My mother-in-law Judith Christina Weir nee Long who we knew as Judy, was born on 8 December 1926 at her parents home of 13 Harrabrook Ave Five Dock in Sydney.
Judy’s grandmothers Elizabeth Hague Newton nee McCleer, had been a Matron and midwife at Balmain hospital. This photo on the right is of Judy’s grandmother Elizabeth in her Matron uniform with Judy’s mother Christina Emily ‘Chrissy’ Newton and her sister Ruth.
The photo below is one of the very few photos of Judy’s mother laughing. Judy’s father could be abusive towards her mother with Judy describing her recollection as a child of the domestic abuse her mother suffered. Judy always said she was grateful when she married Manning as they lived with her parents and Manning stopped the abuse. Chrissy was known for ‘disappearing’ at times. Manning would go looking for her, sometimes she was found at a friend’s place and other times sitting on a seat at the cliffs at ‘The Gap’.
Judy’s grandfather was a fitter and turner in the NSW railways but also a ‘dark horse’ with whispered family stories including forthright ones Judy told me. It has been difficult to find where and when he was born. Despite family claims he was born in England there is no birth certificate. Many claim he was born in Wolverhampton, England, but this was in fact another Thomas Newton.
His railway record states he was ‘BC’ which according to a NSW State Archivist was ‘Born in the Colony’, he had apparently provided a record of his birth for his employment but that is no longer to be found. There is a pencilled note stating ‘illegitimate’. He is supposed to have had a sister, Alice May Newton who I found a birth certificate for In England, but none for her supposed brother. Of course Judy knew none of this as I had not researched her family back when she was alive and so she always firmly stated he was from England
Judy’s father was Charles Wynne Long born on 28 June 1900 at Stanmore. His parents were Richard Long and Agnes Wynne who ran a Confectionary distribution business. Agnes Wynne’s mother was Ann McKee and father Charles Wynne. They had married in Paisley Scotland but her mother was Irish and had two sisters Agnes and Selina McKee. Selina went on to marry George Denning who was an Alderman and for a short time Mayor of Randwick, NSW. Both sisters had travelled together to Sydney arriving on 22 August 1856 with Agnes listing her occupation as a Cook. It is likely Agnes was working for James Mitchell and his wife Margaret who passed away on 3 October 1857 either before or after Margaret’s death. On 19 May 1859 Agnes McKee married James Mitchell who listed his occupation as ‘Grocer’ but later as ‘Confectioner’ of Market St, Sydney. James Mitchell died on 7 Sep 1878. Agnes sister Ann and her husband Charles Wynne along with their young family arrived in Sydney on 14 November 1879 including their young daughter Agnes named after her Aunt. Their passage was paid for by her sister Agnes Mitchell nee McKee who had inherited the confectionary and grocery business from her husband James Mitchell.
When Judy’s grandparents married Richard Long an immigrant from Chertsey, Worcestershire, England listed his occupation as a ‘Confectioner’. It is likely that Ann Wynne and her children including Agnes Wynne were working for Agnes Mitchell.
Agnes Wynne and Richard were married at 21 Market St, Sydney, the residence and shop of her namesake. Aunt Agnes Mitchell. This is the origins of the confectionary business the Long family ran until the death of Judy’s father Charles ‘Charlie’ Wynne Long and his unmarried sisters died.
Richard and Agnes Long had a large double story terrace style house on the hill at 118 Macauley Rd, Stanmore as well as the land and house on either side, two other properties in Stanmore and Newtown.
As seen above the original distribution vehicle was by horse and carriage, later Charlie Long had a truck which Judy always called the ‘lolly truck’. She would describe with much glee all the shelved walls of lollies in the truck, all her favourites including ‘clinkers’, ‘milkos’, ‘redskins’ and ‘spearmint chews’ were on that truck but amongst the inventories there was listed problematic items cigarettes and Bex powders.
Judy’s mother Chrissy developed a Bex habit as did many people at that time. She passed this habit to her daughter Judy. The dangers of kidney damage and addiction were not known in the early years of these products. Both Chrissy and Judy suffered because of these products.
Despite the surrounding domestic abuse Charlie inflicted on Chrissy Judy always recalled a happy childhood. She had a younger sister Wynne and brother Richard and spoke of her love of them regularly up until her death. For Judy and her siblings there were days at the beach, Bronte or Bondi, trips to the Blue Mountains to relieve her brother Richard’s chronic asthma with the high clear air. Bushwalking, trips to Centennial Perk, Sunday drives and trips to the theatre. Chrissy’s best friend’s husband was the manager of one of the big theatres in Sydney and Judy often recalled that her mother would have dinner on cooking then receded a call from her friend to say there were unsold seats to a show so Chrissy would switch off the stove and Chrissy would bundle them all out to the tra ride into the city to see a show. Judy also spoke of the ‘Witch of Kings Cross’ Roslyn Norton who was a neighbour of Chrissy’s theatre friend. Her flat overlooked Roslyn Norton’s flat and Judy spoke with great glee of her Mum and her friend sending Judy and her siblings to keep watch out the window to see if there was any ‘going ons’. Judy had sass and confidence, her sister Wynne was a quiet gentle soul, they were like chalk and cheese but along with their brother they were extremely close siblings all their lives.
Judy married Emanuel Stephen Weir ‘Manning’ or ‘Manny’ on 20 December 1948 at St David’s Presbyterian Church, Haberfield in Sydney. She looked gorgeous in a stunning lace wedding dress.
They lived originally after they married, wth Judy’s parents at 13 Harrabrook Ave, Five Dock before renting a small flat in Croydon then they purchased a block of land building a house at 32 Warren Parade, Punchbowl. Judy had a difficult time carrying a baby to full term, she had several miscarriages including one baby that died in the womb but she had to carry to full term. She would often talk about those times but was pragmatic in her recall. Finally they had a baby boy Christopher Stephen Weir but he was born a month premature but battled to live. Manning always told me he was a ‘dear bonny baby boy’ and shook his head with disbelief that such a lovely baby died just three days after being born. I don’t think Manning ever got over losing him. His lungs had not fully formed, the official death certificate stating ‘pulmonary congestion, cause not evident’. Judy and Manning eventually applied to adopt a child. Then Judy fell pregnant again and this time she carried the baby to full term and my husband Andrew was born. This was followed by a daughter Stephanie two years later. Judy and Manning adored their children, they wanted for nothing with gifts and everything they could afford to give them. They took them to swimming lessons, dance, piano and singing for Stephanie, a purpose built aviary for Stephanie with Manning and taking her out to buy birds on the weekends. Boys Brigade and Girls Brigade, theatre and movie shows and trips to places like the Blue Mountains and Durras the South Coast. At times Judy and Manning struggled in their marriage but Andrew recalls a happy free childhood playing with his mates, riding bikes and swimming with the kids across the street.
Judy suffered a massive cerebral haemorrhage in 1970 whilst working as a teacher on a school sports day trip to Canterbury ice skating rink. She was taken immediately to hospital by ambulance. The doctors did not think she would pull through nor recover from this stroke. Her husband Manning sat by her bedside bereft.
She recovered, I doubt she would have thought 44yrs was appropriate age to leave this earth given the aim was 99! The stroke was in her frontal lobes which by the accounts of family, affected her behaviour and thinking. Still she survived and went back to teaching casual high school, a testament to her determination. She said she retaught her brain by watching Tony Barber’s ‘Temptation’ which she eventually went on and won her round with a prize of a trip to Tasmania but when the tour company went bankrupt she lost the trip, always a disappointment. We still have the board game though that she was given.
When Manning retired, Judy and Manning moved to Vincentia where they built a house on a hill overlooking Jervis Bay. Judy had always wanted a water view and despite the house being two story and problematic for long term for hem they enjoyed their time there until Manning had a strike losing his sight on the left side ‘left hemianopia’.
He lost his license along with their ability to do basic tasks like get to the shops. Judy was not an easy person to live with, she could often be demanding and difficult especially wth Manning.
So Manning asked us to help him and Judy as he could no longer manage. So they moved up near us to a house just a few streets away.
Judy’s behaviour and a memory continued to deteriorate and her capacity to cope with basic living skills deteriorated along side. She went into care in 2003 and remained there until her death in 2008. Once in care she was much more stable with her medication well managed and a set routine. Not to say she didn’t give staff and all of us a hard time still but she was stable. She always adored her grandchildren and loved when they visited. Our children visited her often at the nursing home. We took her for picnics and shopping trips, school and dance concerts and grandparents days. Her room was overlooking the front gate of the local high school and every morning and afternoon she would watch the students come and go from school, talking to herself about what they should and shouldn’t be doing and wearing. Ever the school teacher!
So on what would have been Judy’s 99th Birthday, why was this such an important date and age for her, and the reason behind this storytelling post?
The story that Judy had always told us was about when she was a child and went to a local fair where there was a gypsy woman who told her she would live until she was 99 years old. Given Judy’s penchant for drama this prediction by a mysterious gypsy woman obviously had a huge impact on her as a small child.
This was never going to be the case given her mental and physical deterioration and when a local doctor suggested that it wasn’t likely she would live that long, I was sitting behind Judy and out of her direct sight. I sat wild eyed shaking my head at the doctor to stop. Which he ignored. Well did he cop a tirade as she insisted the gypsy woman was correct! Never one to bow to an alternative suggestion to one of her hard held views!
Ah life with Judy was always entertaining and stressful in more or less equal measure although often tipped more to the stress side.
She was forthright, kind, generous to a fault with family and friends, helpful but also demanding, insisted she was nearly always correct she was also challenging in her behaviours. She was larger than life.
About once or twice a year I would get a call from her cousin Cedric, not even announcing who he was just asking ‘has she fallen off her perch yet?’ He recalled her determined nature from a young child.
I was her main Carer from 2001 even when she went to the nursing home in 2003 I visited almost daily and helped staff with her management, with some of the nurses helping me also with her tirades until her death on 6 December 2008 just two days short of her 83rd Birthday.
I guess the gypsy woman wasn’t correct after all Judy?
Judy was endlessly resilient, you will see in the following photos her physical deterioration was relentless over her final years. Yet she rarely complained about pain or discomfort, the worst time was a severe case of thrush in her mouth which must have been excruciating and yet when we took her in a soft rabbit toy and Easter gifts she still managed to be cheerful and like a small child relishing the gift and hugging the rabbit tightly.
She loved her family fiercely and generously even if she gave them a hard time. Always the school teacher.
So happy 99th Birthday Judy, even though you never made it! We remembered and brought you some pink roses because you loved roses and a small bouquet of flowers from our garden including a rose and the two remaining pansies your favourite flower that I had nurtured to get to this day and some violas. We bought a blue jug because you loved blue, and a rose teacup as you always loved your cup of tea from the Anglican op shop for your flowers. We hope you like them.
Wildflowerings - Art Studio Diary 
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