1958-1962 Early Married Life

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House at Turramurra

Mum and Dad bought a block of land at 20 Konda place in Turramurra. The suburb had just started to be developed in the late 1950’s. It was ⅝ of an acre of land in a bushland setting. The entrance to the block fell sharply away from street level and continued down to a level site on the edge of a 20 foot high sandstone cliff. This was the site for the house. The property continued for a good distance down into the bush. It was not easy access from the road and all materials had to be carried down a set of stairs and a winding path to the house site or slid down on a jury-rigged chute.

Anne: “I remember Dad used to carry me down the steep path when we got back late from an outing and I’d fallen asleep in the car. It was a sad day for me when he finally had to say I was too big and had to walk myself.”

To allow them to save money while they were building the house, mum and dad lived in a converted double length garage at our grandparents house in Castlecrag. They lived on mum’s salary and saved dad’s. It was quite a large garage and had a small kitchenette. This allowed them to have some privacy, save some money and have a nice place to call home while they built the house at Turramurra.

Mum pregnant with Cate

At a friend's wedding

Dad put down all the brick piers for the house at Turramurra using an old hose level technique . When the carpenter came to put up the timber work he commented that he had never had foundations where the level difference between piers was so small. As with everything dad did, he strove for perfection. 

Those perfectly level foundations at Turramurra

The house was small (11 squares) but had another 8 squares of verandah under the same roof. As kids we lived on that verandah. Dad taught us to use a hammer and any other tool which could build things. We never had kids tools. We learnt to use full size tools and to respect them. Dad bought good tools and he looked after them. Even today, he still had the tools he bought to build the house and they are in perfect condition.

Pie helping to build the house at Turramurra

The frame goes up at Turramurra

Finished

The front garden starting to take shape

View from the steps down from the road - Front garden getting lush

The dining room at Turramurra

The Living Room at Turramurra

Living Room  later with curtains (and a veradah rail!)

 MBT and early research

Dad worked at MBT in various research and management roles until 1976. Mum had left work to have us kids, but she remained actively involved with research as an assistant to Dad during his early GBR research activities which were done in his "spare time" (i.e. annual holidays). The equipment he used for Reef research was based on equipment he had developed (and Patented) to monitor yeast fermentation at MBT. 

Prototypes of the oxygen electrode that dad invented

Next 1962-1976 - Family life in Sydney