Meet Maureen, from Rainworth…
After researching the story behind Wirths’ Circus in Paddington, we decided to find out a little more about Nev Smith, the man with the elephant. Nev’s granddaughter, Belinda, was the one who’d shared the elephant photograph with us, and when we asked about her grandparents, she was very keen for us to meet her grandmother, now in her early 90s. A Rainworth resident for over 65 years, Maureen Smith certainly had a story or two to share, and was generous enough to invite us into her home!
The delightful Maureen Smith, with her wedding photograph.
Photograph by Caylie Jeffery, 2020
Standing tall and willowy at five foot eight, Maureen was nearly 90 years old when we met - bright as a button, with a wonderful memory for stories she was happy to share. As she has never had a license, walking has kept her life local, and her body healthy. Her story is that of a true Paddington and surrounds local.
Maureen was born on December 23, 1930, in East Brisbane, to parents Matilda and Harold. Harold had been working as a labourer for Queensland Rail in Inglewood when he met Matilda, and fell in love. They moved to Chiswick St, Bardon, where Harold became a boot maker on McGregor Terrace. Maureen recalled a lack of leather shoe-making materials during the war years, given that it was being used for the soldiers’ boots and equipment, so her father learned to make sandals.
Maureen attended Rainworth State School for her first year, recalling the headmaster as being particularly frightening, so she became too scared to go to school.
Rainworth State School
Allan Miles Collection, 1978
Her parents were undeterred, however, so she began the following year at Ashgrove State School, where she remained for the duration of her primary years. She often got into trouble for coming home with wet shoes and socks, after crossing the creek on her walk home from school!
Maureen’s home, built by her late husband Nev in 1958, is situated on the boundary of Norman Buchan Park, at the bottom of the Governor’s Hill.
Wandering through Maureen’s house was like taking a leap 60 years back in time, with its floral carpets and wallpaper, century-old clocks and crockery sets, silver services, crystal vases, delicate doilies, and picture frames filled with loving photographs of extended family.
Most of the furniture was handcrafted by Nev, in beautiful silky oak, and has been so well cared for all these years.
Ever a lady, Maureen has always used a teapot - her father told her that teabags were filled with floor sweepings! “He also used to use the saucer for his tea to cool it down,” she recalled fondly.
The teapot cosies she displayed were knitted with love by her mother-in-law, and fit the decor perfectly!
Maureen had always wanted to be a dressmaker, and had her heart set on going to college to study, but sadly, she didn’t have the opportunity to sit her scholarship exams, and left school at 15 and a half.
At that time, Harold was working at the Murrarie meatworks, and found her a job in the ticket office. Maureen’s younger sister was also given a job alongside her as a typist, a role she hated. Being the rebellious sibling, her sister announced one day that she’d had enough, and left to go follow her own dreams.
Maureen continued working in the office section of the meatworks, so was spared the more confronting aspects of the factory, but the smell she will remember forever, as will the rest of us who lived near Murrarie. My own family used to call it the Land of a Thousand Smells when we lived in Hemmant!
“Meat production was a dominant industry in the Murrarie-Cannon Hill area for many decades, with major meatworks located near the riverfront there. One of the first businesses to open was the Grazier's Butchering Co. Meatworks, from where the first refrigerated meat was exported from Queensland in 1881. Thomas Borthwick & Sons established their Murrarie works in 1907, and the Swift Australian Co. Ltd built an abattoir in 1914, which was one of the largest industrial operations in Queensland at that time and which replaced several other southside slaughterhouses. This abattoir was acquired by the Metropolitan Public Abattoir Board of the Queensland Government in 1931, the same year that the Cannon Hill Saleyards were established to serve the abattoir. The meatworks were closed and sold during the 1990s.” Mapping Brisbane History
Borthwick's Meatworks on the Brisbane River at Murarrie, Brisbane, 1907.
John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland 137216.
Even though her dreams took a while to come to fruition, Maureen eventually studied at the Polytechnic College in South Brisbane, where she immersed herself in dress-making and drafting. She has always made her own clothes, and only recently gave it away because of arthritis and poor eyesight. She’d use Enid Gilchrist’s Pattern books, spending a whole day cutting everything out, after which she’d spend following day sewing, keeping her family well stitched together!
"Enid Beatrice Gilchrist OAM was an Australian fashion designer, who became well known for her numerous self-drafting sewing pattern books which were very popular in the 1950s to 1970s.
Enid studied dress design at Melbourne Technical College (now RMIT) and during World War II, worked as a dressmaker for a pattern firm. She worked with the Victorian Infant Welfare Department and the Kindergarten Union to produce a series of patterns for babies and young children. She later taught dress design at Footscray Technical College and the Emily Mcpherson College.
Enid began to make patterns using a pattern-drafting method and later joined New Idea magazine, where she published articles and patterns and produced sewing books showing clothes which people could make up from the pattern drafts.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enid_Gilchrist
Maureen’s embroidery was also exquisite, and these pieces certainly showed off her needlework skills…
Maureen met and married Nev Smith in 1954 - he was the son of Florence Bowden and George Smith who had lived in Rainworth since 1925, across the road from the piece of land Maureen and Nev would purchase in 1958.
Harold and Tilly Edmonds, 1925
Rainworth House, built by Sir Augustus Charles Gregory in 1862. Rainworth Rd was a dirt track in those days, and one had to pass through several gates to get to their properties. The land was part of a large dairy farm owned by Sir Samuel Walker Griffith.
Rainworth House was turned to face Barton St when the land was subdivided…
Current 2022 Photograph thanks to Patricia Fielding
Sir Augustus Charles Gregory (1819-1905) was an English-born Australian explorer and surveyor. Between 1846 and 1858 he undertook four major expeditions. He was the first Surveyor-General of Queensland. He was appointed a lifetime Member of the Queensland Legislative Council.
Sir Samuel Walker Griffith (1845-1920) was an Australian judge and politician who served as the inaugural Chief Justice of Australia, in office from 1903 to 1919. He also served a term as Chief Justice of Queensland and two terms as Premier of Queensland, and played a key role in the drafting of the Australian Constitution.
Maureen, and her granddaughter, Belinda, talking history and sharing stories under the mango tree, Rainworth, 2020
What an absolutely delightful experience to spend time with such a warm, and interesting woman.
Thank you to Maureen, and Belinda, for giving us all a glimpse into the fascinating history of the Smith family of Rainworth…
How much do the tendrils of Brisbane’s history intertwine with your family’s story?
