Cox (Family), 1917, Manuscript, PRG 1806/1/36A
Small, handwritten diary, written in a housekeeping exercise book when Mary Cox (nee Aldersey) was in her 50s and 60s, and completed in 1917. It is a reflection and reminiscences of her life, written as a record for her children and descendants. The diary begins in 1857 at the family home 'Amery' in McLaren Vale, after the funeral of Mary's father, Richard Baker Aldersey. The diary describes daily life for Mary and her sisters, including: the difficulties of survival without money or the support of their father for over a year before they received money from England, an inheritance from their late mother, which enabled them to become independent and move to a house in Noarlunga; trip to Adelaide to buy essentials such as clothing and furniture and organise their finances, staying at the York Hotel; daily life in a small town, including anecdotes of neighbours; visits with their Aunt Mary Ann Aldersey who had recently moved to McLaren Vale after working in China, and had built Tsong Gyaiou which became a boarding school for girls; first meeting with Francis William Cox who became Mary's husband in 1863, including his proposal of marriage; early life as a minister's wife in Norwood; and the stressful preparations for a 13-month trip to England to visit family with her husband and youngest child, while leaving her eldest three children in Norwood, in 1871. The end of the diary includes family tree details with birth, death and marriage dates. Locations mentioned include: Amery (now Kay Brothers winery in McLaren Vale), Hope Farm, Tsong Gyiaou, Surrey Lodge, and Chigwell Lodge. Includes two photographs of Chigwell Lodge.