My Mother Viola Josephine Mann (maiden name McLaughlin) was born in Traralgon, Victoria on the 16th January, 1904. She was the daughter of Thomas Joseph McLaughlin and Elizabeth Therese Bushby.
Her father, Thomas, was a shoemaker who had a shop in the small town of Trafalgar, in Gippsland, Victoria. In 1906, when Viola was two years old, her father died in the Melbourne Hospital. They were a poor family and her mother Elizabeth could not survive and bring up her daughter without
work, so she searched and found work as a housekeeper for the Mann family in Strathewen, north east of Melbourne in Victoria.
The Mann’s were farmers and orchardists, on a selection near the Upper Arthurs Creek. From a very early age Viola grew up with the Mann Family. There was Grandma Mann and she addressed all of Grandma’s children as Uncles and Aunts. There was Uncle Johnny, Auntie Jeanie, Auntie Christina, Uncle Dave, Uncle Walter, Uncle Jim (until she married him when she was 35 years old), Aunty Violet, Uncle Will and Uncle Bob. In particular, the two spinsters Jeannie and Violet Mann regarded her as their responsibility and taught her about both domestic and farming endeavours.
Growing up in the family Viola knew everything about the family and felt she was one of them. Viola attended the Yan Yean State School between 1911-1916 and her teacher, Mr Babbage, reported that she was a bright and diligent student. She had neat and legible handwriting and a strong and pleasant singing voice.
The First World War happened during her childhood with young male Mann and McKimmie relatives leaving the country as soldiers to fight, as young men from all over the country did. Many did not return or were damaged by their experiences.
Viola McLaughlin married a much older James Mann (who was 66 years old at the time) in 1939. They had three children – a son and two daughters.
My earliest memories of my mother Viola Josephine Mann are of her always being busy with her tasks as a wife, mother and farm worker. Mother was an excellent cook and her roasts, Irish Stew and scones were renown. She was either in the kitchen preparing meals for us, in the laundry doing the washing and ironing, or out on the farm helping Father dip the sheep, or helping to cut trees up with the circular saw for firewood.
Viola was always the first person in the house to get up every morning. She would resuscitate the fire in the stove and then head off to milk the two cows by hand. The cows were milked twice a day to supply us with milk. She would separate the cream in our dairy and make butter in the churn. She used to sell cream to the local dairy for a bit of pocket money.
When the shearers came, usually in the winter (I always felt sorry for the sheep loosing their fleece in the cold weather, but the shearers had to fit us in, when they were in the area) Viola provided them all with three meals a day, as well as scones and cakes for morning and afternoon tea.
Shearing was back-breaking work, so several breaks a day were necessary to keep them happy.
James Mann died on the 2nd July 1957, aged 84 years at which time my brother inherited the property. It was sold after his marriage, and the house, shearing shed, cowshed, sheep-yards and dairy have all been demolished. My mother, Viola, died on the 9th November, 1972 aged 68 years.
By Viola’s Daughter,
Heather Jane Mann.
