John George

John George North (1855-1939)
Mary Bell Shepherd (1863-1946)

John George North was the oldest of John Britty North & Clarissa Hack‘s nine children, born on 15 Dec 1855 in Newcastle. Mary Bell Shepherd was the third of six children, born on 07 Dec 1863, her parents beong David Shepherd & Jane Susan Bell. John and Mary married on 05 Apr 1882 at Canterbury, Sydney; from The Sydney Morning Herald, Thu 13 Apr 1882:

NORTH—SHEPHERD. – April 5, at the residence of the bride’s parents by the Rev. John Auld, M.A., John George, eldest son of John Britty North, Berrington, Ashfield, to Mary Bell (Minnie), fourth daughter of David Shepherd, Belmont, Ashfield.

The North family were entrepreneurs and several were stock brokers. John George North was a member of the stock exchange for 58 years, and, with his son John Alfred North, traded as J & J North.

The Beecroft-Cheltenham History Group published this biography:

John George North

William [sic] John George North was born in Sydney in 1856, the son of John Britty North and Clarissa Hack who were married in Sydney in 1855. John Britty North was born in Somerset in 1831 and had come to Australia when 20 years old; Clarissa (known as Clara), was London-born and came to Australia in 1849 at the age of 17. She was a niece of David Jones, the founder of the Sydney department store. John B. and Clara had eight children, John George being the elder of two sons. He was educated at Fort Street School before entering stock and share broking as a partner in his father’s firm.

John George North married Mary Bell Shepherd in 1882 at Ashfield. Mary (who had been born at Rooty Hill, Sydney, in 1863) liked moving houses frequently. The couple lived first at Ashfield, then at Ermington, Meadowbank and Ryde before coming to Beecroft about 1910. They leased ‘Oaklands’, the home of C.C. Tucker in Kirkham Street, before purchasing the house at 12 Malton Road from William Nixon in 1911. The Norths named their new home ‘Willowmere’.

The house stood in large grounds, of sufficient area to include a tennis court, a cricket pitch and a paddock for ‘Pansy’, the cow. John and Mary had six sons, David (born 1883), John Alfred (born 1885), Robert (born 1889), Harry (born 1891), Alan (born 1896) and Arthur (born 1897), who all attended Sydney Grammar School. Alan was a champion tennis player and took part in competitions at Wimbledon.

Although he employed a full-time gardener who lived in a very small building at the back of the house, John North was a keen gardener himself and grew vegetables behind the tennis court and had a large rose garden. He was a man of robust physique and suffered practically no illness until about three weeks before his death.

John North took a small part in local affairs in the Literary and Debating Society, in billiards contests and on the committee of the School of Arts. He was concerned about the Beecroft railway station, helping in tree planting there, and was one of the deputation to the Commissioner for Railways concerning the site of the station entrance. In 1914 he was chairman of a meeting to form a Red Cross League Helpers Branch and the following year he also chaired a meeting to erect a memorial to local men going to the war.

Each of the sons had a successful career. John Alfred North, the second son, was a stockbroker, like his father and grandfather. He was also a foundation member of the Pennant Hills Golf Club. The youngest son, Arthur, became a grazier in the Rylstone district, Robert and Alan were Macquarie Street eye specialists, David was a pathologist and Harry held a senior position in the Education Department.

In 1932 John and Mary left Beecroft and went to live in Vaucluse and later in Roseville. John died in 1939 and Mary in 1946. John Alfred and his wife Lorna and family lived in Willoughby until John died in 1959, Lorna having predeceased him by eight years.

A number of newspapers carried a notice of his death; from the Daily Commercial News and Shipping List published on Wed 10 May 1939:

DEATH OF STOCKBROKER
Late John George North

At the age of 84 Mr. John George North passed away at his home at Roseville on Monday evening. He was a member of the firm of J. and J. North.

One of the older identities of the Sydney Stock Exchange, he will long be remembered for his services. He was first elected in 1881 but resigned in 1899, being again elected in 1909. As a mark of respect to the late member, the morning call on the Sydney Exchange was adjourned for 15 minutes yesterday. There will be no call this morning, so enabling members to attend the funeral, which will leave St. David’s Presbyterian Church, Lindfield, at 10 a.m., for Gore Hill Cemetery.

The late J. G. North is survived by Mrs. Mary Bell North and six sons, to whom we extend our condolences.

From The Sydney Morning Herald, Wed 10 May 1939:

OBITUARY.
MR. J. G. NORTH.

Mr. John George North, one of the oldest members of the Sydney Stock Exchange, to which he was first elected 58 years ago, died at his residence Roseville on Monday.

Born in Sydney 84 years ago, educated at Fort Street School, he became a partner with his father Mr. J. B. North in stock and share broking. Later he was in business on his own account, until he took his son, John A North, into the partnership of J. and J. North, which continued until his death. A man of robust physique, he suffered practically no illness until about three weeks ago. He was a member of the Roseville Bowling Club.

Mrs. North and six sons survive. The sons are Messrs. D. S. North, pathologist with the Colonial Sugar Co., J. A. North of the Stock Exchange, and A. S. North, grazier of Rylstone, Dr. R. B. North and Dr. Alan L. North, of Macquarie Street and Dr. H. M. North, of the Education Department.

The funeral will leave Lindfield Presbyterian Church, after a service commencing at 10 o’clock this morning, for Gore Hill Cemetery.

As a mark of respect the Stock Exchange will adjourn for the first call this morning, re-opening for business at noon.

John & Mary’s family:

Their children were:

01. David Shepherd (b. 26 Dec 1883 in Canterbury, d. 1967 in St Leonards) see separate webpage

02. John Alfred (b. 1885 in Ashfield, d. 29 Mar 1959 in Beecroft)

03. Robert Bell (b. 1889 in Ashfield, d. 1953 in Chatswood)

04. Harry Mander (b. 17 Feb 1892 in Ryde, d. 1972 in St Leonards)

05. Allan Lindsay (b. 03 Feb 1896 in Summer Hill, d. 26 Sep 1997 in Coffs Harbour)

06. Arthur Stanley (b. 1898 in Ashfield, d. 1984)

Generation 2

02. John Alfred North married Lorna Alice Rogers (b. 1900 in Castle Hill, d. 05 Dec 1951 in Chatswood) in 1921 in Sydney. Her parents were Francis Henry Gubbin Rogers & Milly Adeline Banks. John was a sharebroker in partnership with his father. The family lived in a several addresses but for many years at 12 Malton Rd Beecroft, Sydney. Two years after Lorna died John married Edith Isabel Cowdery in Tamworth. In the 1958 electoral rolls Edith was living in Malton Rd Beecroft and was described as a grazier. Edith was born on 15 Jan 1903 and passed away on 19 Feb 1990 (Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens 1990). John & Lorna had five children:

01. John Francis George (b. 18 Jun 1922 in Warrawee, Sydney, d. 01 Jun 1996 in Young NSW).

02. David Alan (b. 22 Oct 1923 in Beecroft, Sydney, d. 28 Sep 2014 in Toowoomba Qld).

03. Brian Keith (b. 30 Nov Beecroft, Sydney, d. 18 Mar 2020 in Orange NSW)

04. Private

05. Ian Alfred (b. 03 Dec 1933 in Sydney, d. 28 Jun 2015 in Orange). Ian married Barbara Maguire on 27 Feb 1957. The couple had three sons.

Generation 3

01. John Francis George North married Mary Joyce Lyon in Ryde on 19 Jul 1947. They had a son and three daughters.

02. David Alan North married Judith May Stewart in Ashfield on 06 Dec 1946. David enlisted into the RAAF on 06 Dec 1941 and was discharged medically unfit on 07 Aug 1945; his service record can be read online here. They had three children, one of whom was David Stewart William (b. 01 May 1951, d. 14 Mar 1981). Judith passed away in 1980. David’s death notice appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald on 01 Oct 1914:

NORTH, David Alan.
Late of Toowoomba, formerly of “Bendena” Bollon, Murringo and Sydney.
Passed away at the Oakey Hospital, QLD, on 28th September 2014.

Aged 90 years.

Husband of Yvonne. Father of Robyn, Bill (dec’d), Peter, Ben and Sarah, and Step Father of Verity. Father-in-law, Grandfather and Great Grandfather of their families. Much loved and sadly missed by all.

A private cremation was held in Toowoomba, Queensland on Tuesday, (September 30, 2014)

03. Brian Keith North married Lorna Alice Rogers (1900-1951). His death was announced in The Sydney Morning Herald on Sat 21 Mar 2020:

NORTH,
Dr Brian Keith

Formerly of Sydney and Orange
30.11.25 – 18.3.20
Dearly loved husband of Mary. Wonderful father of Helen, Pip and Sue and father-in-law of Martin, Justin and Wim. Loved and loving Fumps of Tom, Will, Alice, Alex, Brendan, Maggie, Tildy, Bridget and Sophie.
“The Best One”

Back to generation 2

03. Robert Bell North, known as Roy, was educated at Sydney Grammar School and then at the University of Sydney, gaining a bachelor of medicine and a master of surgery.
As a University student he joined the Sydney University Scouts, and on 31 Jan 1913 was appointed 2nd Lieutenant (Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, https://www.legislation.gov.au/file/1913GN14.pdf). At the time he worked at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Camperdown. His specialty was in opthalmology.

The following is based on his entry in the University of Sydney’s Book of Remembrance:

In June, 1915, following the outbreak of WWI, he enlisted in the Australian Army Medical Corps. On 09 Oct he sailed on the M.O. troopship Beltana. He joined the 8th Australian Field Ambulance, taking part in an Arab engagement. Crossing with 13th to the Somme, via England, he soon became R.M.O. 4th Australian Divisional Train and later joined 12th A. F. Amb. as major. He transferred in November, 1917, after much Front Line work, to No. 2 Australian General Hospital, Wimereux, and in April, 1918, to 9th A. F. Amb. as second in command, organising the 3rd Division Resuscitation Team. After the Armistice went to No. 1 A.G.H. and later did two months post-graduate work, serving until demobilisation.

He gained the rank of Major and was mentioned in despatches.

Roy married married Kathleen Ross Mullen (b. 1899 in Bourke NSW to Arthur W Mullen and Margaret Ross) on Wed 05 Sep 1828. Their wedding was described in the Evening News on Thu 06 Sep 1828. and a week later in Lismore’s Northern Star.

DOCTOR’S BRIDE

Girl friends decorated St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church for the wedding last night or Miss Kathleen Ross Mullen, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur W. Mullen, of Nyora-street, Klllara, and Dr. Robert Bell North, of Wollstonccraft, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. E. North, of Beecroft….

Robert Bell North is listed as an eye specialist in the 1925 Sands Street Index, occupying a second floor room in Beanbah Chambers, 235 Macquarie Street (built in the early 1900’s on the western side of Macquarie Street between Martin Place and St James Square next to the Supreme Court, directly opposite the Mint and adjacent to Sydney Hospital). On the same level was his brother Allan Lindsay North, listed as a surgeon but also an opthalmologist.

Between 1930 and 1937 Roy and Kathleen lived at Gooinga, Milray Ave, Crows Nest. By 1943 they had moved to 5 Murray Rd, Cheltenham. Roy died in 1953, aged 64. Kathleen died on 02 May 1990 aged 91. The couple had 3 children:

01. Ann Margaret (b. 1929, d. 14 Jul 2018 in Lisarow); married Roger John Spence Potter in 1951. They had 5 children.

02. Mary Bell (b. 1933, d. 11 Nov 1980 in Turramurra) married Adair Sutherland McColl at Ryde in 1954. They had 6 children.

03. Robert Alan (b. 17 Feb 1937, ) married Jane Spence. They had 3 children

04. Harry Mander North was educated at Sydney Grammar School and then at the University of Sydney, gaining a bachelor of medicine and specialising in psychiatry. The following is based on his entry in the University of Sydney’s Book of Remembrance.

Harry enlisted on 15 Jan 1916 and sailed on 07 Mar on the hospital ship Karoola. At the time of his enlistement he stated he had been a member of the University Scouts Infantry for 5 years. He served at Details Camps in Egypt and England, then crossed to France on 02 Sep, serving at No. 2 Australian General and No. 14 British Hospitals, Wimereux. He joined the 1st Australian Field Ambulance and was relieving R.M.O. in the 8th Battn. and then R.M.O. in the 7th at Ypres. He transferred to the 2nd A.F.Amb. on 19 Oct and became R.M.O. in the 2nd Battn. on 02 Nov. He served at Mametz Wood and advanced dressing stations at Bernafay Wood, Longueval and elsewhere till 09 Apr 1917, when he appointed R.M.O. to the 3rd Battn., advancing with it to the Hindenburg Line. Returning to No. 2 A.G.H. on 01 Mar 1918, he then transferred to No. 1 at Rouen on 01 Apr and joined the 8th A.F.Amb. on 23 Apr, advancing from Villers-Bretonneux to the Hindenburg Line. Crossing to England in March, 1919, he did two months post-graduate work in London and two months as Registrar, No. 3 A.G.H., Dartford, before returning for demobilisation. He was promoted major on 26 Jan 1918.

There is also a group photo in the Australian War Memorial with Harry seated at the front, third from left. His service record can be read online here.

On 02 Jan 1920 he was appointed a resident medical officer in mental hospitals (NSW Public Service Lists, 1921), which is where his birth date is stated. He was still on staff as a Senior Medical Officer in 1938. Between 1930 and 1936 he was an Honorary Demonstrator in Anatomy at the University of Sydney. In the 1946 Public Service Lists he is listed as Assistant Director of School Medical Services; he held the position as late as 1953.

In the 1930 to 1933 electoral rolls he is listed as a medical practitioner in Bayview House, Bellevue St, Tempe. From 1934 he is listed at 15 Findlay Ave, Artarmon. Between 1935 and 1937 he is listed at 18 Wyvern Ave, Artarmon, along with John George and Mary Bell North and Alan Lindsay North. From 1943 he and Mary Bell North are listed at 23 Clanville Rd, Roseville; he is still there in 1968, no occupation then being listed. In evidence he gave at trial and reported in Sydney’s Truth on 17 Mar 1935 he is stated as a specialist in Macquarie St Sydney:

… DOCTOR’S EVIDENCE.

That he had formed the opinion that Fulton suffered from ‘pathological drunkenness’ at the time of the attack, was the evidence of Dr. Harry North, of Macquarie-street, who told the court of many responsible positions he had held.

Dr. North said he had been furnished with the family history of Fulton, and after studying it had formed the opinion that he had a degree of neuropathic inheritance — meaning that there was a susceptibility of the nervous system to disease.

‘Pathological drunkenness.’ explained Dr. North, was where drink could not be detected after it had been taken…

Harry Mander North did not marry and passed away in 1972.

06. Arthur Stanley North married Dorothy Beatrice Alcock at Burwood in 1927. Arthur became a grazier, initially at Eugowra in the central west of NSW between 1930 and 1937, then at Nullo Park, Rylestone, about 50km south east of Mudgee, until 1968. In that year the couple moved into the Edgewood Estate in Batehaven, near Batemans Bay. In the 1972 electoral rolls they lived at 44 Carlton Rd Batehaven; in 1980 they were back in the central west living in The Triangle, Woodstock Rd Canowindra. Arthur and Dorothy both passed away in 1984. The couple had two children.