Ted Pethebridge

Interviewed by Sandra Blamey on 6 March 2001

Sandra Blamey. Would you like to tell me your full name?

Ted Pethebridge. Edward Pethebridge, known as Ted, and I was born in High Street, North Sydney. Before coming to Mosman we went to live in Esther Road Balmoral.

Sandra Blamey. The names of your parents?

Ted Pethebridge. My father’s name was Frank and my mother’s name was Bertha, formerly Sanchez, and my father, of course is Pethebridge.

Sandra Blamey. Where was your mother born?

Ted Pethebridge. My mother was born in Randwick.

Sandra Blamey. Has she Spanish connections with a name like Sanchez?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, some sort of a Spanish history, but I couldn’t tell you that far back.

Sandra Blamey. Where was your father born?

Ted Pethebridge. In North Sydney.

Sandra Blamey. How did they meet?

Ted Pethebridge. I can’t tell you that, it is something I’ve never delved into.

Sandra Blamey. Do you remember anything about your grandparents? Did you ever meet them?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, my grandmother lived in High Street, North Sydney. She had a block of flats down there, and that’s where we lived, in one of those flats down there before we moved to Balmoral to Esther Street.

Sandra Blamey. What did your father do for a living?

Ted Pethebridge. My father started off as a shipwright, but during the Depression he was out of work and he had to take, either the dole or two or three days a week working. He became a house painter – painting and paper hanging, and he was a very good paper- hanger actually.

Sandra Blamey. Did your mother work?

Ted Pethebridge. During the Depression years she had to do some ironing and washing etc, to help keep the family going.

Sandra Blamey. What do you remember about the Depression when you were growing up?

Ted Pethebridge. My earliest memories of the Depression were when I was about four, when we first moved to Balmoral. Our family was struggling, and I then started to try and help as much as I could to help them.

Sandra Blamey. What sort of things did you do?

Ted Pethebridge. I used to gather bottles, I used to work in butcher shops and help with the baker and do odd jobs around the place.

Sandra Blamey. And you didn’t always get paid in cash.

Ted Pethebridge. Never in cash no. From the butcher I’d get some sausages, and a loaf of bread from the baker, which in those days was a big help.

Sandra Blamey. Did you have brothers and sisters?

Ted Pethebridge. I’ve got two sisters and one brother. The eldest sister died quite some time ago now and I lost my brother, when I lost my wife about five years ago.

Sandra Blamey. So you all grew up together in the house in Esther Street. What do you remember as part of that family?

Ted Pethebridge. My mum was a great person, she was a great cook, and she used to cook beautiful things like cakes and pastries, and baked dinners. We always had our baked dinner of a Sunday, which was a natural thing with most families. Even though we were poor, we were still able to have our baked dinners. But in Middle Harbour there were lots of fish, and we lived on a lot of fish, so that was a great help to the family.

Sandra Blamey. Did you catch fish yourself?

Ted Pethebridge. My father built me a beautiful canoe, and at about eight years of age, I used to go out into Middle Harbour and catch fish practically anywhere.

Sandra Blamey. Is that the canoe that you went up in the creek?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, we used to paddle our way up through the….

Sandra Blamey. ….the creek that’s no longer there.

Ted Pethebridge. Oh no, no.

Sandra Blamey. How did it disappear again?

Ted Pethebridge. The land on the southern end of Balmoral was just a lot of marsh land, where the water used to come down from the various hills and made a little bit of a swamp land. The Mosman Council decided to use that as a tip, which they filled in. The way they filled it in was with just a horse and tip cart. There was no machinery in those days; it was just a horse and a cart. Through the rubbish and everything like that they used to grow fruit and all sorts of things used to come up. There were water melons and pumpkins etc, and that helped us. Beautiful big mushrooms too. It took many years to fill that in completely before it was then later made into an oval.

Sandra Blamey. I guess you weren’t the only kids around?

Ted Pethebridge. There were several kids in the neighbourhood, and we used to play cricket, because the roads weren’t built then, there were a lot of asphalt roads, or clay roads actually, and some asphalt. We played cricket and football down where the promenade is now – that was just an open grassy spot. And there was Happy Land, a great big area of land, and a chap called Fred Scarsbury came along and he bought that and turned it into tennis courts, and the Balmoral Beach Tennis Club was formed.

Sandra Blamey. Where on the beach exactly is that located?

Ted Pethebridge. Straight opposite, towards the southern end on the Boulevarde, (Ted means The Esplanade) and there was a great big guesthouse on the corner of Botanic Road, and the Boulevarde. That was named Braemer Guest House. They rented rooms out for people to live in, and Happy Land was right alongside of it – a great big area there.

Sandra Blamey. What are your memories of Happy Land?

Ted Pethebridge. When the people used to come in they used to set up different sorts of stalls and raffle wheels, and all sorts of things, and the ferries used to come in from the Quay, right round to Balmoral and the crowds used to come in and go into Happy Land and have their picnics. They had running races like we’d normally do on ordinary picnics ourselves.

Sandra Blamey. Was it open everyday, or just on weekends?

Ted Pethebridge. Mostly only weekends, because the ferries didn’t run during the week then.

Sandra Blamey. You spent quite a bit of time at Happy Land?

Ted Pethebridge. We used to go there and play, yes. It was a great place to play in.

Sandra Blamey. How long did it exist for?

Ted Pethebridge. I don’t know exactly. I’d have been about 12 or 14 when I joined the Tennis Club and learnt to play, because Fred Scarsbury got a good coach, and he taught us kids how to play tennis, which we played for a couple of years. But I loved my sailing because being in the canoe, I learnt to sail. I put a mast up and I would sail all around Middle Harbour, then I joined the Middle Harbour 16 ft. Skiff Sailing Club

Sandra Blamey. How old were you then?

Ted Pethebridge. About 14.

Sandra Blamey. Still in your canoe?

Ted Pethebridge. No, we had boats it was a 16 ft. Skiff Sailing Club and I sailed for many years. We had a lot of good results out of the 16s. I’m a life member there now still. They’re an historical club, they were 100 years old in 2002, so that’s something Mosman can be very proud of, because a lot of representatives came from that club – Australian champions and also Olympic representatives. They had members that went on to become famous skippers.

Sandra Blamey. It gave young people a good grounding, and a love for the sport.

Ted Pethebridge. That’s right. Mosman had lots of champions from other sports, like cricket and football – tennis, swimming etc. A lot of champions come from those, and it was great for the young people of Mosman to participate – it encouraged them to participate in sports and Mosman can be very proud of them really.

Sandra Blamey. What about school, where did you go?

Ted Pethebridge. I started at the Infants’ School at Mosman, and then I went on to Mosman Primary School, and stayed there until I was 14. That was still during the Depression years. My aunty, who was in charge of a factory in the city in York St, that made ties and dressing gowns, scarves etc, said she could get me a job as an office boy. So I left school at 14, and went over there as an office boy. It was called Klippel Bros. Tie Company, and they taught me how to become a cutter, and I got better wages then, and it was much better. But I only started off at 7/6d a week, as an office boy. I used to walk from Balmoral to Mosman Bay every morning to get the ferry to town, and at night the reverse, walk from Mosman Bay back to Balmoral, only to save the fares. That allowed enough money then to go to the pictures, which only cost 3d in those days.

Sandra Blamey. Do you remember any pictures you saw at that time?

Ted Pethebridge. Not really.

Sandra Blamey. These were black and white pictures of course, weren’t they? Where was the local picture theatre?

Ted Pethebridge. The Hoyts Theatre where the RSL Club is today. The Kinema Theatre was another one up at Spit Road, which is still there today. We went to either of those.

Sandra Blamey. Do you remember anything in particular about school days? Did you enjoy school?

Ted Pethebridge. Oh yes. School days were very good, I had a lot of mates that I made, and I was sorry to leave the school, but they were all very envious of me because anybody that got a job in those days was enviable, because of the money coming in. They had good sporting days; I played football in bare feet mind you, because we couldn’t afford football boots. They had athletic days and cricket, and a lot of people who learnt to play cricket and football through the school, later on became champions. On Fridays they used to march from the school – that was their sports day, they used to march from Mosman School down to Balmoral Baths and they had a school band. The school used to march down Raglan Street, and they were very proud to be marching behind the band in those days.

Sandra Blamey. Did they raise the flag at your school?

Ted Pethebridge. I think they did, the same as when they went up to one of the halls, I think it was Mosman Town Hall for Empire Day, and that was a wonderful day. They loved the Empire then.

Sandra Blamey. Singing ‘Land of Hope and Glory’.

Ted Pethebridge. That’s right. And we had fire works, and all that sort of thing.

Sandra Blamey. So you’re at Klippel Bros. and you’re a cutter.

Ted Pethebridge. Later on, I was offered a better job with another firm – The Parisian Tie Company. I accepted it because the money was a little bit better. We overlooked Darling Harbour from this place – it was up about six storeys – a beautiful view. I can remember when a big fire at Goldsbrough Mort broke out, and we had a terrific view of that fire. That’s where I worked until the war started.

Sandra Blamey. Did the Company just make ties?

Ted Pethebridge. Dressing gowns, scarves, ties etc.

Sandra Blamey. Were you using Australian, or imported materials?

Ted Pethebridge. There were some imported materials then, yes, quite a lot. We had great big long benches, and we laid the materials out for people to get an idea. You just don’t cut the ties in one little piece – you laid them out until they got to a certain thickness, and then you cut them into blocks, and then you cut them to the shapes. There were lots of girls there as machinists.

Sandra Blamey. Was it traditional for men to be the cutters? Who were the designers?

Ted Pethebridge. We used to make the patterns for the ties ourselves, and if there was any slight change we’d just change the patterns. I had a pretty good knowledge of all that sort of thing.

Sandra Blamey. You did this up until the war, and then how did your life change?

Ted Pethebridge. It changed a fair bit. I went into the war, and after we came out of the war, my dad who was a painter said to me: ‘How would you like to learn to do painting, and we’ll set up a business’, with my brother also. I thought to myself – well, I’d have to go back to this other job again, which was a very dusty job. You got a lot of dust and I was always suffering from dust complaints from the materials. I thought – well this will be a better, cleaner job, and he taught me how to become a painter and good paper-hanger, and I was very good at it.

Sandra Blamey. So your father and your other brother formed a little business together.

Ted Pethebridge. We had other people working for us, so we had a very good business going.

Sandra Blamey. And how big an area did you cover?

Ted Pethebridge. We covered mostly all of Mosman, Clifton Gardens, Cremorne and various places like that. We had very good clients, a lot of dentists, barristers, and judges etc.

Sandra Blamey. You probably did some places more than once did you?

Ted Pethebridge. Oh yes. They were regular customers; we never advertised for work, it was just through recommendations. We traded under F. Pethebridge & Sons.

Sandra Blamey. When did you meet your wife?

Ted Pethebridge. Our Sailing Club had dances each month, and that’s where we met. It was just after the war – I was 26, and she was about four years younger than me. I think she was working at the Repatriation Office in York Street.

Sandra Blamey. Was it love at first sight?

Ted Pethebridge. Oh yes, we had the same interests. She was a very good at net ball, she represented the states, and also became a good coach and coached a lot of teams around Mosman and Manly. We were married when I was 28 – two years later.

Sandra Blamey. Where did you live?

Ted Pethebridge. A friend of mine got married to a girl whose father was a builder in Manly, and he had some property in Queenscliffe in Crown Road, and he had a place that was becoming empty, and his father-in-law said we could have it, so we lived there for a couple of years until my daughter was then born.

Sandra Blamey. Where did you move to then?

Ted Pethebridge. I built this place through the War Service – it was a War Service home. I drew up the plans myself and had it built, and then we moved up here, and that’s when our second daughter was born.

Sandra Blamey. When you lived here as a family how had things changed? This would be when you were married.

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, in about 1942 we came here.

Sandra Blamey. How had things changed?

Ted Pethebridge. There were no busses. From work at night, I’d get the 144 bus up to Seaforth, and I then walked from Seaforth to here, which is North Balgowlah, and the same in the morning. The roads were just all dirt roads then, and there were very few homes around here. People used to wonder why I moved here, because they thought it was a bit desolate. They thought I was nuts. When I built this place, I drew up a plan so I could build a room out the back and a sunroom, and the garage. That wasn’t built at the time, it was only in the extension plan later on, which saved me going to the Council. I did all that myself, employing sub-contractors to do lots of things.

Sandra Blamey. Was there sewerage?

Ted Pethebridge. No, we used to have the pan service, which was a little place up the back.

Sandra Blamey. How often did he come?

Ted Pethebridge. Twice a week, I think.

Sandra Blamey. What other services did you have?

Ted Pethebridge. If we went to Manly in those days, we did the same thing. Walk to Seaforth and get the 144 to Manly.

Sandra Blamey. Was there a local school here?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, there was the Balgowlah Primary School, just down the road, and then later on they built a little school – North Balgowlah Public School, which both the younger ones went to also at the start.

Sandra Blamey. You mentioned the Sailing Club, what other local community activities were you involved with?

Ted Pethebridge. When I was at Mosman, just after the war I played Rugby Union with Mosman Rugby Union Club, which is a very good club – they’re still going. With my son growing up, I decided I’d become coach. I had a Utility in those days and I’d pick up all the boys after school and take them to the local oval and teach them how to play Rugby Union. Some of them became very good Rugby players, which was very rewarding. I have a Cup in my cupboard they gave me for being the coach, and winning one of the competitions. At the same time, I started to play bowls. After a number of years, I gave sailing away, and started to play bowls at the Seaforth Bowling Club just up the road from me. And I still play social bowls, but I was a number 1 pennant player, and I won quite a lot of championships in the club.

It’s great when you can just get up and play social bowls now, you really enjoy it, and it helps me to keep fit, as well. Living on my own gets a bit lonely at times, but I have daughters who live very close…

Sandra Blamey. ….and you’ve got your community activities, and you keep everything absolutely immaculate, I can see.

Ted Pethebridge. I’m very fortunate. I have a lady who comes every fortnight and does the cleaning through for me – with my knees and everything I find it a bit tough, but I get out as much as I can.

Sandra Blamey. You mentioned the Musical Society.

Ted Pethebridge. They were a great society. In Mosman they put on beautiful shows, and to see one of their shows you had to book in early to make sure you got a seat. They were in the Mosman Town Hall, and also down at Cremorne where the Cremorne Theatre is, there was a big hall on top of there, and they had some of their shows there as well. A lady named Mavis Sykes taught the girls how to dance, and another person helped her with the arranging of the shows they put on. They were terrific shows, and so popular you had to book in to see them.

Sandra Blamey. During what years would this have been?

Ted Pethebridge. Well before the war, during the Depression years. Some of those chaps who used to sunbake at Wyargine Point were very athletic. They used to do a lot of this dajet (?) dancing for the Mosman Youth Society where they balanced these girls in some of the shows.

Sandra Blamey. Are there any shows you particularly remember?

Ted Pethebridge. I can’t remember them all, but there were musical comedies and musicals. They had some good singers, and the girls were very good dancers. During the war they used to go round to the various services and entertain them. I think they used to go right up to the northern parts of Australia. I don’t know if they went overseas, but they were very popular, and that was all voluntary.

Sandra Blamey. How much did it cost to go?

Ted Pethebridge. It wasn’t a lot of money, in those days, to see these shows, but they never got paid, it was voluntary, and very professionally done. Mavis Sykes was the main person and would go down as part of the history of Mosman.

Sandra Blamey. You mentioned this pool off the Point; did you ever swim there?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, it was a lovely pool – very small, no bigger than the size of this room, but it was built by local boys carrying stones, which made a little breakwater, where the water came over and filled the pool. It was a fresh saltwater pool all the time. You could lie on the rocks and sunbake.

Sandra Blamey. This was a pool at the northern end of the Balmoral Beach.

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, what they called Wyargine Point.

Sandra Blamey. It was popular with boys and girls?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, there were no restrictions.

Sandra Blamey. Was your family involved in any Churches in the area?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, my mother was very involved with the Church of England in Raglan Street, and also in Belmont Road. There was a fellow who lived in Raglan Street, who had Sunday Schools, where we were always sent of a Sunday morning. They used to take on picnics and little camping activities.

Sandra Blamey. Lots of singing?

Ted Pethebridge. Yes, all that sort of thing. It was great fun, it’s a pity they don’t have that today. But having all that open space available was helpful.

Sandra Blamey. Obviously, the whole area along there was just a paradise for kids to play. You mentioned the war years and being in service.

Ted Pethebridge. I was in the Infantry – I became a Sergeant.

Sandra Blamey. Did you enlist yourself, or were you called up?

Ted Pethebridge. Originally, we were called up in 1940, when the war started when the troops were going to the Middle East. They asked us if we wanted to transfer from the call-up services to the AIF, which we did. I was in the army for four and a half years, so it was quite a long time.

Sandra Blamey. Where did you serve?

Ted Pethebridge. Mostly around Sydney until we were trained. They asked anybody in the parade ground to step forward if they wanted to volunteer to join the AIF, and the others to stay. The ones that stayed then transferred to Port Moresby, and I had to take a big batch of them up to the Atherton Tablelands near Cairns where they were trained.

After they were trained I then took them to Port Moresby, and then I came back and joined my unit again, and then after that our unit went up to a place called Canungra, which was a Jungle Training Camp. It was known as the greatest Jungle Training Camp in the world. It was very tough. We were there for a couple of months – our unit was then going to move on up to New Guinea, and on the day that we were all packed and ready to go, they came to me and said: ‘You’re staying’. And I said: ‘Why?’ They said: ‘You’re going to train other troops coming through’. I said: ‘I don’t want to, I want to go with my mates that I’ve been with all the time’. ‘Oh no, this is the orders, and orders are orders’, so I had to stay and train other troops coming through. My unit then went up to New Guinea, and I was still there when the war finished. It was a very tough training school. It was hard on people who had to train the troops coming through because they had to do the same things, over and over again. You weren’t just in the one camp all the time, you used to go up through the jungle and spend a couple of weeks in the jungle to teach them how to look after themselves. It was very rough country.

Sandra Blamey. Were you there when that plane went down in that valley near Canungra?

Ted Pethebridge. I think I remember the story of that.

Sandra Blamey. Were your war years happy ones?

Ted Pethebridge. Oh yes. The only part I wasn’t happy about was when I was broken up from my unit to stay there. I asked a couple of times to join the unit again, but they said: ‘No, you’ve got to stay’. Unfortunately, for me, I did several Army Schools, which I went to and some of them were for the small arms, to learn about all the small arms there were, etc, and the others were a tactical section where you learnt all the army tactics. Therefore, I got good passes in those, which was why I was more or less pushed into these other things.

Sandra Blamey. Looking back over your association with this area, what are the things that made you stay. You never thought of moving?

Ted Pethebridge. No, never, ever because it’s a wonderful area to live in, and now we have such wonderful transport.

Ted Pethebridge. We have busses that run from here into town of a morning right up until about 9.30, and they run every quarter of an hour and they’re always packed. We also have busses that run to the Mall.

There are many clubs where you can go and have meals. I belong to the Balgowlah RSL Club, and I belong to the Masonic Club – I’m not a Mason, but I belong to that. Also, the Diggers Club, which I’m a member of. I swim there – I’ve been in the club for about 38 years, and it only costs a small amount a year, and it keeps my health going. And my family are around as well, they’re terrific. My son-in-law being a doctor – that helps.

Sandra Blamey. Ted, it has been delightful talking to you this morning, and I’m sure this will be a fine record to include in the Mosman Library Archives. Thank you very much.