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Elizabeth WOOD
(1843-1891)
UNKNOWN
Ann (Annie) WOOD
(1868-1923)

Ethel May WOOD
(1886-1951)

 

Family Links

Spouses/Children:
Horatio Arthur BURGIS

Ethel May WOOD

  • Born: 26 May 1886, Chisholm St, Ballarat, Vic
  • Marriage: Horatio Arthur BURGIS on 20 Mar 1907 in Ballarat, Vic
  • Died: 8 Mar 1951, 21 Wilkinson St, Reservoir, Vic at age 64
  • Buried: 9 Mar 1951, Preston Cemetery, Vic

bullet   Cause of her death was Heart Failure.

bullet   Another name for Ethel was WOODS.

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bullet  General Notes:

Ethel May Wood Birth Certificate 26 May 1886 at Chisholm Street, Ballarat East with father illegitimate and mother Ann Wood 17 years old of Ballarat and the witness was Elizabeth Wood - grandmother. It is clear that her birth name was Wood.

Married 20 March 1907 at the home of William Hayes 10 Queen St Ballarat to Horatio Arthur Burgis. On her wedding certificate she signed Ethel May Woods when she was 20 years. She thought her father was John Woods Miner - deceased and mother was Annie Woods (Bibby). She was living at Sherrard St Ballarat East, Vic. She was a house maid when she was married and she was interested in sewing and dress making. According to the Victorian records the marriage was regisered at North Melbourne in 1907 Reg No 1887.

Died 8 March 1951 at 21 Wilkinson St Reservoir, Vic in Lindsay's room and buried in the Preston Public Cemetery on 9 Mar 1951 Area K Grave No 07531.

Ethel May Wood was the first child of Ann (called Annie) Wood born when Ann was 17 years old and the birth certificate indicates she was illegitimate. Ethel would have been living with her mother and 4 other people at the property on the corner of Sherrard and Chisholm St Ballarat. They were Ann's mother Elizabeth and Ann's uncle George (Eliza's brother), Ann's younger brother James and younger sister Rebecca. It was about this time that Ann's other surviving sister Emily went to Whycheproof to live probably when Ann was having Ethel. When Emily married John McIntyre who was a storekeeper in Whycheproof, the younger sister Rebecca then went to Whycheproof to live with Emily and John in 1889 when she was 9 years old. Ethel lived at the property on the corner of Sherrard and Chisholm St Ballarat until she was married in 1907. While she was there:
Ann had a second child William we all called Billy the Bull in 1887
Rebecca went to live in Whycheproof
Eliza her grandmother died in Ballarat Hospital on 27 January 1891
Ann had a third child Leslie in 1896
Ann had a forth child John called Jack in 1898
George Ann's uncle died 18 November 1904

Ethel and Arthur or as they called each other "Et" and "Art" were living at 6 Queen St Ballarat when Mavis was born. The family shifted to McArthur St Ballarat. The children went to Humprey Street State School Ballarat. They were living at the rear of a grocery shop in Lydiard Street near Ballarat Station. The family shifted to Melbourne about 1921 to another grocery shop at 171 Nelson Place, Williamstown. I (Lindsay) had occasion to visit the shop and the rear where the family lived was being renovated. The living quarters still had the old doors, skirting boards, fireplace, stair case rails etc and it was quite spacious with three large rooms upstairs and kitchen and living room etc down stairs. The front, upstairs room looked out over the water to Melbourne City. The family ran the grocers shop on the ground floor but gave credit to many of the residents and those from the ships and they were forced to close within a year. The family then shifted to Preston where they had a mixed sweat shop and meals at 81 High St. Ethel and the children ran the shop while Arthur worked for Myer cash orders using his motor bike and side car. They gave up the shop. Ethel's health was not good and at 14 years of age Mavis left Preston Girls High School to spend 2 years looking after her mother.

The family shifted to 20 Roseberry Ave Preston in 1925 and they were there until 1938 when they moved to 13 Kinkora Ave East Preston. They bought the land and had the house built. Her son Ron Burgis and wife Ena built the house at the rear in 704 Plenty Road Preston and one could walk through the gate between both properties. The story goes Ron got the property on the cheap because of the unusual shape of the block.

There were always family parties for the grand children's birthday and at Christmas when Frank (Mavis Burgis husband) would often dress up as Father Christmas and distribute presents to the family. There are also many photographs of outings to the beach or country. They visited their relations in Ballarat and would frequently get punctures in the old Erskine Car. Frank told a story about driving through Antony's Cutting in the Pentland Hills and how often the cars would have to go up backwards as the hill was so steep and the cars had lower gear ratios in reverse.

Ethel was a lawn bowler and had a set of bowls and white bowling outfits as I (Lindsay) recall. She was a member of the Williamstown Ladies Bowling, a foundation member of the Preston Ladies Bowling Club in 1927 and co-captain of the first Premeirship Team of the Preston Ladies Bowling Club. There are photographs of these three groups.

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Ethel married Horatio Arthur BURGIS, son of Sewell BURGIS and Ellen Mary JONES, on 20 Mar 1907 in Ballarat, Vic. (Horatio Arthur BURGIS was born on 20 Jul 1885 in Hotham, Vic, died on 9 Sep 1948 in Preston, Melbourne, Vic and was buried on 10 Sep 1948 in Preston Cemetery, Vic.)



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