Andrew Stenhouse SIMPSON

Story

Andrew Stenhouse SIMPSON was the eldest of three children born to Andrew SIMPSON, coalminer, and Helen YULE. His mother died when he was five years old, so he and his brother, William Yule, went to live with his widowed grandmother, Jane Cunningham, in Dunfermline, Fife, until his father remarried five years later. Coming from a long line of coalminers, it was inevitable that both sons, Andrew and William, would enter that industry. Both eventually had jobs above ground, Andrew as a colliery weigher, William as a colliery loco driver. With the failing fortunes of the Scottish coal industry in the early 1900s, and the many disagreements occurring between mine owners and workers over pay and conditions, Andrew and William, both now married and with growing families, considered leaving Scotland and migrating to Australia. At this time in NSW the coal industry was burgeoning in both the Newcastle and Illawarra areas, so the men felt that they should have no difficulty in gaining employment there. Then in 1910 Andrew’s second daughter, Nellie Yule, aged six years, who had been in poor health for some time, died of tuberculosis. This event seems to have confirmed the families’ desire to leave Scotland and seek a healthier place to bring up their children. It was decided that the two brothers would emigrate first, sending for their wives and families when they had obtained work and suitable housing.

In 1911 the brothers set off for London where they travelled as third class passengers on the ship “Ophir” of Glasgow. a 2920 ton vessel of the Orient line of Mail Steamers. En route, while in conversation with other passengers who had a map of NSW, discussion centred on which of the two coalmining areas they should make for. Andrew took a pin and, closing his eyes, stabbed at the map. The pin’s position was closer to Wollongong, so it was decided that was where they would settle. The “Ophir” arrived in Sydney on 31 Aug 1911.

A short train ride brought the bothers to the town of Wollongong where they tried to obtain work in the coalmines of the area. Unable to do so, William sought advice of fellow members of the M.U.I.O.O.F. Lodge. On hearing that William was a engine driver, they suggested the two men seek employment at the steelworks at Port Kembla just south of Wollongong, run by Australian Iron and Steel, later owned by BHP Australia. They were successfull at their first attempt, and chose as their home a small timber cottage in Port Rd because it was a straight close ride to work by bicycle.

Meanwhile, back in Cowdenbeath, Fife, their wives had begun preparations for joining their husbands and, to save rent, moved into one house together. When they received word that their men were settled, they gave up their house when it was time to depart, only to learn to their dismay that a great shipping strike would delay their departure. William’s wife, Helen CAMPBELL, and daughters, Janet aged 12, and Nellie aged 9, went to Dunfermline to stay with William’s aunt, Grace SIMPSON, while Andrew’s wife, Mary Ann McINTYRE and children, Andrew 17, Elizabeth Johnstone 15, William 6 and Mary McIntyre 4, went to Leven on the east coast to stay with Mary Ann’s brother, Robert McINTYRE, and family. When the strike ended after several months, both families travelled by train to Liverpool, embarked on the 6734 ton “SS Waimana” and eventually arrived in Sydney on 28 Aug 1912, twelve months after their husbands and fathers. Andrew, Mary Ann and family moved into a weatherboard cottage in Auburn St, while William, Helen and their daughters moved to Corrimal just north of Wollongong.

While working in the coalmines in Fife, Andrew had been concerned for many years about the need for improved rescue and medical help for miners. He had attended a First Aid class in Cowdenbeath conducted by the St Andrew’s Society (later the St Andrews Ambulance Association) and was awarded a First Aid Certificate in May 1898. He was appointed Commandant of the Cowdenbeath Company when it was formed in 1904 with its first ambulance a horse-drawn waggon. In Australia he continued his interest in first aid matters and became concerned at the lack of first aid knowledge among workers, especially at the Australian Iron and Steel works. Having joined the St John Ambulance Brigade he began to conduct first aid classes. He was one of the first instructors in Wollongong and the local St John Ambulance Society was the first in NSW to own an ambulance station. This brick building at the top of Church St, Wollongong, was opened on 16 Mar 1912 free of all debt. The first motor ambulance, built on a Dodge chassis, was ceremoniously handed over to Andrew Simpson, as the Brigade’s superintendent

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