The Story of Grace Olive Brown

This is the story of my paternal Grandmother, Grace Olive Brown (1885-1974).

Grace Olive Brown - this is how I remember my Gran!
(Photo contributed by Carmel Ryan)

Yes, you read that correctly .... born 1885 ... passed away in 1974!!  It's amazing to think of the changes my Gran would have seen, read about and heard about in her lifetime!

The year of my Granny's birth, 1885, saw the world's first mass production of shoes, the arrival of the Statue of Liberty in New York from France, the successful testing of an anti-rabies vaccine by Louis Pasteur, the premiere of John Brahm's '4th Symphony in E', the publication of Pope Leo X111's encyclical 'Immortale Dei' and the US publication of Mark Twain's 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'.

The year of Grace's passing, 1974, saw the resignation of President Richard Nixon following the Watergate Scandal, the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis, the 'Rumble in the Jungle' boxing match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, the discovery of the Terracotta Army of Qin Shi Huang in China, and Swedish pop group ABBA's win at the Eurovision Song Contest with their song 'Waterloo'!

Grace lived through times of immense change and witnessed the world transform in ways that were unimaginable when she was born. 

My grandmother was born in February of 1885 in Lismore, New South Wales.  Her father, Richard Brown, was 23 and her mother Ellen Cusack was 22.  

Map showing Lismore, located in the Northern Rivers Region of New South Wales, Australia.

Grace was the first born of four daughters.  Her sister Lillian was born in 1887, when Grace was 2 years old.  Sister Elsie Myrtle was born in 1890 when Grace was 5, and Grace's youngest sister Marcella May was born in 1892 when Grace was 7.  This group of sisters remained close throughout their lifetimes. 

 
The Brown family lived a relatively comfortable life in Lismore and Grace would have become aware quite early on that her family name was well known and respected in the town.  All of the Brown girls could trace their lineage on both sides of their family to very hardy pioneer stock with roots that extended back to the very beginnings of Lismore (before it was named Lismore!).

On their paternal side, Grace and her sisters were proud granddaughters of Henry Johnson Brown and Caroline Penelope Browning.

In the early 1840s, the Brownings were reputed to be the first white settlers of what was later to become known as Lismore, and Grace's grandmother Caroline was one of the first white women to settle and live in and around the town.  The Browns were also amongst the first few settlers.  Grace's grandfather Henry J. Brown was the first hotel-keeper in Lismore, and built the first school on the bank of Brown's Creek, which bore his name.  Grace's Uncle Alexander Brown was reputedly the first white child born in the Richmond River Valley in an area of virgin scrubland, later to become known as Lismore.

Grace and her sisters were also granddaughters of Patrick Cusack and Eliza Exton on their maternal side.  

Their grandfather Patrick was a convict transported out from Ireland in 1849, aged 18, along with his older brother, for "larceny of a sheep".   He had worked in the early days of the timber trade around Lismore and would have faced many trials and difficulties, including encounters with the indigenous Aboriginal people.  Grace's grandmother Eliza came out to Australia in 1844 with her father, mother and siblings.  Eliza's father, James Exton, was employed as a shepherd, working on sheep stations in the Clarence River region, and later worked as a cedar cutter.  

Grace was descended from a long line of tenacious people, gritty and determined to make the best of quite adverse conditions and resolute in the face of hardship.

In July of 1906, Grace married George Thomas Connors at St. Mary's Church (then known as the Pro-Cathedral) in Lismore.  She was 21 years old and he was 26. Their union would span over six decades and bless them with 11 children, although tragically, only nine would survive to adulthood.

Grace Olive Brown
(Photo contributed by John Ryan)

I'm not entirely sure what the occasion might have been for this special studio photo taken of Grace, but given she's wearing her wedding ring, I'm assuming it was likely taken on her wedding day when Grace was 21.

It's interesting to note that Grace married George according to the rites of the Roman Catholic Church.  Her parents had married according to the rites of the Presbyterian Church.  Grace's father had been buried in the Church of England portion of the Lismore Cemetery, although Grace's mother was buried in the Catholic portion of the Rookwood Cemetery.  I do think Grace herself converted to the Catholic Church upon her marriage to George.  They were very devout Catholics for the remainder of their lives.

Married life for Grace began in Lismore, which was her home town, and that is where Grace gave birth to their first child, Beryl Agnes, in 1907.  Over the following ten years however, Grace and George, and their growing family, moved around quite a bit, following opportunities for George to earn an income.

Map showing Mullumbimby, north-east of Lismore

When aged 23, Grace gave birth to Colin Vincent in 1908.  

The family were living in Mullumbimby, New South Wales, which is about 30 miles north-east of Lismore.  

Thomas Richard came along in 1911, when Grace was aged 26.  He was also born in Mullumbimby. 

Sadly, that was also the year that Grace's sister Lillian died.  Lillian suffered complications after giving birth just twelve days earlier and died at the age of 24.  This would have been a devastating time for the tightly-knit group of sisters and no doubt Grace would have travelled back to Lismore to be with her family.

Grace gave birth to George Thomas in 1914, when she was 28 years old.

In 1915, when Grace was 30 years old, she gave birth to Christina Grace.  At this time the family were back living in North Lismore. 

During the tumultuous years of World War 1, Grace and her husband George started moving further north in New South Wales and on up to the southern areas of Queensland.  This may have been because there were better job opportunities up that way, offering the promise of a better life for the family.

Grace gave birth to Olga May in 1919, when she was aged 34.

Leo was born in Lismore, New South Wales, in 1921; 

but when Marguerite was born in 1922, the family were living in Killarney, located around 100 miles to the north-west of Lismore and in the state of Queensland.

Tragically, Leo died when he was just 3 days old, and Marguerite passed away when she was 1 month old.  (More detail can be found here: The Story of the Almost Forgotten Children)  Grace would have keenly felt the devastating loss of both her babies within those two years.  It takes a remarkable amount of inner fortitude and strength to carry on after such tragedy.

At the time of Marguerite's death in January of 1923, the family were living not far from Killarney, but once again living back in New South Wales.  They were residing in Legume, which is in the Tenterfield Shire of northern inland New South Wales, very close to the Queensland border.

Map showing Maleny in Queensland

Then, by the time Grace gave birth to her twin boys, Bede William (my father) and Reginald Frederick in 1924, when she was 39 years old, the family were living near Maleny in Queensland.  

Maleny was located over 200 miles north of Lismore and in a different state once more.

The 1925 Australian Electoral Roll shows Grace and George living in Booroobin, just outside Maleny.

Map showing Beaudesert, Queensland

The youngest of the children, Betty, was born in 1929 in the Beaudesert area of Queensland when Grace was aged 44.

Beaudesert in Queensland was over 100 miles north of Grace's hometown Lismore, which was in New South Wales.

Memories shared by my cousin John (based on things he had heard from my Aunts Chris and Olga, Grace's elder daughters, concerning the period of time between 1920 and 1936):

"The family moved around a fair bit. They were around the Beaudesert area for a good while as well. As Chrissy used to say they were milkers, and Pop managed Dairy Farms for the influential Collins Family around Rathdowney."

Map showing Gympie in Queensland

The family moved again sometime in the early 1930s, finally settling in Gympie in Queensland.  This was over 250 miles from Grace's hometown back in New South Wales, but this was where Grace would live out the remainder of her life.

The family lived in various locations in the town of Gympie over the following years, with Electoral Roll records offering glimpses into their changing addresses. 

 

The 1936 Electoral Roll records shows Grace living on Wickham Street in Gympie, while the remainder of the family were all living in Mellor Street.  I'm not entirely sure why Grace was at Wickham Street on the day of the census, so that's a subject for further investigation.  I do however have it on the best authority (other family members) that Grace was indeed still living with her husband and had not moved out!!

By the following year however all the family were in one place, and the 1937 Electoral Roll shows Grace living on O'Connell Street.

The 1940s was another significant period of time in Grace's life.  Her mother, Ellen Cusack, passed away in mid-1942 at the age of 79.  Her father, Richard Joseph Brown, passed away in mid-1947 at the age of 86. 

Australia became involved in World War 11 and two of Grace's sons enlisted with the AIF (Australian Infantry Forces).  

Thomas (known as Tommy) enlisted very early on, in June of 1940, serving with the 2/15 Australian Infantry Battalion, holding the rank of private.  Tommy saw action in the Middle East and in New Guinea, which left wounds not visible to the eye but nonetheless deeply traumatic.  

Thankfully, Tommy did return home but Grace would have no doubt wept at the changes she would have seen in her son. 

Reginald (known as Reggie) enlisted in September of 1943, serving with the 2/13 Composite Anti Aircraft Regiment and holding the rank of gunner.  He served in northern Australia and Borneo.

Both of Grace's boys were back home by the end of 1946.

Grace Olive Brown
(Photo contributed by Carmel Ryan)

The photo above shows Grace down town in Gympie probably around 1946, when she was 61.  That's my cousin Ann, shopping with her Granny in the days when you did small regular shops, only purchasing what you really needed and then carrying it home in woven baskets!  Ann remembers Granny walking into town every day, always dressed up in her stockings, gloves and hat.

 

 

This is not such a great photo, but it shows Grace and George possibly in 1950 when they Grace would have been around 65 and George around 70 years old.

These two photos were taken at O'Connell Street and it looks like they were taken to mark a very special occasion, as my cousin Ann is dressed in rather special attire, wearing a long white dress and a gorgeous bow in her hair.

The top photo in the collage shows Grace and George at the back, with their youngest daughter Betty (who looks like she's wearing her nurse uniform), and Granddaughters Pat and Ann.  The bottom photo shows Grandad George (Grace's husband) on the right, with grandchildren Ann, Graham and Pat, along with son-in-law Martin (father of Graham and Pat).

According to Electoral Roll records, by the end of the 1950s the family had moved into a high set house in Gladstone Road, perched on the side of a rather steep hill. For me, that is the house that will always be associated with the enduring memories I have of my Gran.

I knew her only as an old woman.  She was already 74 years old by the time I was born, so I never knew the younger, more vibrant woman that I'm sure she was.  The Granny I knew spent most of her time sitting quietly out near the front door in the sunshine, having little Nanna naps.  My memories are mostly of a sleeping Grace!!

Memories of Granny Grace from my brother Mark:

"I don’t remember much about Granny, other than all she did was sit on the verandah and then fall asleep in the chair.  I do remember Granny and Beryl would always fall asleep in front of the TV, and then the snoring contest started.  I also remember Dad bought one of those laughing box things one year before we all went to Gympie (one of the few times Dad wasn’t working over Christmas) and he stuck it under the pillow on Granny's seat on the veranda. When she sat down we all wondered if the shock would kill her, but it didn’t!  All she did was laugh and said (something like) 'Bede, you naughty boy!'"

This photo shows Grace holding me when I was probably about 6 months old, on the front stairs of the Gladstone Street home.  That's the Grace I knew ... a white-haired, old, rather frail, quietly spoken lady.  A gentle woman.

I have quite vivid memories of the Gladstone Street home.  My father, brother and myself would head there during school holidays every second year or so.  We travelled by train, which in those days was quite a long trip that took days, as we would stop at every train station along the journey down the coast.  When we arrived in Gympie, we were always welcomed so warmly by Granny and the extended family that we wanted to stay for much, much longer. 

I remember the quirky old wooden greenhouse attached to the side of the house as you walked up those wooden stairs and in through the front door.

You can see the latticed wooden greenhouse off to the left in these photos.  I always thought it was a strange set-up, but loved seeing the plants inside the house.

The top photo shows my Aunt Chris holding me during my first visit to Gympie, and the bottom photo shows my Aunt Betty with my cousin looking very kindly at the baby (me) in Grace's arms!

I also remember all the concrete garden beds around the front and side yards, some of which are evident in this photo taken in 1961.  They were full of bright, colourful flowers like Gerberas, Nasturtiums, and Sweet Peas.

One of Grace's sister's grandchildren remembers visiting Grace at Gladstone Street with his grandmother Marcella (one of Grace's treasured sisters), and also vividly remembers the flowers in the garden.

"I took my grandmother up for a holiday in the train, I spent the week digging up Gerberas and replanting them in the front of the house."    (Thanks Tony McDermid)

The head of the dining room table was Grace's spot!  Always!  As my brother fondly recalls,

"I remember she was the only one to sit in the big chair at the head of the table.  Not even Dad or Great Aunt Elsie (the other treasured sister) could sit in that chair."

Other memories come flooding back ... the taste of the tank water from the kitchen tap, the smell of the huge linen press in the bathroom, the beautiful rather posh-looking lounge room curtains; and downstairs, the old-fashioned wooden hoist-up clothesline (not sure what else to call it!), the old copper boiler and wringer washer in the laundry. 

Photos in the public domain - found on Google

All these things at Granny's house harked back to a different era.

My cousin Carmel, who knew Grace earlier than I did, shared some very fond memories of our Granny.

"Granny was always welcoming.  Loved her family.  She seemed to be the gentle authority in the house. Every Christmas the house in Gladstone Street would be full of calico-bagged Xmas puddings strung throughout the kitchen and the hallway, laden with 3 d's and 6 d's."

One of the family stories, re-told by my cousin, concerned a Golden Casket win.

"I knew Granny had won the casket ... about £6000.  The four sisters (Grace's daughters) couldn't afford much for Mother's Day, so between them bought Granny a casket ticket.  When Mr. Doran rang her from the newsagency to tell her, she just replied 'Really?'  Never one to become over-excited, she also didn't want to be interviewed by the local paper."

Grace's calm response to the news, "Really?", exemplified her composed nature.

My cousin Ann:  "I remember her plum puddings.  She could make beautiful coconut ice too.  I have never tasted coconut ice like hers.  She could cook beautiful roast dinners as well, and her fruit cake was delicious.  Granny would always cook with her apron on."

My cousin Karen has very fond memories of Christmas Day at Gladstone Street:  "I remember every Christmas Day there was the traditional roast for lunch, but let's not forget the watermelon sitting in the wash tub downstairs.  At 3.00 pm it was cut!  Such beautiful memories."

Grace Olive Brown and George Connors
taken in 1963 when Grace was 78 and George was 82
(Photo contributed by Carmel Ryan)

In 1966, after celebrating their diamond anniversary, Grace's husband George passed away at the age of 86.  Grace herself was 81, and lived on for eight more years, passing away in 1974 at the age of 89.

Remarkably, Grace's family followed in her footsteps, living quite long lives. 

Grace's eldest child, Beryl, lived to the ripe old age of 92.  

Her son Colin lived until he was 84.  

Thomas passed when he was 61.  

George Jnr. lived until he was 76.  

Christina lived to 85 years of age.  

Olga lived until she was 94.  

Bede passed when he was 91.  

Reggie passed when he was 72.  

Grace's youngest child, Betty, lived until she was 93.  A family tale of longevity!

 

Grace was buried at the Gympie Cemetery alongside her beloved husband George.

Many, many years after Granny's death (20 years in fact), I took my own boys (Grace's great grandchildren) on a train trip down to Gympie to stay at their Great Granny's house ... just as I had done as a child.  My boys were about the same age as I was during the time of my clearest memories of my Granny.

The train trip was much shorter on this occasion.  Such a huge difference.  Granny's old wooden house was, however, almost the same as I had remembered it. The greenhouse structure on the side was gone, and lots of the garden beds had disappeared outside, but it felt comforting to be back in that house once more!

The rather posh-looking lounge room curtains were there, and made a lovely back drop for a couple of family photos.  The top shot shows Grace's granddaughter (my cousin Ann), three of Grace's great grandchildren (Ann's children) and a great great grandchild.  The bottom shot shows some of Grace's children (my Dad Bede; my Aunts Betty, Olga, Chris and Beryl; and my Uncle John Frederick, known to all in the family as 'Bunny').  Treasured photos.


Special Note to any family members:  If you have memories to add, photos or information to share, can I graciously ask that you do so.  Please use the comments box below or email me.  It may prove to be invaluable to the story and provide future generations with something to truly treasure.