vinCent john hollis
(Notes taken by Dorothy Small when speaking to Sara Swanson in 2004).
Vincent John Hollis (died in 1943 at age 59) and Mary Josephine McKenna (died in 1938 at 48 years).
Their home at Hollisdale was built in two parts. There was covered fireplace which was built off the kitchen, with a front vernadah, hall and landing in between. Above, there were 2 bedrooms and 2 skillion rooms.
Mary McKenna worked at home - gardening, sewing, making jams and preserves. Father was not a farmer. In the early days he grew corn and took it to Bains Bridge to go by water to Sydney. The corn was thrashed. Father started to dairy, and looked after the property.
The McKennas originally came from Sydney to the Hastings where they lived on a farm at Clover Hills. Her father lived two or three farms away on the farm and subsequently worked by her uncle, Dan Hollis. Mary McKenna and her sisters were also educated in Sydney, possibly at Wooloomoolloo. Here it was, no doubt that she had obtained the personal skills that prompted her to push her children into a good education, and to push her daughters out into the world. One the other hand, she was not a dancer, notwithstanding that her husband loved dancing and she did not always accompany her husband and her daughters when he took them to dances and balls when they were in their teens and twenties.
Mary travelled to Sydney at least once per year, where some of her sisters lived. There they apparently went shopping, and it was here that she purchased linens and cloths which she brought home. Trips to Sydney would not have been a common practice for farmer's wives on the Hastings, and especially not a common practice for a woman with a young family. She was a recognised dressmaker, and made clothes for her children, including gowns for her older daughters to wear to dances and balls.
At the same time, she was a mother of nine children, born over a period of 16 years. To an extent, it seems, the elder sisters, Nellie and Sara assisted to look after the younger siblings, and those who attended the Port Macquarie Convent for one year (for "finishing"?) after they had completed their local schooling. All of the other children went away to select schools. The four other girls to Lochinvar, Vincent to Joeys at Hunters Hill, Bernard to Woodlawn and Tom to a school at Armidale. All of the children were pushed into, and soon got into the workforce, and all were working when their mother died at 48 years of age. Few knew that she had rheumatic fever as a child, an ailment which finally played a part in the heart attack which led to her death.
Whilst it doesn't appear that Vincent and Mary were well off, nonetheless they faced the expenses of sending their children away to selective schools.
Vincent had for some years grown substantial quantities of corn (maize), and when ripe, he engaged a man who brought a machine to thrash the corn, which was then bagged, taken to Bains Bridge, where it was put on a punt, taken to Port Macquarie and shipped to Sydney. He made good money from this, and it is thought that he was not "short of a quid" when he got married.
Vincent John Hollis (died in 1943 at age 59) and Mary Josephine McKenna (died in 1938 at 48 years).
Their home at Hollisdale was built in two parts. There was covered fireplace which was built off the kitchen, with a front vernadah, hall and landing in between. Above, there were 2 bedrooms and 2 skillion rooms.
Mary McKenna worked at home - gardening, sewing, making jams and preserves. Father was not a farmer. In the early days he grew corn and took it to Bains Bridge to go by water to Sydney. The corn was thrashed. Father started to dairy, and looked after the property.
The McKennas originally came from Sydney to the Hastings where they lived on a farm at Clover Hills. Her father lived two or three farms away on the farm and subsequently worked by her uncle, Dan Hollis. Mary McKenna and her sisters were also educated in Sydney, possibly at Wooloomoolloo. Here it was, no doubt that she had obtained the personal skills that prompted her to push her children into a good education, and to push her daughters out into the world. One the other hand, she was not a dancer, notwithstanding that her husband loved dancing and she did not always accompany her husband and her daughters when he took them to dances and balls when they were in their teens and twenties.
Mary travelled to Sydney at least once per year, where some of her sisters lived. There they apparently went shopping, and it was here that she purchased linens and cloths which she brought home. Trips to Sydney would not have been a common practice for farmer's wives on the Hastings, and especially not a common practice for a woman with a young family. She was a recognised dressmaker, and made clothes for her children, including gowns for her older daughters to wear to dances and balls.
At the same time, she was a mother of nine children, born over a period of 16 years. To an extent, it seems, the elder sisters, Nellie and Sara assisted to look after the younger siblings, and those who attended the Port Macquarie Convent for one year (for "finishing"?) after they had completed their local schooling. All of the other children went away to select schools. The four other girls to Lochinvar, Vincent to Joeys at Hunters Hill, Bernard to Woodlawn and Tom to a school at Armidale. All of the children were pushed into, and soon got into the workforce, and all were working when their mother died at 48 years of age. Few knew that she had rheumatic fever as a child, an ailment which finally played a part in the heart attack which led to her death.
Whilst it doesn't appear that Vincent and Mary were well off, nonetheless they faced the expenses of sending their children away to selective schools.
Vincent had for some years grown substantial quantities of corn (maize), and when ripe, he engaged a man who brought a machine to thrash the corn, which was then bagged, taken to Bains Bridge, where it was put on a punt, taken to Port Macquarie and shipped to Sydney. He made good money from this, and it is thought that he was not "short of a quid" when he got married.
The first car was a dodge when Sarah was 11.
The Rosendales came and settled at old Roach's house.
Sarah went to St Jospeh's for a year. Sarah and Nellie went for music lessons to the Rosendales.
Nellie and Sarah went to dances, chaperoned by their father - old time dances. Percy and Nellie's partner were good dancers. Sarah and Percy danced away. Percy came with the mail. They were engaged about a year - Sarah was the first of the family to marry.
The Rosendales came and settled at old Roach's house.
Sarah went to St Jospeh's for a year. Sarah and Nellie went for music lessons to the Rosendales.
Nellie and Sarah went to dances, chaperoned by their father - old time dances. Percy and Nellie's partner were good dancers. Sarah and Percy danced away. Percy came with the mail. They were engaged about a year - Sarah was the first of the family to marry.
The fire
In about 1922, Vincent woke Sara, Nellie and Vincent to tell them to get up - the house was on fire. Mary was absent in Sydney at the time. Vince was sent up the road to Criag's to get help. They rang the post office - at the time Vince's dad's house (it then belonged to Dan Hollis), and they galvanised the neighbourhood to come to render assistance.
Like many houses at the time, the kitchen was set apart from the residential rooms. In fact, the house was not insubstantial, and the kitchen are comprised a large kitchen, a large dining room, a pantry and a vernadah. The part of the house was destroyed, and damage done to the bedroom section. When help arrived, water was bucketed from the creek by neighbours to put the fire out. But the damage had been done.
Bill Craig was engaged to rebuild. He lived close by but had a reputation for procrastination. It was some considerable time before it was rebuilt.
A comic side to the story was that Vince, who was about 8 years old, was sent by his father up to the Craigs home well over 1km away. He may have had assistance from the light of the fire to find his way until he got to the top of the hill. After that he would have been in pitch black darkness. He had to make his way through the boundary fence, through the stinging nettles within the boundary fence, and then through the house gate which was always kept closed. Apparently he then ran up and down the hall of the house calling, "Mrs Craig, the house is on fire". Only when a light was turned on was it seen that Vince had rushed from the house and made this challenging journey with no pants!
At least one more child - the baby Dolly, was also present in the house at the time.