BRONTE: Number 20 St Thomas Street

The house at 20 St Thomas Street was purchased in the name of Alice Catherine EWEN on DATE. It was purchased by Alice with proceeds from the estate of her late father (Timothy Joseph Coffey - whose estate was valued at over 11,000 pounds)

Mum and Dad's first home together was a one bedroom flat at Alta Vista, 10 Daintry Crescent Randwick. Dad was called up for military service on 16th March 1942 and Mum stayed there for a while, but as her sister Alice's husband Bert was also in the army the two girls took a flat at Asteroid, 39 Belmore Road, Randwick which they continued to share for quite some time. It was a two bedroom with sleepout, lounge, separate dining room and a kitchen.

Dad got compassionate leave to transfer to Sydney on 21 June 1943. Alice moved out in 1944/45 and Mum and Dad stayed on, but there were moves to get the tenants (the Marlowe family) out of 20 St Thomas Street. Mum Ewen was living with Grandma Coffey at "Limmerick" in Market Street Randwick. The Marlowes accepted the offer of swapping the flat at Asteroid as suitable alternative accommodation (something which was compulsory then), and Mum and Dad moved in making the front room available to Mum Ewen until her death on 30 November 1956

Number 20 was bought by Dad in 1949 for 1500 pounds - the mortgage on the house was transferred from Mum Ewen to Dad and then to War Service Homes. Dad used his army deferred pay of 90 pounds as the deposit. On 8 October 1956 Dad discharged the mortgage.

Mum Ewen had offered the house to Alice and Bert and Pauline and Stanley but they didn't want it. Eileen and Jim were living in the country at the time.

Most of the alterations to the house were done by Stanley Lewis, except for the front verandah which was done by Fred Adams, a builder recommended by Ken & Dot Harvey.

The house was on a postage stamp size piece of land, perched on the hillside with a great view of the bay. It was home to us and saw many happy and a few sad moments - Mum died in her bed there in 1987 after a short battle with pancreatic cancer. Dad reluctantly sold in March 2005 and relocated to Narrabri to live Anne and Peter. The new owners eventually redeveloped the site ~ what remains are memories.