By Michael Willey, Seaford, Victoria, and Margaret Qualtrough-Sheffield, 30 January 2013
(Edited by Malcolm Qualtrough)
In the late 1960s the a search of the telephone directories found a scattering of Qualtroughs, almost all within the State of Victoria. But by 1966 the new name of 'Qualtrough-Sheffield' appeared. This was a mystery to those Qualtroughs that had descended from the early settlers of Wattle Glen.
Bertie William Haddock was born in New Zealand in 1927.
He was the son of Bertie Mervyn (Pat) Haddock and May Harrison. Grand-parents on his father's side were John Haddock and Sarah Qualtrough (1853-1921)See Charts 6 and 8updated Feb 2013
Bertie married Norma Doreen Cox in 1949, it is not yet known if they had any children together.
According to the NZ electoral roles they lived at No 9 Glasgow Terrace Auckland C3 in 1949 and later in 1954 they lived at 28 Kowhalu Rd, Auckland SE4.
By 1957, Bertie's whereabouts were unknown, but his wife was living at 6a Macmillan Avenue in Canterbury.
He re-surfaces in December 1960 after living and working in Melbourne, he boards a ship, the RMS Orontes, bound for England.
Margaret Swadling (nee Levee) had boarded the ship when it left Sydney and passed through Melbourne on the way to Fremantle. On bus excursion to Kings Park in Perth she meets Bertie.
The boat arrived in Southampton, England in late January or early February 1961.
Bertie lived and worked in London where, in 1961, he changes his name by Deed Poll to William Robert Qualtrough-Sheffield. Likewise Margaret changes her name by Deed Poll to Margaret Qualtrough-Sheffield.
At Easter of 1961 they visited the Isle of Man and met with Qualtrough relatives. Just before Christmas they returned to the Isle of Man to stayed to await the birth of their first child. (This family is thought to be the Harris family)
Julie May Qualtrough-Sheffield was born and lived with her parents, William and Margaret at 82 Croydon Rd, Sydenham, London SE20 (UK Electoral Roll).
In 1963 the family returned to Australia on the SS Brittany. On board William teaches Greek migrant children English. Origionally they were destined for Sydney but William went ashore in Melbourne to contact friends and a decision was made to stay there. The second child, Sarah Jane Qualtrough-Sheffield was born at the Royal Women's hospital in Melbourne. The family now lived at 2/55 Elm Grove, Ripponlea.
Peter Curotte was a student at Oak Park High School in northern suburban Melbourne 1961-1966. He recalls that William had a Van Dyke beard, was softly spoken and once told an absorbing story of the sea around New Zealand. Perhaps he had a pipe, tweed jacket and leather elbow patches. Peter was not sure if he was a qualified teacher, many were not in those days, but he thinks he told his students that he had been a journalist.
It would have been early to mid sixties, Peter thinks he taught English and perhaps History - not at the school for very long.
In 1966 William divorced Norma Doreen Haddock (Cox), and Margaret divorced Reginald Swadling, and the family moved to Macedon, just North of Melbourne. Third daughter, Emily Anne Qualtrough-Sheffield was born in the Kyneton, hospital.
In 1967 William and Margaret thought it was time to get married and did so at the Melbourne Registery Office. Now married they decided to foster three more children (twins and an older sibling) for 6 months.
It is known that from 1968 to 1972 the family lived at "Ballafesson", Macedon, Victoria.
In 1974 Margaret decided to leave William to further her career; so William along with his three daughters moved to Trentham, Victoria; where William taught at the Kyneton High School.
Willaim and Margaret were divorced in May 1976. William continued to live at Ballafesson Park, Albert St, Trntham until 1980 when he died of emphysema and cancer of the liver.
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© Copyright by Malcolm Qualtrough, Elizabeth Feisst and the late John Karran Qualtrough.