52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – Week 12: Misfortune

The 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge this week is Misfortune.  There are many stories of tragedy in any family, however, the story that has always made me sad is the events that unfolded in my grandma’s family in 1944.

.

Week 12 – Misfortune

.

The year was 1944 and World War II had been raging for 5 years.  Australian’s were war-weary and the constant wait for news of their sons fighting would have drained them.  My great-grandparents Fletcher and Gladys Brand were like many others, waiting for news of their son, Al, who was serving in the military.  They hoped that he would return to them safely, yet, they were all too aware of the fickle nature of war.

.

Extended Family

On the 20 November 1941, Gladys’ nephew, Kenneth Butler, the son of her sister Alice Matheson and Reverand Claude Butler, died aboard the HMAS Sydney when it was sunk by the HSK Kormoran in the Indian Ocean.¹  Her sister Ella Matheson was awaiting news of her son Stan Lance, who was missing in action, presumed dead in Asia.²  Stan was to eventually return home after having spent a number of years as a Prisoner of War in Thailand.²

The family was continuing on as best they could, working their dairy farm in Mt Helena, whilst trying to stay optimistic.  Their eldest daughter Marj (my grandma) was pregnant with her first child and the family eagerly awaited the birth – a positive in such a time of tragedy.  The other children Dudley, 20, Donald, 16, and Gwen, 12 all did their bit to provide for the family.

.

Hilton Dudley Brand

.

The family was devastated when they received the news that 20-year-old Dudley had died.  He had not long returned from active service and was working as a blacksmith when he  “was killed instantly……when he fell from a motor truck near the 27-mile peg on the Great Eastern-highway.  The twin rear wheels of the truck passed over his head.”³

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Donald Raymond Brand

.

Imagine the family’s dismay when, on 6th December 1944, their youngest boy 16-year-old Donald died on the family farm.  Fletcher and Donald had been working in the shed when the  “circular saw he was using broke, and a piece struck him on the head. He sustained a fractured skull.”⁴   The second funeral in six months was arranged, and the boys were buried together at Karrakatta Cemetery.^5,6
.
.

.

The shock of Donald’s death sent Marj into premature labour with my mother, who was born just over a week later.

.

.

The family were even more worried about Al.   Thankfully he arrived home safely at the end of the war and the boys were often fondly remembered.

.

.

What misfortune have you discovered in your family history?  Please leave a comment below.

Bibliography

1. Australian War Memorial, Kenneth Norman Hilton Butler, Roll of Honour, R1690166, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P10293468, Accessed 3 April 2018.

2. Australian War Memorial, K S Lance, Service Number: WX15951, Prisoner of War Record, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1452422, Accessed 20 April 2016.

3. 1944 ‘Killed Instantly.’, Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 – 1954), 22 June, p. 46. , http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article38554896, Accessed 11 October 2016.

4. 1945 ‘Saw Breaks, Kills Boy’, The Daily News (Perth, WA : 1882 – 1950), 17 January, p. 5. (City Final),  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article78769107, Accessed 11 October 2016.

5. Metropolitan Cemeteries Board, Western Australia, Burial of Dudley Hilton Brand, Application Number: KB00074897, Accessed 11 October 2016.

6. Metropolitan Cemeteries Board, Western Australia, Burial of Donald Raymond Brand, Application Number: KB00076139, Accessed 11 October 2016.

Image Credits

a. C.1943 Hilton Dudley Brand, Original in author’s possession.

b. C.1944 Donald Raymond Brand, Original in author’s possession.