DARNING MUSHROOM - WOOD

This darning mushroom is part of a collection of sewing items owned by Ellie Devereux who would make clothes and many costumes for the family during her time living at the family home on the corner of Church Avenue and Third Road in Armadale. Ellie was taught to sew at school in England. Her sewing skills were required when she and Gordon had their two children Joan and Eric 'Ricky'. she made most of the clothes they wore as children. Joan joined Gwen Gough's School of Dance in Armadale which required a number of costumes to be made each year for performances. Many of these costumes were made on a treadle Singer Sewing machine. Then there was the school concerts and children's fancy dress parties, all needed a costume. Finally there were the general repairs to the families clothing, all done by Ellie using these items. Ellie would have also used these items to make Joan's wedding dress when she got married in 1945.
Eleanor 'Ellie' Maude Young was born in England in 1893. Here father was William Edward Young. After leaving school Ellie started working as a nursemaid and in 1916 was working for a private client at Frognal Lane in Hampstead, London as well as doing some part time volunteering to help out with the war effort. It was at this time she met Gordon Devereux, a soldier serving with the Australian Imperial Forces, who was recovering from surgery for a hernia at the nearby Canewood Towers. On 21 March 1918 Ellie married Gordon at St John in Hampstead.
After the war ended, Gordon and Ellie were put on a wait listby the Australian Army for passage on a family ship to sail to Fremantle, W.A. Gordon was still living in the army camp at Sutton Veny for some of this time. One night he went AWOLfrom midnight until 8.25pm the next night, and was docked a days pay, and confined to camp. Not surprisingly, baby Joan was born about nine months later. Gordon was given permission by the AIF to take indefinite leaveand start employment at a Newsagents and Stationers, in Winchester, which was owned by Ellies sister Gladys and her husband, Arthur Brown. He was then able to see Ellie more often as she was living with her family in Portsmouth, not too far away.
After the birth of baby Joan, on 13thNov 1919, they were finally given passage by the AIF on a family ship the SS Zealandic,bound for Fremantle on 27thMarch 1920, arriving on 5 May 1920 and soon moved to Armadale where Gordon had a job with the Western Australian Government Railway laying ballast for tracks. in 1921 Gordon got the job of showing silent films at the Armadale Mechanics Institute. Ellie, when not looking after their now two children, Eric 'Ricky' Devereux was born in 1921, would help out by playing the music accompanying the film on the piano.
Ellie joined Gordon helping out at the Armadale Branch of the Returned Servicemen's League, volunteering to sit on the 'ladies' committee who organised numerous fund-raising events including dances and card parties. Ellie volunteered to assist with a variety of causes, often helping to raise funds, including the Unemployed Relief Committee during the Great Depression, the District Welfare Committee during World War II, including billeting visiting soldiers and sailors and the Armadale Hospital Auxiliary.
Tragedy struck the family in 1941 when their son Ricky was lost with the sinking of HMAS Sydney II of the coast of Western Australia. It was a loss that Ellie felt for the rest of her life, especially as during her lifetime no one knew where the Sydney had sunk and no bodies were ever recovered.
In 1970 Ellie lost Gordon. Ellie continued to live in the family home for a number of years. For the last yew years if her life she moved to Mt Lawley where she passed away age 92 in 1986.