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Interviewee

Dorothy (Sivyer) Singleton

Place Recorded

Coffs Harbour-NSW

Interviewer

Sheridah Melvin

Collection

Agency

Yarrila Arts & Museum (YAM)

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Dorothy Singleton Interview

Details

IntervieweeDorothy (Sivyer) SingletonInterview Date2 December 1986Place RecordedCoffs Harbour-NSWDuration49m37sAccession NumberLS2020.1.36Credit LineCoffs Harbour City Council, 1988.

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Description

Mrs Singleton arrived in Dorrigo Shire in 1927 as a married woman. She settled at Crossmaglen on a dairy farm and played a vital role in the setting up of Crossmaglen Primary School in the 1930s. Like many women of her generation, she reared her seven children on her own during the war years.

InterviewerSheridah MelvinCollectionYAM Museum CollectionVoice of Time oral history projectAgencyYarrila Arts & Museum (YAM)SummaryStandard disclaimer. Visit the 'Voice of Time' web site to read or listen to the disclaimer. Family circumstances and biographical detail of Mrs Singleton's grandparents -- Her father was sent to learn the bootmaking trade. He settled in Armidale and pursued his business there -- Dorothy was born there in 1904. Earliest memories; life with her Grandmother -- The move to Cessnock and life there until 1925 -- First impressions of Coffs in 1927. Life at Crossmaglen, 14 miles out -- Her husband was Assistant Manager of the North Coast Timber Mill. Mr Ted Herdegen was also involved -- "A farm came on the market". Description of the homestead -- Dorothy had no transport of her own, although Mr Singleton bought a second-hand car -- Buying supplies; the butter cart from Raleigh came to collect the cream and she used to give her order to the driver -- The factory in Raleigh where the cream was delivered was a store -- The family came into Coffs for their banking, chemist and doctor -- The accident with the horse -- Doctor David Hawke attended them. "He did some wonderful work in Coffs Harbour" -- The Depression years; the mill closed -- The move to the Singleton dairy farm on the neighbouring property; the Banardo boys from England -- Dorothy looked after these boys and her own children while her husband managed the property for his father -- A typical working day in early married life -- Childcare while washing, "Just walking about ... they'd play in the yard with stones and a bit of dirt" -- The children had to be inside at milking time because the bails were close to the house. Washing in the copper -- "In ten years I had 7 children" -- A typical lunch -- "We always had a hot midday dinner, that seemed to be the thing in those days with the men working" -- Dorothy's life was less lonely on this property; "There was too much to do" -- Neighbours. Their importance even though there might not be a lot of socialising -- "My husband didn't believe in women in the bails" -- People she knew were able to manage in The Depression because they had cows, fowls and vegetables. Dorothy's mother-in-law -- "I wanted to live in my era, not in the way she reared her family" -- She read books on mothercraft and childbirth -- Childbirth at Sunnyside Hospital with Nurse Colvin. Her son was the first baby born there in 1928 -- The hospital changed names two or three times within ten years -- Sister Sue took over. Portrait of Nurse Colvin -- The lying-in period was 9 days -- Breastfeeding problems due to stress. Cows milk substitute. The significance of religion -- Her children's school years at Crossmaglen School. The need for numbers -- "My father-in-law gave the block of land and the Department brought a school from Scotsman, a little place on the Bellinger" -- From 1934 onwards the school developed. Her 7 children went there -- Involvement with the school; P and C (Parents and Citizens); Christmas parties; Empire Day -- The scarcity of water for the school garden -- Immunisation for children. The advent of the Second World War. Her husband's enlistment -- Doctor Hawke would not pass him as he had arthritis in his leg -- "I stayed on the farm for twelve months because I really didn't think he would stay that long in the army" -- Concern for her elder boys' education lead to her moving to Coffs Harbour -- "There was nothing out there for them, just me" -- The house in town -- Managing her economy; army pay and the child endowment -- "The rent was low in those days, a very nice home, a pound a week" -- Social life, "I never had it and I never missed it" -- Entertainment at home and on weekends at Park Beach. Pictures at the Tasma Theatre on Saturdays -- Mr Singleton was away in New Guinea fighting for three years -- The best shops; Maloufs, Margery Turner and Cox Brothers -- Dorothy lived in Coffs Harbour from 1942 to 1945 -- The Church group; the Bazaar; meetings -- Evening church; "I felt I had to have a bit of a break" -- Censored mail during the war -- Coupons; for butter, tea and clothing -- Her eldest boys got part-time jobs at a butcher's shop, owned by Archie Smith. Aboriginal men sometimes knocked on the door to ask for methylated spirits -- The question of further education for the boys; Bill and Matt had different interests -- Mr Singleton came back from the war and the whole family moved back to the land -- The changes after the wartime experiences; difficulty in settling down, "He was a man's man", and missed the army life and companionship -- Dorothy's husband had arthritis in his hip and could not dance so they did not go to dances. Later, she accompanied her sons to Bonville dances. The Bonville community in the 1930's. The Bachelors and Spinsters Ball -- At the Crossmaglen property they had 50 cattle -- The sons had different responses to life on the farm. Bill was set up in a small banana plantation on an adjoining property -- "We gave him more mountains where the bananas are because it was no good for the cattle" -- Attitudes to childrearing; their right to have their own opinion -- "I think young mothers are better off today, they have their clinics" -- "I knew what I was getting myself into when I did get married. I knew I was going right up into the bush".