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Record #5583
Name :
: Maxine ELLISON (1947 - )
  aka : Maxine Wegner


Father
:
Mother
:
BMD and other details
Date of Birth
: 1947

Marriage (1)
:
Marriage (2)
:

Date of Death
:
Abode (1) : Place of BirthEngland, Northumberland, Northumberland City
Abode (2) : Place of Death / Burial
Sailing Information
Date of Arrival
: 23 Nov 1952
Country
: Australia

Ship
: New Australia

Placement Family
:
Homes / Agencys
Institution (GB)
:

Agency
: Middlemore
NotesA birth registration was found for Maxine Ellison: Mother's Maiden Surname: Johnson; Date of Registration: Jul Aug Sep 1947; Registration district: Nthmbld C; Registration county: Yorkshire, Northumberland/Westmorland; Volume Number: 1b; Page Number: 478. Parents: John Turnbull Cowan and Emma Johnson.

In 1952, Maxine Ellison, 5 (along with brother, John C. Ellison, 6) arrived at Fremantle, Australia, in a group of 10 children en route to Fairbridge Farm School, Pinjarra, Australia.

In 2002, Maxine Ellison told their story to Margaret Price, who reported:

Maxine looks back on 50 years in WA

November 23 had special significance for Woodvale's Maxine Wegner.

It was the 50th anniversary of the day she and her brother John Ellison arrived from England as child migrants aboard the New Australia.

Aged five and seven respectively, they had come from Middlemore Children's Home in Birmingham to Fairbridge Farm School in Pinjarra.

They were in a group of 10 children travelling without parents, accompanied instead by strangers whose payment was the cost of their passage to Australia.

Their elder half-brother Brian had arrived at Fairbridge earlier.

The three siblings, who hailed from Northumberland, stayed at the farm school until age 16, before finding work, marrying and raising families.

Brian settled in Derby and John in Dalwallinu.

Although, over the years, Brian talked of an older sister Pat, information was scarce, even from their elderly mother, Emma.

When Brian and John visited her in England, she spoke only of four half brothers and sisters -- Mark, George, Gillian and Linda -- born after her older children had left for Australia.

They discovered that Brian had a different father although, to add to the confusion, John and Maxine shared his surname, Ellison.

About six years ago, fate intervened.

John struck up a conversation with a woman at wedding in Perth, sharing family information including the name of his father, John Turnbull Cowan.

It turned out that John and the woman were relatives.

She told him Peter an older half-brother in England had been searching for his Australian siblings.

Peter and his sister Pat were from John and Maxine's father's first marriage.

The Australian brother and sister also found a full brother, Tom, born just before they left for Australia and adopted out at six weeks in the local village.

'Tom came out for his 50th birthday and Christmas about four years ago and it was the best Christmas we have ever had,' Maxine said.

'Tom and John are the image of each other.'

Maxine said John and Brian had returned to England about 11 years ago to seek information about their family.

'They found our dad's grave, but they never found out anything,' she said.

'In fact Tom was only seven miles up the road and they never knew.

'Our mother never wanted to talk about it.'

Maxine hopes that by sharing her story, other children from the group of 10 who arrived in Fremantle on November 23, 1952 will make contact.

The New Australia sailed from Southampton on October 28, 1952.

To mark the 50th anniversary of their arrival, family put on a surprise party for Maxine and John, complete with Fairbridge memorabilia. There were also shipboard memories including a doll, and lead-look soldiers.

'Fairbridge was our home and we were always very grateful for that,' Maxine said.

'When I went back to England I was certainly very grateful that I had come out here to live.'" 
ContributorsCreated : 2009-03-15 20:37:16 / From original database

Last Updated : 2009-03-16 09:25:49 /

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Surnames starting with:   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  3 Entries        
IDNameDOBPlace of birthArrivals & ShipsDest.AgencyFamily links
5585 ELLISON, Brian1943ENG, NBL, Northumberland City May 1950 : Ormonde AUS Fairbridge Homes  
5584 ELLISON, John1946ENG, NBL, Northumberland City Nov 1952 : New Australia AUS Middlemore  
5583 ELLISON, Maxine1947ENG, NBL, Northumberland City Nov 1952 : New Australia AUS Middlemore