EDWARD and HANNAH DESCENDANT NEWSLETTER
Issue No 6/12
September Meeting:
We were all made very welcome by our host Colleen
and Roger for the September meeting at their home.
It was a nice day but it did cool down just on lunch time
and Roger was kind enough to light the fire so everyone
was grateful to Roger.
Carmen attended the meeting via Skype, with all the
talking I don’t know how she managed to record the
minutes. It is great technology when she was able to
hear us and we could see and hear her after we all had
some input to get it working our end.
“Edward & Hannah Corner”
Edward Pugh; Some research on the surname PUGH shows;
The original form of this name was Huw. This became Hugh and ap-Hugh was then used (ap meaning Son
of), but the prefix has been assimilated into the surname over the course of time. The English form of the
name Pugh was adopted by the upper-class Welsh during the 17th century.
Hannah was buried on the 17th October 1826
in what was first called the Sandhills Cemetery
and later as Devonshire St Cemetery as that
was where the entrance finished up. It operated
from 1820 to 1888.
After the cemetery was closed the area was
resumed for the building of Central Station.
Before any building started all the remains of
those buried there were removed and most
taken along with the headstones to Bunnering
now called Botany; others were moved to
Rockwood and others by relatives.
Hannah’s remains were moved to Bunnering
by the Government.
“This railway station stands on the site of the city
of Sydney’s largest burial ground known as the
Devonshire street or ‘Sandhills’ cemetery.
Consecrated in 1820 the land was resumed in 1901
for the construction of the Central Railway”.
The photo above is the plaque at Central Station
I will cover more of Hannah’s burial at Bunnering now called Botany in future Friendship Times.
Introducing …
A Biography – Valerie Williams
My connection to the Pugh family is through my father’s mothers line Lillian May Matthews. I was born
Valerie May Whittington at the Royal Womens Hospital at Paddington. I grew up in the Eastern Suburbs in
the Darlinghurst area and when I was about 16 years of age we moved to Curlewis Street, Bondi Beach. I
spent my early years at Darlinghurst Primary School and then moved onto Dover Heights Girls High school
which in those days was a selective high school.
I left school after the gaining the Intermediate Certificate at the age of 14 years and 11 months and was
employed as a junior office assistant at the Advanx Tyre and Rubber Company at Rushcutters Bay. I
enjoyed meeting and talking with people and I decided that I would enjoy working as a Receptionist, so I
thought it best if I had training in operating large switchboards. This was usually a requirement for this type
of work and training with the GPO in those days was the best of its kind.
I applied for and trained as a Telephonist at the Sydney GPO and
during my two years there, and as telephone exchanges became
automated, I was transferred to the new Dalley Street Telephone
Exchange down near the Circular Quay end of the city. The cords
and plugs of the old switchboards were left behind and the start of
our smart phones we know today was just beginning
After leaving there I went to work as a telephonist for McIlraiths
Ltd. head office in Pitt St, Sydney which was a large food retailer
and importer and exporter with 56 branches throughout Sydney
and the suburbs. It was taken over in about 1960 by Woolworths
and so began my career with them for the next two years.
It was while working for McIlraiths that I met my first husband
Richard Small and we married at Trinity Grammar School Chapel,
Summer Hill in 1962. Richard was an accountant and while we
were married worked in the bread industry, firstly for Tip Top,
then Fielders and lastly Buttercup. At Fielders and Buttercup
Bakeries he was General Manager for the Bakery Division
We lived in the Eastwood area at Denistone, Sydney and had two children, Joanne Elizabeth and Grant
Richard. Joanne and her husband Daniel have 3 girls and I boy. Rima 16, Uma 12, Ilona 11 and Christiian
3 years. Grant and his wife Olivia had two sons Hamish 22 and Mathew 21 both now studying at
Queensland University. Needless to say after inheriting excellent genes especially from our “Pugh”
ancestors they are all an absolute delight and the joy in my life.
Apart from supporting my husband in his role I always tried to keep some independence and while the
children were young I started casual work during school hours as a market research interviewer working
door to door and at shopping centres etc. I later progressed to supervisor and training new recruits. When
the children started high school I started work three days a week as a telephonist at the very busy Neville
Jeffress advertising Agency at Neutral Bay and stayed with them for 5 years.
My marriage to Richard broke up after 22 years in 1984 but I am happy to say we still remain very friendly
and are on good terms, which is great for all concerned, especially on family occasions. Twelve months
after my marriage breakup I met a truly good man, Reg Williams who had also been through a similar
marriage breakdown. Our 5 children were all adults and getting on with their own lives so four years later in
April 1989 we were married at the historic Banjo Paterson Cottage at Gladesville.
At the time I was working full time for a very large legal firm which occupied two floors in the MLC Centre
in the heart of the Sydney CBD. During my five years working there they had approximately 22 partners,
40 solicitors and about 200 staff in all. I was the head Receptionist in charge of four other receptionists and
dealing with all the issues of such a busy reception with an important clientele.
In 1991 Reg and I decided to semi retire and quit the city life. We built a pole house at Burrill Lake near
Ulladulla on the south coast of NSW about a three hour drive from Sydney. This is indeed a little bit of
paradise especially if you love fishing as Reg does!
I now have my own home at Mollymook, about 10 minutes away but Reg and I have a great relationship and
care very much for each other. All I can say is that it works far better this way for Reg and I and we both
enjoy each others families and we attend each others family occasions together.
Reg is not keen on travelling or even going to Sydney but I flit around going to family history conferences
and talks and I am often in Sydney staying with my brother, Ron Whittington at Winston Hills or my
daughter, Joanne Martens at Warrawee on the north shore.
While doing my family history research I have travelled a lot around NSW contacting family members and I
have also been to the UK twice to do just the same thing. On one occasion spending 10 weeks driving
throughout England, Scotland, Wales and North and South Ireland looking at where some of my ancestors
from both my Mothers and Fathers side came from.
Since I have become more involved in my Pugh research in the last four years I have been to New Zealand
twice to meet family members from the Guard line. This I have found tremendously interesting and have
made good friendships with John and Narelle Guard at Kakapo Bay and Ross and Emmie Shaw in
Christchurch.
Family history is a great passion of mine and I have been researching since 1994 when I joined the Milton
Ulladulla Family History Society Inc. I was on the committee for about nine years altogether, three of those
years as President and three as Treasurer. I now take a less active role in the society as I concentrate on
catching up on my own research.
Since I retired from part time employment three years ago I enjoy playing Bridge twice a week, and I have
been a member of the View Club for about 10 years. I love reading but my main interest apart from my
family of course, will always be to continue my family history research and one day I hope to write a book
on my mother’s Ramage line and perhaps my fathers Welsh Whittington ancestors.
Thanks to Val for her story
Issue 5 in 12; Thanks to Narelle Guard for noticing my typo for the death date of Stephen Parker.
It must have been a senior’s moment like the following from a church bulletin notice.
“Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our community”
Next Meeting; Saturday 24th November at our home in Glenbrook. (2 Emu Rd. 4739 1306). Ann will
provide morning tea “with a Christmas flavour” so that is certainly something to look forward to I can assure
you.
Regards Ray (October 2012)