Quick Search : British Home Children : The RootsChat.Com Reference Library

HOME FORUM HELP SEARCH

News : The Surname Interests Table (SIT), the Database for Special Interests Groups (DBSIG) and Ancestral Anniversaries
are now "mobile friendlier" more here ...

The RootsChat Reference Library

RootsChat.Com » RootsChat Reference Library » Database for Special Interest Groups (DBSIG) » British Home Children : Quick Search

Record #10932

Name :: : George Edward Windsor BAKER (1937 - )
aka : Edward Baker, Eddie Baker
Father: :
Mother: :

BMD and other details

Date of Birth: : 1937
Marriage (1): :
Marriage (2): :
Date of Death: :

Abode (1) : Place of BirthEngland, Hampshire, Southampton

Abode (2) : Place of Death / Burial

Sailing Information

Date of Arrival: : 6 May 1948
Country: : Australia
Ship: : Empire Brent (formerly Letitia II)
Placement Family: :

Homes / Agencys

Institution (GB): :
Agency: : Fairbridge Homes

NotesEddie Baker?s migration memories (? NSW Migration Heritage Centre, Australia NSW Migration Heritage Centre, Australia):

I was born on Coronation Day 1937 in Southampton, England. My grandmother wrote to the Duke of Windsor because, being a Coronation baby, they wanted to christen me ?Edward Windsor?. We got a letter back saying the wish had been granted and so I became ?Edward Windsor?. But my father registered me and, unknown to Mother, he tagged ?George? on the front! I never use ?George?, but that is my full [name], George Edward Windsor Baker.

When my father died it left my mother destitute with four children. We were evacuated during the [Second World] war to Bournemouth. It wasn?t a terribly happy experience [and] Mother took us back home to Winchester. It was a disaster there. I was constantly bullied. Eventually she had a nervous breakdown, so the doctor recommended my sister and myself go into this Fairbridge home at Benington in Hertfordshire. We were the two youngest. I think I was nine. The eldest sister was just old enough to go to work and the next eldest, my brother, went into a military cadetship.

Benington was in a beautiful, rural setting so it was really great. It was a holding area for children going overseas ? Canada or Australia ? so a lot of the children were only there for about two or three months. My mother didn?t visit very often. It was a fair way and I guess transport was a problem.

I think [my mother] approved reluctantly with going [to Australia], eventually she must have relented. There was coloured blood in the family so the ?White Australia? policy wouldn?t allow my sister to come. My father was quite dark ? we?ve only just discovered my grandmother had an affair with a dark coloured man ? and it showed up on my sister where I followed after my mother being fair skinned. They were reluctant to let me go on my own but I was quite upset [at] missing out, so eventually they gave me the okay. My sister went into a national children?s home in the UK.

I was 10 when I left, it was all excitement. Most children like an adventure don?t they? I knew at least 30 children at the other end that I had made friends with, so it wasn?t a big deal waving goodbye.

We went by bus to the station [and] boarded a train up to Glasgow [and] sailed. Empire Brent was a single funnel boat but quite enormous to us at the time. It was packed with migrants from different nationalities that were coming to Australia.

[Departing] was quite solemn. Most of the children were fairly quiet, so there must have been a bit of anxiety. In the morning, all we saw was water and then we had a pretty good time. You were meant to have schooling but they couldn?t find anybody [to teach us], so there wasn?t any! It was just having fun, running around and being spoiled. If any of the boys were bullied, they would take them down into the galley and feed you with nice things which was quite a treat in those days; we didn?t get many luxuries. We were spoiled and treated to outings and good food in Perth, Adelaide and Sydney.

We got the train up from Sydney and I am not sure whether it was to Orange or Molong. Coming up the drive [to Fairbridge Farm in] a truck, all these children I knew came running down and greeted you, so I settled in very easily.

[Fairbridge] had a policy of putting most [new] children into the one cottage, as you had known each other. We had two girls with us and they went into a girls? cottage. But the rest of us, we all went into Canary Cottage, so it wasn?t terribly hard settling in.

Didn?t particularly like the heat. [That] came as a bit of a shock, I liked the cooler weather better. I used to suffer from heat rash in England!

In the winter you only had one fireplace in the main common room, but apart from that, you didn?t stand around in the mornings. You got dressed pretty quickly otherwise you froze to death.

You had shoes but were encouraged to go barefoot because it was healthy, firstly, saved shoes, secondly. After the war there was a shortage and the farm had a fairly tight budget. When you had to go somewhere you would have your shoes on, but mostly village life you got around barefoot. Everybody had to mend their own shoes ? girls and boys ? and they were leather.

The children just had stainless steel plates but staff had china. The cups, saucers and so forth had the Fairbridge emblem stamped on them. I came by this [china plate] by a good friend of mine who has now passed on. When the farm closed down in ?74, a lot of those things were auctioned off and I think he acquired it there. I quite liked the emblem and some years ago fashioned one out of copper and brass for the roof of my house.

I didn?t mind the school. Initially [it was] on the village when numbers were small [and] went up to intermediate and leaving level. As numbers increased it became a primary school and the bigger ones went to Molong, the brighter ones to Orange.

Oh the training, yes, you had various jobs to do when you became a [farm] trainee and you had a monthly roster. I wasn?t too bad. I am not a city person. I quite like the country, much healthier for you, [so] I liked the rural life.

You didn?t do [traineeship] until you were about 15. That was saving costs because the children did most of the work, a lot supervised by an adult. You had a chef in the kitchen but the boys were responsible for getting the fires going, making sure the stoves were hot, bake all the bread and so forth. I didn?t mind kitchen, you got a few extra treats there. Then you had a farm manager who oversaw the boys doing all the milking. I think you had about 40 odd cows to milk in my day, by hand. Then you slaughtered the sheep.

We used to produce a lot of milk. Skimmed would be fed to the calves and pigs and the cream would make our own butter. Most mornings we would have a really good morning tea of bread and jam and the cream would be so thick. That was wonderful.

While I was there, the farm was at its peak. Dairy was quite good, they had top stock on the farm. The farm was governed by a committee [of] local farmers so they used to win quite a lot of prizes in the shows.

Pocket money was a ha?penny. As you got a bit older it went up to a penny and then it was tuppence, thruppence, sixpence. When you were a trainee doing a fair bit of work, you got a shilling. They had a tuck shop on the farm each Saturday for the children to spend their money and I think most of the sweets were donated by confectionery companies.

Initially a lot of the clothing was hand-me-downs, we were a fairly scruffy looking lot! When you were in the village it didn?t matter much because you were alike, but once you went to town, to football or to the pictures, you noticed it then. I know I felt it as I got into my teens because you want to look smart for the opposite sex. Your head was shaved, there was a very basic style and some of the girls would have their hair lopped straight around!

There was probably about 180 children [around] 1952. They take some supervising and keeping track of. When you were in the wrong, Woods, the principal at Fairbridge, would write it down in his notebook. He was a very busy man and you would see him in his office at one or two in the morning, still typing reports to go back and forth to the UK on every child.

Eventually he would get to see you. It could be one or two in the morning, it wouldn?t matter. He would come into the bedroom and get everybody out of bed and would have a few canes under his arm if you needed punishing. You?d all be shivering a bit not knowing which one was going to get it.

He would cite the reason and would deem, if it wanted, a bamboo stick around your tail. On a couple of occasions we weren?t doing our homework. You would have to bend over, nearly touch your toes. I received quite a few in my time which wasn?t very pleasant, but you accepted it. You know, it?s just one of those things.

[My mother] always kept up the letters and the information on the rest of the family. I never used to write back much and that used to upset the principal. Woods introduced compulsory letter writing. Probably not everybody had somebody to write to, but those that did, had to write a letter.

Quite a few private families would take Fairbridge children on holidays and I was fortunate to go to a nice family in Sydney. I felt very ?out? because the other children was able to call their parents ?Mum? and ?Dad? where I couldn?t.

[Leaving] was a happy experience but a bit daunting. You have lived quite a bit of your life within the perimeter and the safety of Fairbridge and then you go out into the world. It was a bit strange initially, more so than waving goodbye at the other end and coming out because you are older.

[Fairbridge] had an after care officer, Ted Tepper, and I was fortunate. A lot of people didn?t do so well when they left the farm. I went on the land initially and got a job just out of Orange [with] a lovely family. They took me into their home and treated me like one of their own children which was wonderful. I stayed there for about two years. They had to send back a quarter of your wage to Fairbridge [yet] I saved almost ?500 which could have bought me nearly a house in Orange those days.

Living not far, I used to go back to the farm for Easters and Christmastimes. You paid a very small fee to cover your food but they always welcomed the old boys and girls back. Then drifted away to Warragamba, another Fairbridge fellow and myself.

As I got older, the thing I missed most was being part of a family. It was something I didn?t have and something I cherish. Now that I have my own family I know very well what I?ve missed. I haven?t got to have bags of money. My wants are very basic. All I want is my family and that?s been right through my life.

I nominated [my mother] on that ?10 assisted scheme. That was about ?62. She was 50 at the time, had a little housekeeping job until she was 65, then went back to the UK. She didn?t like the heat, didn?t like flies. She had elderly sisters back in England and my eldest sister was close, where we weren?t. Oh well, it was fine, didn?t feel anything. There?s no motherly-son ties there.

The sister who initially wasn?t allowed to come to Australia migrated with her first husband and three children in about ?64. Maybe [it was] because I was out here and a lot of English people migrated to Australia for a better way of life, better climate, better opportunities. It had been many years since I had seen her but Wendy and I picked her out on the boat. It was very good, happy to see each other, embraced and it was wonderful. We see a lot of her. Then that in turn brought my other sister and also my brother on many trips out. So at the end of the day, it?s all a fairly positive conclusion.

I met Wendy when I was 17 and she was 15. She was an Orange girl and we kept company for about two years. Wendy got a bit tired of me so at that point I drifted away. I had a failed marriage [in] which I had two children but in about ?63 I contacted Wendy. We rekindled our friendship and then we married and had a family which was wonderful. She reared my first two children and we had another three, which was quite a big job.

I moved back to Orange in ?64 and work for the Ex-Services Club. I have been there for 36 years and do the buying of the foods, the liquor and cleaning materials which has been quite good.

We have had several trips back [to the UK] and visited Benington twice. There was quite a lot of happiness there actually. It had a big fountain and we used to shoot the frogs on the lilies with arrows ? we were going through the bow and arrow stage, you see! It?s been a private dwelling for many, many years and a colonel was selling it, invited us in and gave me one of those [brochures].

One would never know what one would have become if you?d stayed in the UK. I can only throw a positive light on my experience at the farm. I read, I enjoyed the recent book on Fairbridge, [The Forgotten Children]. It brought out a few truths. [David Hill, the author,] brought out things that were unknown to others which was good. Any book that?s written about Fairbridge will always upset some. If things are hidden, they need to be in the open.

Interviewed by:
Andrea Fernandes, NSW Migration Heritage Centre

ContributorsCreated : 2010-01-03 14:46:28 / From original database

Last Updated : 2010-01-03 14:51:49 /

Family History ResearchersRootsChatters with family connections to George Edward Windsor BAKER:

Readers Comments

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 89 Entries

ID	Name	DOB	Place of birth	Arrivals & Ships	Dest.	Agency	Family links
22585	BAKER, A	1893	ENG,	Jun 1905 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
26109	BAKER, A G	1887	ENG,	Mar 1903 : Canada	CAN	Barnardos
26183	BAKER, Albert	1892	ENG,	Mar 1903 : Canada	CAN	Barnardos
2652	BAKER, Alfred	1910	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	Jun 1916 : Scandinavian	CAN	Middlemore
6763	BAKER, Alfred	1901	ENG,	Oct 1910 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
3969	BAKER, Alfred Augustus	1886	ENG, MDX, Whitechapel, London	Jul 1898 : Labrador	CAN	Barnardos
2653	BAKER, Amy	1908	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	Jun 1916 : Scandinavian	CAN	Middlemore
19071	BAKER, Annie	1886	ENG, WOR, Dudley	Aug 1901 : Parisian	CAN	Barnardos
17134	BAKER, Arthur	1884	ENG,	Mar 1899 : Dominion	CAN	National Childrens Home
11904	BAKER, Arthur Leonard	1900	ENG,	Mar 1911 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
8949	BAKER, Arthur W	1911	ENG, , Arlesey	May 1925 : Montclare	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
10907	BAKER, Bertie	1892	ENG,	Jul 1903 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
19128	BAKER, Bessie	1888	ENG,	Aug 1901 : Parisian	CAN	Barnardos
17130	BAKER, Catherine	1899	ENG,	Aug 1907 : Tunisian	CAN	MacPherson Homes
2654	BAKER, Charles	1911	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	Jun 1916 : Scandinavian	CAN	Middlemore
5724	BAKER, Charles	1870	ENG,	Aug 1875 : - Unknown -	CAN	Louisa Birt
14484	BAKER, Charles	1913	ENG,	Oct 1927 : Montclare	CAN	Barnardos
5049	BAKER, David	1914	ENG, YKS, Leeds	Mar 1930 : Duchess of Richmond	CAN	Barnardos
15784	BAKER, Edgar Frank	1896	ENG, LDN, London	Jul 1909 : Scotian	CAN	Barnardos
11678	BAKER, Edith	1892	ENG,	May 1902 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
22555	BAKER, Edith	1900	ENG,	Jul 1911 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
25044	BAKER, Edith	1894		Mar 1910 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
3968	BAKER, Edith Jemima	1887	ENG, SRY, Camberwell	Jul 1902 : New England	CAN	Barnardos
9177	BAKER, Edward	1894	ENG,	Mar 1910 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
16181	BAKER, Edward George	1909	ENG, MDX, Staines	Jun 1921 : Scandinavian	CAN	Barnardos
11358	BAKER, Edwin	1892	ENG,	Oct 1900 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
21835	BAKER, Edwin Matthew	1913	ENG, LIN, Boston	Jul 1928 : Doric	CAN	Church of England Waifs and Strays Association	newron11
7996	BAKER, Eliza	1848	ENG,	Jun 1869 : Austrian	CAN	Maria Rye
15096	BAKER, Elizabeth	1881	ENG,	Jul 1895 : Vancouver	CAN	British Women\'s Emigration Association
9801	BAKER, Ellen	1898	ENG,	Jul 1911 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
23344	BAKER, Elsie	1901	ENG,	Sep 1914 : Corinthian	CAN	Barnardos
13266	BAKER, Emily	1901	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
20129	BAKER, Emily M	1894	ENG,	Jul 1910 : Virginian	CAN	Maria Rye
14354	BAKER, Emma	1886	ENG,	1898 : - Unknown -	CAN	British Women\'s Emigration Association
13052	BAKER, Ernest	1897	ENG, SOM, Weston Super Mare	Apr 1913 : Lake Manitoba	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
4896	BAKER, Ernest F	1913	ENG, LDN, London	Mar 1925 : Aurania	CAN	Liverpool Sheltering Home
15140	BAKER, Ethel	1901	ENG,	Sep 1907 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
15592	BAKER, Eva L		ENG,	- Unknown -	CAN	Unknown
19173	BAKER, Francis	1903	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Victorian	CAN	MacPherson Homes
17317	BAKER, Frank	1899	ENG,	Jul 1909 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
19176	BAKER, Fred	1898	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Victorian	CAN	MacPherson Homes
17318	BAKER, Frederick	1898	ENG,	Jun 1910 : Mongolian	CAN	Middlemore
20340	BAKER, Frederick	1874		Mar 1887 : Parisian	CAN	Barnardos
23032	BAKER, Frederick	1898	ENG,	Apr 1909 : Empress of Britain	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
21884	BAKER, George	1875	ENG,	Sep 1887 : Circassian	CAN	Liverpool Catholic Childrens Protective Society (now Nugent Care)
10932	BAKER, George Edward Windsor	1937	ENG, HAM, Southampton	May 1948 : Empire Brent (formerly Letitia II)	AUS	Fairbridge Homes
13265	BAKER, Gertrude	1900	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
13600	BAKER, Gladys May	1897	ENG,	Sep 1907 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
26011	BAKER, H F	1884	ENG,	Mar 1903 : Canada	CAN	Barnardos
16437	BAKER, Harold William	1914	ENG, WAR, Kings Heith, Birmingham	May 1924 : Franconia	CAN	Middlemore
19526	BAKER, Hilda	1900	ENG,	Apr 1913 : Teutonic	CAN	Hurst House Training Home
15767	BAKER, Horace	1876	ENG,	1889 : - Unknown -	CAN	Unknown
20050	BAKER, Hy R	1871	ENG,	Jun 1886 : Lake Superior	CAN	Barnardos
20051	BAKER, Hy W	1869	ENG,	Jun 1886 : Lake Superior	CAN	Barnardos
5943	BAKER, Ivy	1899	ENG,	May 1908 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
24482	BAKER, Ivy	1899		Jun 1906 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
9781	BAKER, J E A	1883	ENG,	Apr 1896 : Scotsman	CAN	Barnardos
20545	BAKER, James	1874		Mar 1887 : Parisian	CAN	Barnardos
21885	BAKER, Jessie	1869	ENG,	Sep 1887 : Circassian	CAN	Liverpool Catholic Childrens Protective Society (now Nugent Care)
2655	BAKER, John	1915	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	1920 : - Unknown -	CAN	Middlemore
9241	BAKER, John	1891	ENG,	Mar 1901 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
12078	BAKER, John	1916	ENG,	May 1928 : Ballarat	AUS	Fairbridge Homes
27444	BAKER, John S	1860		Aug 1872 : Sarmatian	CAN	Macpherson Homes
22739	BAKER, Joseph	1874	ENG,	Sep 1892 : Mongolian	CAN	Barnardos
4001	BAKER, Joseph Ernest Albert	1881	ENG, KEN, Newington	Apr 1896 : Scotsman	CAN	Barnardos
22903	BAKER, Kathleen D	1900	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Ascania	CAN	Salvation Army
4899	BAKER, Lilian E	1911	ENG, LDN, London	Mar 1925 : Aurania	CAN	Liverpool Sheltering Home
19086	BAKER, Mabel	1897	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
4002	BAKER, Margaret Eugenie Blanche	1879	ENG, KEN, Newington	Sep 1895 : Sardinian	CAN	Barnardos
17154	BAKER, Maud	1903	ENG,	Aug 1907 : Tunisian	CAN	MacPherson Homes
2974	BAKER, Miriam	1897	ENG,	May 1911 : Victorian	CAN	Waifs & Strays
23687	BAKER, Nellie	1894	ENG,	Jun 1906 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
11254	BAKER, Oscar	1884	ENG,	Jul 1899 : Lake Huron	CAN	Barnardos
17835	BAKER, Pamela	1904	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	Jun 1913 : Mongolian	CAN	Middlemore
8489	BAKER, Phyllis	1901	ENG,	Mar 1910 : Tunisian	CAN	Barnardos
8266	BAKER, Sidney	1913	ENG, LDN, London	Apr 1928 : Montclare	CAN	Barnardos
17089	BAKER, Thomas	1900	ENG, WAR, Birmingham	Jun 1913 : Mongolian	CAN	Middlemore
22556	BAKER, Thomas		ENG,	May 1911 : Corsican	CAN	Unknown Catholic Group
26184	BAKER, Thomas	1895	ENG,	Mar 1903 : Canada	CAN	Barnardos
20212	BAKER, V		ENG,	May 1911 : Corsican	CAN	Louisa Birt
11785	BAKER, W	1890	ENG,	May 1902 : Dominion	CAN	Barnardos
20257	BAKER, Walter		ENG,	May 1911 : Corsican	CAN	Louisa Birt
22290	BAKER, Walter		ENG,	Apr 1892 : Sarnia	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
22512	BAKER, Walter B	1909	ENG,	May 1923 : Scythia	CAN	Middlemore
13255	BAKER, William	1900	ENG,	Sep 1912 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
14130	BAKER, William	1888	ENG,	Jul 1899 : Lake Huron	CAN	Barnardos
21886	BAKER, William	1880	ENG,	Sep 1887 : Circassian	CAN	Liverpool Catholic Childrens Protective Society (now Nugent Care)
9274	BAKER, William Arthur	1905	ENG,	Mar 1911 : Sicilian	CAN	Barnardos
23009	BAKER, William N.	1890	ENG,	May 1903 : Kensington	CAN	Fegan Homes for Boys
ID	Name	DOB	Place of birth	Arrivals & Ships	Dest.	Agency	Family links

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 89 Entries

The Database for Special Interest Groups (DBSIG) is a RootsChat Reference Library project.

[Copyright] [Shrink Link] [Terms of Use] [About RootsChat]