WALLY & EDITH WOODROW
by Alvyn Hopgood
Wally and Edith Woodrow had a home on Daranda Terrace, facing his beloved Lake Alexandrina. Wally was a fisherman, with his brothers Jim, Jack, Harry and Dick, and later with his sons Norman and Victor. He always wore flannel shirts, as quite a few men did at this time. Wally was a very punctual man – on one occasion he left Ern Rankin home, as Ern was 30 seconds late! ‘He will be early next year,’ Wally said, regarding a New Year boat trip across the lake.
While I was at Milang Primary School, Wally would often bring fruit for us kids. And when I was at Strathalbyn High School, Wally would pick up several Milang lads after school, saving us the long trip home in Jack Harvey’s school bus. Gladioli were his wife Edith’s favourite flowers, and were grown each year. Some magnificent blooms were displayed in my Aunty Molly Overall’s deli near the post office – many flower spikes were three feet long.
In later years, Wally still went fishing and caught a variety of good eating fish. Most people had to order their fish and, when available, go around to Wally’s to pick them up. On one occasion, a Milang lady went to pick up her fish and asked whether the fish were fresh. Wally said he’d have a look and as soon as he had the fish in his hands, he said, ‘On your way lady.’ And off she went with no fish.
To my knowledge, Wally didn’t play any sport but was always interested in how the Milang football and cricket teams were going. Back in the 1950s, Wally planted a row of willow trees at the Milang foreshore for shade, which were greatly appreciated. However, later on the authorities classed them as noxious weeds and they were pulled out…make up your own mind on that!
Wally and Edith had two boys, Norman and Victor, who both worked for their father fishing in the lake. Over the years they caught tons of bony brim, which are not edible, and they used them as excellent garden fertiliser, hence the impressive gladioli flowers and superb vegetables in their garden. Wally was always aware of the environment around the lake. When my Uncle Raj went to the lake shore to pick up a bucket of white sand, he threatened to call the police if he didn’t put it back!
Wally was a non-drinker and had a name for the Milang Hotel … if anyone asked him where someone was who was at the hotel, he’d say, ‘Down at the Anchorage.’ Never one for change, Wally once threw a new ‘petrol iron’ out the door when it flared up while Edith was ironing, so I suppose they went back to the ‘box iron’ method.
The Woodrow house, facing the lake, was often admired by people, and especially by Mr and Mrs Ross McCrae. Ross McCrae, an ex-policeman, eventually bought it and lived there for many years. Mrs McCrae lived to the age of 100 years.