quick search for this name on the internet reveals that this violin is one of the many fake Stradivarius violins that were made in the early 19th century. It is probably well over 150 years old, maybe even 200 years old, but it is definitely not a genuine Stradivarius. But that’s quite alright. I will love it and treasure it for what it is and for whose it was, and that’s enough for me. My only wish is that I had been around to have heard my great, great uncle Willie play a tune for me.

Reflections: ..... and a conversation with my Dad

Last week on the television I saw a list of 'new' words that have been officially recognised as being able to be used in the game of Scrabble. The words are all part of our modern language, many of them are used frequently by my teenage children, and they really got me thinking. The thing that struck me the most is just how much our language has changed in the last twenty years, or even in the last five years.

My own dad (Ron ENGLISH) died in 1978 when I was seven years old. He was only 36 and although it doesn't seem that long ago, the world we live in now is just so far removed from that in which he lived. I miss having my dad in my life, and I especially miss the fact that his beautiful grandchildren never had the chance to get to know him and love him.

My father Ron ENGLISH
(1941 - 1978)

But I often wonder; - if Dad was to walk through my door today, would he even have the slightest clue what my children were talking about? Or would the modern lingo be like a foreign language to him.

So just for a bit of fun I have decided to draw up my own small list of modern phrases and words that have slowly crept into our lives. We think nothing of them now, but what on earth would Dad have thought.

Where else could I start but with the latest trend, the 'selfie'. In 1978 there were no 'selfies'. Nor was there any 'texting', 'skyping' or 'tweeting'.  There was no 'going online', there were no 'downloads' or 'uploads', and 'the web', well that was where the spiders in the garden shed lived.

In 1978 you watched the tele, not 'podcasts', 'MySky', 'freeview', 'YouTube', 'dvds' or 'blu-ray'. There were no 'flatscreens' or 'HD', and if you were lucky you had not just one channel, but two. You listened to an LP, the wireless or the radio, as a 'cd', a 'playlist', an 'iPod' or 'iHeart radio' were not yet part of our world.

Dad played rugby, golf and tennis, whereas nowadays kids play 'X-box', 'Playstation' or 'Wii'. Back in Dad's day you swallowed your 'tablet', not played a game on it, and 'the cloud' was the fluffy thing that floated in the sky. Things weren't 'munted', they were broken, and if you wanted to know something you went to the library to look up the Encyclopaedia Britannica, not pull out your 'smartphone' to 'google' it.

In 1978 you couldn't be 'tagged', 'blocked', 'liked' or 'unfriended', and if you were 'followed' a call to the police may have been necessary. A 'Big Mac' was a large truck, an 'apple' was for eating,  and to be 'photo-bombed' sounds a very dangerous thing indeed. If someone said 'sweet' they were usually offering you a lollie and if the words 'sup', 'skuxx' or 'broski' came from your mouth it would have got you many odd looks indeed.

'Snail mail' existed but Dad wouldn't have known it as such, and an 'internet cafe', 'e-mail' and an 'attachment' were years away yet. 'Generation Y' was yet to be born and an 'anti-virus' was prescribed by your GP and picked up from your chemist. When you went to visit a friend the first thing you often asked was "do you want to go outside to play", certainly not "what's your Wi-Fi password".

In 1978 there was no 'speed-dating', 'rogernomics', 'glamping', 'me-time', 'hoodies', 'Angry Birds', 'Twitter' or 'zumba'. No 'cyber-space', 'couch-potatoes', 'fat-pants', 'puffa-jackets', 'Super 15' or 'flash-mobs'. No 'Big Wednesday', 'gigabytes', 'TradeMe', 'pixels', 'ringtones', 'widgets', 'hash-tags' or 'Facebook'.

The modern world is moving so fast that at times even I feel a bit left behind by it all. Technology is old and out-dated almost as soon as it is released, and it seems that only the young can keep up with it all. 2014 is indeed a very different world from that of 1978 when my father lasted breathed on this earth. I know Dad would have loved to have still been here with us but the modern world just wasn't where he was destined to be.

So back to my first question, ..... if Dad was to walk through my door today, would he even have the slightest clue what my children were talking about? Probably not, but I would sit him down for a nice long chat, fill him in with all that he's missed and help him to catch up.

Final Resting Places: - John and Mia Hurrell

Ruru Lawn Cemetery in Christchurch, New Zealand is the final resting place for my husband's paternal grandparents, John Joseph and Mia Edith Myrtle (nee PRESTIDGE) HURRELL.

Mia (nee PRESTIDGE) and John HURRELL **

John Joseph HURRELL was born on the 16th of November 1901 in Park Road, Christchurch, the fourth child and eldest son of Albert Augustus and Fanny Frances (nee BRUNT) HURRELL. John grew up in Christchurch alongside his six siblings; Maude (b. 1897), Olive Myrtle (b. 1899), Lawrence Edgar (b. 1900), William Romney (b. 1904), George Edward (b. 1906) and Frank (b. 1910). 

On the 23rd of February 1927 John married Mia PRESTIDGE at the St Michael's and All Angels Church in Christchurch. John was aged 25 and Mia 19.

Mia was born Edith Mia Myrtle PRESTIDGE on the 17th of February 1907,  the fifth daughter of Alice Augusta Jean EDWARD and the second daughter of Edward PRESTIDGE. She had an older sister Elsie Hannah Jane PRESTIDGE (b. 1904), and three older half sisters, Eleanor Alice Mary WARREN (b. 1894), Anita Dorothy WARREN (b. 1896) and Penelope Maude WARREN (b. 1899).

At the time of their marriage John was working as a motor driver. The newly-weds settled in Christchurch and went on to have a family of four children together; John Edward Albert (b. 1929, d. 1979), Frances, Alice and Kevin.

An untimely death

John was accidentally killed on the 19th of August 1954, aged just 52 years. I located his death registration and it reveals the terrible truth of what actually happened to him. His cause of death is listed as:

"Coroners finding: Cardio respiratory failure caused by lacerations and contusions

of the brain when a bicycle ridden by deceased collided with a Transport Board

bus at the intersection of Oxford Terrace and Antigma Street, Christchurch."

His accident must have been a huge shock to his family. His children were aged between 10 and 25 at the time. Mia lived in Christchurch for the rest of her life until her death 11 years later on the 14th of September 1965. She was aged just 58 years old. She was buried on the 16th of September alongside John at the Ruru Lawn Cemetery, Christchurch.

The plaque belonging to my husband's paternal grandparents, John and

Mia HURRELL, Block 36, Plot 278, Ruru Lawn Cemetery, Christchurch

______________________________

(Please note: the photo marked ** is not mine and was kindly loaned to me by Frances, daughter of John and Mia)

World War 1: 100 years on, ....... "we will remember them"

The 4th of August 2014 marked the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War 1; - the Great War, the war to end all wars, or so it seemed. Over the next few years I hope to feature on this blog the stories of some of the heroes of this war, including my own brave family members who fought "for King and country". Some of them were badly injured but were fortunate to make it home alive, while others paid the ultimate price and died far across the seas in foreign lands.

Today I want to pay tribute to all those millions and millions of brave souls who answered the call to arms and fought for their nations. To begin with it may have seemed like some great adventure they were heading on, but all too soon they were living the nightmare and experiencing the horrors that were World War 1.  The courage it took to live through this time, and the effects it had on them, will never be truly known or understood by our generation alive today. I hope and pray that we will never have to live through what they did but their sacrifices and their memory must never be forgotten. 

Ever since I was a young child I have been fascinated by World War 1, mainly because I heard so many stories from my grandmother about her father and her uncles that went away to war. I have spent a lot of time researching my ancestors and family members who lived through this time, and every day it seems my list of brave soldiers continues to grow. Below are the names of 22 family members who I know all answered the call and fought during this time. Seven of them paid the ultimate price with their lives. I will never stop remembering them and never stop thanking them for their bravery and their courage.  

My Scottish Soldiers

James RENSHAW

Herbert RENSHAW - R.Q.M.Sgt, 5th Btn Scottish Rifles (240026)

James RENSHAW - Pte, 18th Btn (4th Glasgow Yeomanry) Highland Light Infantry (350658). Killed in action, 25 March 1918, France. His body was never found and he is remembered with honour on the Pozieres Memorial, France. Aged 23 years.

William RENSHAW - service details unknown

David RENSHAW - service details unknown

Robert Speirs LINDSAY - 2nd Btn, Royal Engineers (15827), 3rd Btn (1st) Cameron Highlanders (18162)

James Close LINDSAY - 4th Btn, 2nd Scottish Rifles (B/7813)

James KEITH

Robert LINDSAY - service details unknown

Andrew LINDSAY - service details unknown

Douglas McCALLIE - Pte, 1st Btn, Royal Scots Fusiliers (8159). Killed in action, 1 Sept 1914, France. His body was never found and he is remembered with honour on the La Ferte-Sous-Jouarre Memorial, Seine-et-Marne, France. Aged 28 years.

James KEITH - Pte, 5th (1st) Btn, King’s Own Scottish Borderers (1486). Killed in action, 12 July 1915, Gallipoli, Turkey. His body was never found and he is remembered with honour on the Helles Memorial, Turkey. Aged 24 years.

Robert McCALLIE  - 5th Btn, King’s Own Scottish Borderers (1435), then 460th Btn, Agriculture Co. Labour Corp. (483477)

My New Zealand Soldiers

William Michael DWYER

Michael Joseph EGAN - Pte, NZEF 18th Reinforcements Otago Regiment 8th Co. (29756)

John Patrick EGAN - Warrant Officer, NZEF 4th Reinforcements, 1st Btn NZ Rifle Brigade, "E" Co. (23/1976)

Thomas Joseph EGAN - Corporal, NZEF 8th Reinforcements, Otago Mounted Rifles (9/1675), NZ Machine Gun Btn, No. 2 Co. "D" Squadron

James EGAN - Corporal, NZEF 35th Reinforcements, Otago Infantry “B” Co. (58993)

William Michael DWYER - Bombardier, NZEF 2nd Reinforcements, Otago Mounted Rifles, NZ Field Artillery (9/694). Died of sickness, 2 Aug 1917, France. Buried in the Etaples Military Cemetery, France. Aged 29 years.

Henry John BRUNT

John Michael REAL - NZEF, Canterbury Mounted Rifles (7/107), NZ Army Service Corp, No. 3 Co. (5/107B). Seriously injured at Gallipoli on 13 Aug 1915,   died of gunshot wounds on 1 Sept 1915 at No. 1 Australian Hospital, Heliopolis. Buried in the Cairo War Memorial Cemetery, Egypt. Aged 21 years.

Michael COSGRIFF -  Trooper, NZEF 41st Reinforcements, NZ Machine Gun Btn (74617)

Albert HURRELL - Sgt, NZEF 6th Reinforcements, 3rd Btn Wellington Regiment (10/2656)

Herbert HURRELL - Pte, NZEF 29th Reinforcements (58538)

Leslie HURRELL - Gunner, NZEF 2nd NZ Field Artillery 8th Brigade (2/43). Died of sickness, 3 November 1917, Belgium. Buried in the Zuydcoote Military Cemetery, Belgium. Aged 20 years.

Henry John BRUNT - Pte, NZEF 24th Reinforcements, 1st Btn Canterbury Regiment (43948). Killed in action, 12 Oct 1917 at Passchendaele, Belguim. Buried in the Passchendaele New British Cemetery, Zonnebeke, West-Vlaanderen, Belguim. Aged 33 years.

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The following family members were all on the NZ Reserves List. As yet I don’t know whether any of them were called-up, whether they served overseas or not, or whether they just remained on stand-by should they have ever been needed.

John COSGRIFF - Pte, NZEF 44th Reinforcements (78879), Edward COSGRIFF  - Reserve classification D, Matthew EGAN - Second Reserves, classification E, William Francis EGAN - First Reserves, William Joseph EGAN - Second Reserves, classification D, Michael Patrick EGAN - Second Reserves, classification E, James Francis EGAN  - Second Reserves, classification B, Frank SCHULTZ  - Second Reserves, classification A, Joseph SCHULTZ - Second Reserves, classification C, Thomas SCHULTZ - First Reserves, Thomas COSGRIFF, William WALLIS and Benjamin WALLIS.

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"They will grow not old, as we that are left grow old.

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning.

We will remember them."

The fourth stanza from "For the Fallen", by Laurence Binyon