Walter Frederick Rayner’s attempt to circumnavigate the globe ~ by Helen Dennis, March 2025 ~ In 1932, three years into both the Great Depression and his first marriage, my grandmother’s brother Walter built a little boat and attempted to sail around the world. According to Sydney’s Labor Daily newspaper, Walter was the first Australian toContinue reading “Round the World in a Cutter”
Category Archives: Jenkins
Unravelling the Boarding School Myth
Penelope, Tony and Victor Jenkins’ early schooling in Sydney ~ by Helen Dennis ~ December 2024 ~ One of the most memorable stories my aunt Penelope recounted about her childhood was that when she was very little, her mother had enrolled her as ‘the only boarder’ at a private girls’ school in Sydney. The legendContinue reading “Unravelling the Boarding School Myth”
Penelope’s Hospital Float
~ by Helen Dennis, 6 October 2024 ~ This weekend is a long weekend in New South Wales. Many people travel; others simply enjoy an extra day off work. Once upon a time, however – as the discovery of a cache of my aunt Penelope’s photos led me to discover – demonstrations, processions and sportsContinue reading “Penelope’s Hospital Float”
Evelyn & Victor Jenkins: “He gave her everything”
by Helen Dennis, January 2022. The story of Victor, Eve, Richard and ‘Glenbrook’ ~ By the time my grandmother turned 30 she’d already been married, had three children, left her first husband, and was awaiting confirmation of her divorce so that she could marry her ex-husband’s brother. The housewives of conservative rural Australia would’ve relishedContinue reading “Evelyn & Victor Jenkins: “He gave her everything””
Herbert Park Estate
Jenkins family ownership c.1884-1930 ~ Annotated map ~ I’ve only ever had a vague idea of the properties owned by the Jenkins in the early 1900s. Property names are mentioned and forgotten and recalled, and ambiguous locations thrown around. So, to disentangle the muddle in my head, I created an annotated map that represents twoContinue reading “Herbert Park Estate”
Valmai Jenkins’ Thrilling Air Race
by Helen Dennis, October 2021 ~ My great aunt Valmai was a bit of a thrill-seeker. She died before I was born, so I never met her. As a 1920s ‘flapper’ her life was filled with social engagements, dances, tennis parties, travel, fun and frivolity. She also longed to fly. This is the story ofContinue reading “Valmai Jenkins’ Thrilling Air Race”
Unravelled 