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T .L. IRELAND AND SONS' MORE THAN JUST A BUSINESS:
A LIFE WORTH REMEMBERING.

The 30th of June, 2001, was a warm, sunny winter's day. It was on this winter afternoon I experienced something quite surreal, the closing of the doors on a business that had its origin over 60 years before in the minds of my parents who were determined to provide a secure future for their growing family. Sad , though I was, I did feel some pleasure as I looked around at the many faces that had come to acknowledge the last trading day of T .L. Ireland and Sons Bakery, Bulahdelah. Whilst thrilled by their presence my mind was somewhat clouded, filled with memories, some quite cogent and clear, others not so sound but taking little effort to reignite during an afternoon's reminiscing.

On Anzac Day, 1935, life for Thomas Ireland, his wife, Beatrice and their three boys Jack, Peter and Lindsay changed completely. It was on this day they harnessed the horse and sulky and moved the four miles into Bulahdelah. They had lived a secluded life on the farm at Crawford where each day they milked by hand some 30 cows and Tom rode his bicycle to work at Viggers sawmill, Rosenthal. It was easy to admire Dad, a fair minded man with an immense capacity to work and work hard. Mum was no less capable but she was also blessed with a wonderful logic and sound 'business' sense.

These were depression years and it was difficult enough rearing a family let alone putting some saving away with the object of buying a business. Somehow mum and dad raised enough cash to put a deposit on the Bulahdelah Butchery, which was to be the core of the business from then until the present day. History would prove this was a wise decision because it was to be the platform for major success for the Ireland family.

I well remember my first days residing in Bulahdelah and how different everything was. We three boys went off to the school on the Monday with fear and trepidation but soon became accustomed to a much larger school than the one teacher facility at Crawford River. There is one thing that still stands out in my mind about that first day. The Headmaster, a small, surly man wearing a dustcoat, entered the big room where perhaps 60 children were seated and shouted "10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 plus 45"! Somehow I immediately knew the answer and said, "100 Sir". He and all the children were nonplussed at this kid from the little Crawford knowing the answer! This began some three years of great friendship between Mr. S. Amm, the Headmaster, and Jack Ireland. We enjoyed many times together and he taught me much in many fields. We progressed well through our schooling with Lindsay ultimately attending Maitland Boys' High, then teachers college and on to the Royal Australian Air Force.

Peter and I soon became involved in the butchery and in no time were able to assist our parents, Beat. and Tom, together with Fred White and Charlie Leary in running the business. Peter took over the purchasing of cattle from the various saleyards at Gloucester, Krambach and Maitland and also through many private transactions. He once rode to Tamboy, on the southern side of Myall Lakes, bought cattle, swam them across the lower Myall and drove them up to a Forestry camp at the Water Holes, arriving at lO.OOpm. He drove them on to Bulahdelah the next day. Truly a remarkable feat for a young teenage boy! Peter soon became an expert buyer and was held in high regard by fellow, buyers much older then he was. On one occasion he picked up a mob of cattle from Maitland at Karuah and drove them on horseback to Bulahdelah via Tea Gardens where he delivered some to Engels. There was no bridge at Karuah in those days so he had to somehow herd this mob of probably 60 or 70 head on to the ferry. I cannot imagine a 15-year-old lad today having the tenacity and know-how to perform this feat. Peter was a remarkable young man.

In the meantime, I had left school, much to the disappointment of my teachers who were certain my life would be wasted in not going to university. My place though was with the family and at the age of 16 I was almost running the business, working long hours and enjoying every minute of it. I had good teachers in Fred and Charlie and wonderful encouragers in mum and dad. Having had three sons, mum always longed for a daughter and in 1939 the tragedy within one family provided a blessing to our own. The infant, Margaret Joan, became a part of our family. I remember Joan as a tiny baby struggling with life and death for some days and ultimately growing into a lovely sister and fine young woman. She has been an integral part of our family ever since.

During the first few years of the Butchery cattle were slaughtered in Witts Slaughter House at Crawford and transported to Bulahdelah by horse and cart. The cattle were killed early Monday morning, delivered to the old shop in Crawford street, broken into quarters, meat corned, sausages made... all in one long day. The refrigerator was driven by a diesel motor and always struggled to cool the meat, which had to be ready to cut up at 2.30am on Tuesday morning to be delivered to the customers by horse and cart at about 7.30am. Hygiene in those days was very difficult. All we could do was our best to meet reasonable standards.

There was of course no such thing as mains electricity for lighting or power. Lanterns and kerosene lights were used and all work had to be done by hand, like cutting up 100 T -bone steaks with a meat saw, a huge job! Compared to modern methods, everything was very primitive. I understood early that nothing comes easy in life, but rather hard work and the ability to make the right decisions is what brings about success.

In 1939 we built a very modern slaughterhouse for those days just south of the town and slaughtered all our meat there until its closure in 1973. After this closure it was necessary to transport cattle for slaughter to Wingham or Waratah abattoirs and build a special vehicle to bring the meat back to Bulahdelah. This proved expensive and forced us to raise the retail price of meat.

Mum was always the brains behind the business and completed all the
bookwork herself. She also became an efficient butcher in her own right. Mum was always most concerned about meeting payments on time etc. This was often very difficult, particularly during the depression, and to his credit Dad would not force payment if a family did not have the means. Looking at it in retrospect, dad's compassionate attitude helped develop much goodwill that was to serve the business so well.

The business experienced changes just prior to the Second World War when Charlie Leary left us to establish Leary Brothers Bakery and Fred White left to buyout the local bus run. Jock McGibbon, a large Scotsman
with an almost unintelligible accent, came to work with us in 1939 and remained a faithful employee for many years.

War broke out in 1939 and everything changed with rationing, coupons, shortage of manpower etc., etc. The family carried on with Jock's help until 1942 when Peter and I were enlisted. It is impossible to appreciate the amount of work mum, dad and Jock were able to perform during our absence. They must have had to work 12 hours a day for 2 years. Finally dad became very ill and Peter was able to get a compassionate release from the army in 1944 to come back and assist in the business.

When he returned he found the business was at a very low ebb and it took a lot commitment and hard work to rebuild. I became married in June 1944 and recall how difficult it was to leave my new wife and the business, which in my opinion needed me far more than the Army did. It was to be two more years before I was discharged and until such time mum, dad and Peter carried on under immense pressures and extreme difficulties.

When finally I was released from the Army in 1946 I came straight back to Bulahdelah and the business. I don't recall making a conscious decision to do so, but such was the bond to family and business and my desire to take my place after such an unwanted separation, that it was the only thing to do. Meanwhile Lindsay had married Nancy Hart, Peter, Joyce Richardson and I, Thora Macpherson. My marriage to Thora began a wonderful 57 year (so far...) partnership, which included rearing 8 children and enjoying 23 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren to date. Joan later married Gary Cheers.

Peter left the butchery business in 1948 and took over Arch Dee's bakery. He successfully ran this business for a number of years and became a qualified baker. In 1951 it was decided to amalgamate the butchery and bakery and so the name "T .L. lreland & Sons" began and the buildings that now stand in Stroud Street were erected. It was a huge undertaking to build such a large establishment in such a small town, and the family certainly faced some doubt and criticism as we began construction. During this time we were heavily in debt, but as a good friend would later say to me "you have to speculate to accumulate" and thanks to good bank managers and hard work we were able to survive.

My brother-in-law, Oscar Macpherson, built this building of 3 shops and 3 flats plus the bakery at the back. The distinctive street facade is a solid memorial to the Ireland family. Thankfully, despite the difficulties and opposition, history had again confirmed our decision and the outlay proved to be a good investment.

We moved from the old, primitive shop in Crawford Street in 1955 and the butchery business prospered in leaps and bounds. At the peak we slaughtered about 15 head of cattle, 30 sheep and 3 pigs each week. These cattle weighed about 500 to 600 pounds. I remember one huge bullock weighing over 850 pounds! Manhandling a beast of that size was quite a task!

As our business in Stroud Street prospered the family was able to purchase good grazing land in the Bulahdelah area and around Gloucester district. These properties became so very important, enabling us to grow and fatten our own cattle to slaughter and sell in the butcher shop. This was the principle reason the business prospered so much in the early 1960's.

1965 brought with it new horizons for some and tragedy for others. Peter decided to leave the business and concentrate on his grazing properties. He and Joyce moved to Gloucester and then to the Walcha district where he and his whole family now have extensive holdings. In the same year Joan's husband Gary, passed away leaving her with two young daughters. Despite this, Joan gradually became more involved in the business where she remained until her retirement in June 2000. For many years my commitments in Local Government often kept me from the business. During those times Joan was indispensable, a tremendous help to me in countless ways. I don't know of anyone else who could have run both the butchery and bakery in my absence.

 Upon his discharge from the Air Force, Lindsay took up school teaching and taught at many schools including Kanwal, Hill End, Adaminaby and Bulahdelah. Finally he resigned from Bulahdelah School and joined dad and I in purchasing the property known as 'Piles', ultimately forming the Myall River Pastoral Company. Through hard work this developed into a wonderful dairy and still operates as a very financial enterprise in the hands of his family today. Lindsay was also much involved with the Bulahdelah Golf and Bowling Clubs where in both cases he became the C.E.O.. Perhaps his greatest achievement was his involvement in raising funds and securing Government approval for the construction of the Great Lakes Nursing Home, a project we are all very proud of. Lindsay passed away in 1998 survived by Nancy, his three children and 8 grand children.

The business continued to prosper and diversify and for many years we ran the mail runs from Stroud Road to
Warrah; Bulahdelah to Nabiac; Bulahdelah to Bungwahl and Coomba; and Bulahdelah to Bombah Point. The main reason for acquiring these runs was to deliver meat and bread but they also proved to be a rewarding operation in their own right. The success of any business is dependant on its people and we had many terrific, loyal employees over the years who were instrumental in building up the firm of T .L. Ireland and Sons to become one of the biggest country businesses in New South Wales.

On that Anzac day, so many years ago, Thomas and Beatrice could never have envisaged just how large and involved the business would become. At one stage we employed 15 people, which more than confirms their decision to risk all they had at the outset.

Mum passed away in 1977 at a relatively young age. No doubt her extremely hard life during the War years had taken its toll. My mother was indeed a wonderful lady and friend to many people. Dad lived on until 1992 and enjoyed relative good health right to the end. He was driving his tractor until a few days before he passed away at 92 years of age. Dad had many stories to tell and I am now sorry that I did not record them.

In 1980 I decided to lease the Butchery and in 2000 sold the freehold to Barry Brothers. The Bakery carried on under the leadership of my son, Rodney, John Allen (who had been with the business for 45 years) and Joan. Our bakers can certainly take pride in the reputation of our pies, known up and down the coast as being among the very best there are and our tin and hightop bread is also very well known and sought after. Frequently travellers from far afield stop to buy Tin loaves (sometimes 6 or 8 !) and comments such as "I can't wait to get home and spread this with real butter and honey!" were very common.

After much thought and family discussion it was finally decided we should lease the Bakery. The decision was a sad one to make as I always imagined the name of Ireland's Bakery would go on forever, but
even good things must come to an end. And so, that day finally came when drawing in the familiar aroma of the shop freshly cleaned after a Saturday morning's trade I pushed the door shut and paused to view Stroud Street one last time through the shop window before joining family, friends, customers, and business associates for the start of my retirement at age78.

Rodney has become an expert baker and pastry cook but feels he wants a change after almost 40 years. He hopes to spend more time with his woodwork and no doubt will be involved with me in farm work (for which I am far from retirement age). As I look back I recognise that a business is a part of society and I am proud of what this family business has achieved, far more important than being financially successful it has in many ways made a positive contribution to this wonderful community. It was possible, I am sure, because of its beginnings in the minds, hearts and hands of my parents. Both had a very strong Christian faith and were greatly involved in the Anglican Church. They had very high moral standards and thankfully passed this on to the whole family. I was fortunate to marry a Christian girl and all our married life we have been involved with the Church.

There is no doubt in my mind this is the real reason for our prosperity. It kept us focused on the main race, our relationship with God in all aspects of our life. My personal ambition to succeed has been guided by the same focus and I have always strived to do what is best for my family and the community. 1 have and will always get great pleasure out of serving my fellow man and trust my legacy will be that my family will continue that pursuit it
whatever they do.

Of course, the family owes a lot to the people of Bulahdelah district who have faithfully supported us for 66 years. To those many customers, (some for over 50 years!) I can only say "thankyou". Please accept the genuineness of the compliment; your custom has been much appreciated by the whole family.

As my father did for the tireless efforts of his wife, I also owe much to mine. Thora has been a tremendous support to me over the years and virtually reared our 8 children herself due to the long hours I had to work. Bulahdelah has been very kind to me and the Ireland family, and I will always be grateful for the confidence they have had in me.

I hope to enjoy many more years of good health and will always remain in Bulahdelah where Thora and I can enjoy the fruits of our labour and the many blessings this town has to offer. I would not blame anyone who reads this thinking it is no more than one man's rambling. My hope though is that some might see it for what it was intended, a snap shot of times past, an insight into the lives of people who possessed the courage to make something of their future, of adversities overcome through integrity, hard work, loyalty and commitment. A portrait of lives given to making a contribution, and the importance of faith as the cornerstone of life.

Today, I give thanks to God for far more than just a business that was; I give thanks for a life worth remembering.

Jack Edward IRELAND. OAM.
Bulahdelah. NSW. 2423.
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