Family:James Groves and Sarah Porter (1)

Elizabeth, their first child, was born at Smythesdale in l879. After leaving school it is believed she worked as a domestic in the area for some time before leaving to visit her Aunts Elizabeth and Mary, in N.S.W.

George Atkins introduced Elizabeth to his nephew, George Atkins Jobson, and they married in Victoria in 1908. Their first home was on Cabbage Tree Island, at the mouth of the Manning River. After a brief stay there they moved to Upper Lansdowne where they were engaged in dairy farming and where their family of two boys and two girls were born. The family moved to Victoria Street, Taree in 1923. George had the contract for delivery of ice and butter from the Lower Manning Factory to all of Taree. Allan aged about 10 had to help on the ice run before school George later had a taxi business owning his own car. He built a home at the back of Victoria Street premises where Elizabeth died in 1929, at the age of 49.

Linton became an apprentice blacksmith and was later employed by the Forestry Commission in that trade. He enlisted and served in Borneo in World War 2.

Melvie, after finishing school worked as a domestic at the cookery school in Taree until she married and moved to Coopernook.

Allan’s first job was with a road contractor working on the streets of Taree, a pretty tough job for a lad just out of school. “The Nipper” he was called. He later worked at Gilmores re-treading tyres and spray painting in his Father’s business.

Anne came to Victoria in her teens to help Grandma at Smythesdale, then worked in Melbourne for some months before returninq to Sydney. Elizabeth and George are buried in the grounds of St. Marks Church of England, Scotts Creek, Mitchells Island.

JAMES WILLIAM or Will as he was known to most people, was born at Smythesdale in 1882. He left Smythesdale school at an early age and began to work as a yard boy at the hotel of Eli Howarth at Staffordshire Reef. He later trained and became a fully qualified engine driver, working at Allandale, Avoca, Yellow Glen, Ross Creek, and Berringa mines. After spending four years working in the timber industry near Greymouth, in New Zealand, he returned to Victoria and married Rosalinda Heard at All Saints church of England, Ballarat in 1919. They made their home at Birchip where Will was employed on engines at the flour mill. While there his employer in New Zealand wrote asking him to return to Greymouth, which he did, but this time accompanied by his wife. They spent several years there, during which time their only child, May, was born, They returned again to Smythesdale to care for grandma Heard in the early 1920’s. Will was then employed by the Grenville Shire Council as an engine driver, crushing metal for road making. Will died in 1949, aged 67, and Rosalinda in 1956, They are buried in the Smythesdale-Scarsdale cemetery. Their daughter, May, like her grandmother did the catering for the Prince of Wales Lodge for six years and takes a keen interest in many other local organisations.

FRANCIS JOHN was born in Smythesdale in 1884. He left home in his early years to work in N.S.W. He became an engine driver and spent some years operating the dredges at the tin mines in Tingha,16 miles south of Inverell. Frank married Jessie Parker in 1906 at Uralla and returned to live at Tingha. They had a family of six daughters, Beryl having died at an early age. They later moved to Rocky River, near Uralla, where they had a small orchard. Frank at this stage became a shearers cook and travelled some 400 miles to the various sheds during the shearing season. Their next move was to Armidale, where they had a small cafe, finally settling in Inverell where Frank and Jessie operated a boarding house, with the help of their five daughters.Frank continued his usual round of cooking for the shearers until he reached the age of 60, when he decided to reduce his travelling and accepted contracts at sheds close to Inverell. Frank died in 1947 and Jessie in 1955. Both are buried in Inverell cemetery.

ANNIE, MAY, and BEATRICE, were all born at Smythesdale in 1887, 1890 and 1892. After leaving school they stayed some years in the district before moving to Melbourne to take up positions as domestics in some of the larger homes in Hawthorn, Brighton, and St. Kilda. Annie and Beatrice were both employed by the Benjamin family in Bay Street, Brighton, in 1913. Arthur Cusworth was employed as a gardener at the same residence, and he and Annie married at Holy Trinity, Anglican Church, East Melbourne in l914. They set up home on a small orchard property in Graydens Road, Hastings, growing vegetables until the fruit trees matured. Their sons, Alfred and George, were born at Hastings but sadly did not really know their father. Arthur died in 1919 of pneumonic influenza, the plague, as it was called at the time. Annie sold the farm and with the boys moved to Hawthorn to house keep for George Warner, a widower with one daughter. Annie and George married at Sorrento in 1921 and lived on in the Hawthorn home until their deaths; George in 1952 and Annie in 1962.

MAY married William Gierck at Holy Trinity, Anglican Church, East Melbourne in 1917. They made their home in Kew, where their family, Allan, Fred, Keith and Maizie were born. During the 1930’s the family moved to Smythesdale to live in the home of the late James Porter, returning again to Kew in 1936 May died suddenly in 1952 and Will in 1950.

BEATRICE married late in life to Joseph Simpson, a widower with one son. Beatrice assisted Joe in his delicatessen business which he operated from home and made deliveries by horse and cart to regular customers. Beatrice lived on in their Richmond home for some years after Joe’s death but failing health compelled her to move in with her sister, Ethel, also in Richmond, and then to Launching Place where she died in 1973, aged 81. She is buried in the Smythesdales-Sarsdale cemetery.

ALICE MAUD was born at Smythesdale in l894. She spent her early life at home with her parents but worked briefly in a munitions factory. She developed a mental illness which could not be treated owing to the lack of medical knowledge. Her mother coped at home as long as was possible but was forced to admit Alice to Mont Park Mental Hospital in the early l93O’s. She was later transferred to Sunbury and finally to Ballarat until her health failed and she was admitted to the Begonia Nursing Home where her long lonely life ended on Christmas Eve 1984, aged 90. She is buried at Smythesdale-Scarsdale cemetery.

FREDERICK ERNEST was born at Smythesdale in 1897. After leaving school he helped at home on the farm. He married Lily McDonald in 1940 and until their house was built at Ross creek, Fred commuted from Smythesdale to work the farm which was mainly dairying. In May 1946 Sarah’s home was dismantled and transported to Ross Creek and used in the building of Fred’s home. Aunt Lil’s diary states, the floor boards were in perfect condition after almost 70 years. Lil was the postmistress in Smythesdale for some years before her marriage. Fred died suddenly in 1958, aged 61, and Lil moved back to Maryborough to be near her own family.

ETHEL was born at Smythesdale in 1906 and like her older sisters came to Melbourne to work before transferring to Sydney. She returned to Smythesdale to care for her mother in 1936, returning again to Sydney in 1937 after her mother died. Ethel married George Bishop in Sydney in 1944 and after the war joined George in Kentucky U.S.A. They returned to Melbourne in 1953 and resided in Richmond until 1973 when they moved to a new home at Launching P1ace. For the past three years Ethel has been in failing health and is presently in a nursing home in Healesville.

Alfred Cusworth-Warner Grandson of Sarah.