Violet Jane Lee was born at Wauchope and Baptised in Port Macquarie. She had several brothers and sisters and married at 19 years to Thomas Fowler.
They had several children and according to my grandmother but she suffered mental abuse and left the family home to live with a brother in Port Macquarie. She had a premiture baby my Aunty Madge known by several names Dixie being the most common. Aunty Madge needed to be wrapped in cotton wool and oiled and fed through gauze according to my grandmother Voilet Jane Lee. It was at this boarding house that she met my grandfather Arthur Pyke and they married in Belligen. My mother Nellie Ann Pyke was born in Dungog where my grandfather worked as an engineer on Chichester Dam (Newcastles water supply)
When my mother was 3 and Aunty Madge was 5 they sailed back to my grandfathers home in UK. to see Arthur's mum but sadly she died just before they arrived. The family lived in UK for a couple of years but returned to Australia so that Nellie and Madge could go to school.
Nana and Pop had a rather good life as he always had work even during the depression. At 60years my grandmother built a tennis court and club house. She loved gardening and they always had a huge veggie patch.
When we bought the family home at Earlwood people would drive for miles to admire our garden. Nana would spend hours in the garden and Pop would spend hours in his workshed making thilngs. He made a toy train for my sister and I that we sat on and it would travel around the garden on tracks.
Carol and I certainly had a great childhood.
Robin Doohan nee Godfrey
