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Open Questions

Unresolved questions, gaps and uncertainties carried over from the Whillas–McLeod history spreadsheet (Rev 4) and family interviews. This page is a to-do list for future research — as questions are answered, update the relevant page and remove the item here (noting the resolution in the log).

Dates of family moves & residences

The spreadsheet repeatedly flags uncertainty about when the family moved between homes:

  • When did the family move to Angaston? Dick took a dried-fruit management job there c. 1948, but the exact move date is unknown.
  • Where does McGilp Ave (Glenelg East) fit in? D & C bought and sold a McGilp Ave property in Aug 1949, and it is listed as a possible Adelaide home address — its place in the sequence is unclear. See Adelaide.
  • When did the family move to Bray / Brae, near Robe? Sometime in 1949–50 after a camping trip from Angaston.
  • When did the family move to the Sth Purrumbete dairy farm? c. 1954.
  • When did the family move to Invergordon? c. late 1959 / early 1960.
  • When did the family move to East Fremantle? After the 1970 truck accident, but the date is marked unknown.
  • When did Richard Johnstone & Irine move back (Sth Purrumbete → Sydney) and then overseas? Only the Nov 1973 departure for Bali is dated.
  • When did Norman MacLeod build the Salter St, Kensington house? Said to be around the end of WW2, but the date is uncertain.

Norman MacLeod's records

  • Which British Army regiment did Norman serve in? He gave the 1st Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders (1914) but later the 3rd Seaforth Highlanders, service no. 8393 (1939). Complicated by another Norman McLeod, also from Barvas, in the same units. See Norman's WW1 service.
  • When did Norman return to Australia in the 1920s? Notes say ~2 years before Cath and her mother arrived in 1927 — not confirmed.
  • Norman's lighthouse postings after March 1936 (Althorpe Island, Cape du Couedic) rest only on Cath's recollection; the SA Archives hold no record after Cape Northumberland.
  • When did Norman marry Lileen Kallady? Date unknown (shortly before his death in Jan 1955).
  • Where are Norman's ashes? He was cremated in Melbourne; the location of the ashes is unknown.

People with missing details

  • Donald MacLeod — did he emigrate to Canada or the USA? Did he really fight with the Canadians in WW1? No details.
  • James Mawhinney Whillas — death date unknown.
  • Frances "Fannie" Johnston — exact date she left the UK (1864) is unknown.
  • The Sloggett aunts — the eight Sloggett girls of Millicent are only partly identified (Murd, Dorothy, Ethyl(?), May, Lil, Evelyn, Daisy) and are not in Robert's database. Did Daisy die aged ~12? See Charlotte Sloggett.
  • Catherine Gunn's sisters (Ann, Jessie, Margaret, Mary — all born Barvas) — no further details beyond birth dates.
  • "Uncle Joe" — noted working for the PMG (probably Bordertown) c. 1928. Who was he? See the 1920s timeline.

Records & certificates to find

Curiosities from the source

  • Why did C & D drive ~400 km from Bray to Adelaide on bad roads in a small Morris truck when Cath was nine months pregnant with Janet? (A question posed by the family historian.)

Teena birth, residence, and chronology questions

  • What is the correct birth wording in Teena's interview? The transcript reads, “Marylands in Adelaide, 1928 to the 3rd, 1947,” while her birth certificate and the 1940s timeline record 28 March 1947 in Maylands, Adelaide. The transcript may have misheard “28th of the 3rd.” Check the audio before changing the established date. See Teena's page and interview.
  • How do the childhood references to Cobden and South Purrumbete fit together? Teena recalls the family moving to Cobden and attending Tandarook South School; the existing family history places Dick and Cath's dairy farm at South Purrumbete, around 1954. These may refer to the same district, but the location and move sequence need checking. See Cobden, Tandarook South, and Teena's interview.
  • Which ship did Teena take to Asia? The transcript variously renders the name as “Aramek” and “Aramac”; verify it against the audio or travel records. See Teena's page and interview.
  • When did Teena and John acquire the Alstonville newsagency? The interview says they sold it in 2004 after about 25 years, which suggests but does not confirm a start around 1979. See the 2000s timeline and interview.

Fran's work and wartime service

  • Was Fran employed by CSIRO as a ledger keeper, and what was the name of her wartime servicemen's support group? Teena recalled Fran working at “the CSIRO” and helping returned servicemen through a group she first called the “Friendship Club,” then said that was not its name. Existing records document Fran at COR as a ledger supervisor from 1934 to 1953. Compare the Fran page with Teena's interview and look for the notes Teena mentioned.

See also

  • The Notes & uncertainties sections on each decade timeline page hold the same items in their chronological context.
  • The documents index tracks which records are held vs. still to be digitised.

Sources