Millar Buzzard

12.0
Margaret Mary and Her Children

Although Margaret Mary was in dire need of money to care for her family, the process of receiving money from Millar’s Estate took until 22nd August 1922, over two years after his death.

In October 1920, Margaret Mary started the process of obtaining a living allowance - being the widow of an ex-serviceman who had died from a non-war related event within three years of discharge. It was assessed by the Repatriation Department, and they determined that she should receive 68 shillings per fortnight.

To support her family, in 1923 Margaret Mary wrote to the Repatriation Department and sought the Department’s help in securing a small loan to start a small drapery business. She was unsuccessful.

Transcript of Letter Margaret Mary Applying for Small Business Loan [107]

On 27th September 1924, she enrolled in a Midwifes Course at King Edward Hospital, Perth. Her 2 oldest children were boarding at St. Idelphonsus College in New Norcia and her two youngest children were staying with her mother in Moora. She was living at the nurse’s quarters at 59 Churchill Ave., Subiaco at the time.

In August 1925, the Sheridan family in Moora moved to Queens Park, Perth and the two youngest children stayed there. The two oldest were boarding at the Christian Brothers College, 1 St. Georges Terrace, Perth. Margaret Mary passed her midwifery exams in January 1926 and was living with her mother in Queens Park.

Margaret Mary Qualified as a Midwife

In July 1926 Margaret Mary’s first posting was as a nurse at the new Wellard Hospital, south of Perth. The Government opened up land in Wellard for vegetable growers, but it was a failure.

Margaret Mary Working at Wellard Hospital

In 1928, she had moved back to Perth and worked at the Rooklands Maternity Hospital at 42 Onslow St., South Perth. [108] At the time she was living with her parents in Queens Park. On 23rd December 1930, she applied for an Educational Allowance, for her children, from the Soldiers’ Children Education Board but was declined. [109]

By 1931 the children were 17, 15, 14 and 10 years of age and all were at boarding school. Since her children started at boarding school, Margaret Mary’s mother-in-law, Emily Alice Vincent (nee Buzzard nee Millar) had sent her sums of money to pay for the school fees, but not uniforms or books.

By 1936, Margaret Mary took over Rooklands and the first recorded birth (from newspaper accounts) at Sister Buzzard’s St. Jude’s Maternity Hospital, 42 Onslow St., South Perth, was on 30th September 1936.

In 1942, the cost of having a child at St. Jude’s, was £9 9s 0d, with an additional cost of £1 1s 0d per two day stay.

Invoice for Cost of Birth

In late 1950 she inherited £500 from Emily Alice Vincent’s estate. Margaret was registered to work as a midwife until the end of the financial year 1952/53 and retired soon after.

Nurses Registration Board Reregister Stamps

A photo of Margaret Mary and 4 sets of twins, and the accompanying story, must have been at the end of her nursing career.

Four sets of twins St. Ives Hospital, Victoria Park W.A. [110]

Margaret Mary retired from nursing soon after 1952/53.

John Angus was the first child of Millar and Margaret Mary’s to die, in a mining accident in the Northern Territory on 22nd February 1949, aged 34.

The next member of the family to die was Margaret Mary, who died on 12th March 1980, aged 93, at the Fremantle Hospital. She was buried with her grandson, Patrick Millar Buzzard, at Karrakatta Cemetery, Perth.

Margaret Mary Buzzard (nee Sheridan) Death Certificate

Alice Margaret Mary died on 7th May 1992, aged 75 and Brian Sheridan on 16th January 1997, aged 81, followed by Millar Robert Shamus, aged 85, on 24th January 2006.

In Appendix 7.0 is a short history of the Buzzard children of Moora.

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[107] National Archives Control Symbol 21813 Buzzard Millar – Service Number - 12269
[108] Roads – Dept. of Community Dev. An Index of Locations and Access to Adoption Records
[109] National Archive of Australia - BUZZARD, Millar - Service Number – 12269, Control Symbol R21813
[110] Daily News (Perth, WA : 1882 - 1955), Wednesday 19 March 1952, page 2