Don Roulston Buzzard

11.0
Settling Down in W.A. after the War

After arriving back in W.A., Brian looked up his former employers at Wesfarmers and was offered a job in Dowerin W.A.

Towns associated with the Buzzard Family

The Wesfarmers company were stockists and agents whose main clients were farmers. They bought and sold land and farms, supplied farmers with merchandise for their farms and sold their livestock.

Brian and Don move to Dowerin, W.A.

Before the war, he at been at Bruce Rock [not Dowerin as stated in the newspaper article above] but this position had was taken up by a friend of Brian’s and with his two children and wife had been settled in the town for a several years. The Government during the war years had passed a law requiring employers to offer returned service personnel their old positions but Brian declined to pursue his old job and settled with Don and David in Dowerin.

However, housing was an issue and the local Dowerin newspaper made light of the situation.

Housing for ex-servicemen was keenly contested.

By May 1946, Don and Brian had secured a home and Margaret Mary Sheridan, Don’s mother-in-law decided to visit them.

Visit by mother-in-law.

Brian, in his autobiography, commented that Don seemed to really like country life considering she was raised in the city of Sydney and then the somewhat ordered life in the WAAAF. He may have forgotten that Don’s former times as a child in Griffith may have aroused good memories of living in the country.

Don and Brian were still in Dowerin on 19th November 1946 as they were both taken to the Northam Hospital with food poisoning.

Food Poisoning in Dowerin

Maybe the poisoning occurred during a sendoff party given by their friends in Dowerin as the family was moving to Northam. One such party was given to Don and Brian on 29th November.

Send off party hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Edwardes

Soon after the poisoning episode, on 2nd December 1946, Brian took up the position of branch manager for Wesfarmers in Northam.

Branch Manager for Wesfarmers December 1946

The Dowerin newspaper reported his move to Northam.

Move to Northam

Heavily pregnant Don moved to Northam only five days before she was to give birth to her second son, Brian Junior, who was born on Christmas Day 1946.

Brian Jnr’s Birth Certificate

Brian Junior Born Christmas Day 1946

On 5th March 1947, Don and Brian read in the main newspaper of W.A what they already knew. Brian’s brother-in-law, John (Jack) Bailey (his sister Marjorie’s first husband) who had been declared missing after a RAAF mission near Rabaul, New Guinea on 21st October 1943, was now presumed dead. Jack Bailey was later found to have been captured by the Japanese.

John (Jack) Pretty Bailey presumed dead.

Don and Brian were not to stay in Northam for long as Brian saw an opportunity to buy their own business in Toodyay. He resigned from Wesfarmers in October 1947 and his resignation was received with regret by the board of the company.

Brian resigns from Wesfarmers.

His resignation from Wesfarmers was duly reported by the local newspaper

Brian Leaves Wesfarmers.

Don and Brian’s purchase of the business in Toodyay was announced in Northam’s newspaper.

Brian and Don purchase the business in Toodyay