THE MEMOIRS OF JOAN AITKEN (NEE WEBSTER)
This morning started off like many other mornings... I was going about my usual morning routine, and while doing my make-up and hair decided to have a look at Facebook. While scrolling, a post caught my eye... It was a post on a group I belong to called "Benoni Now and Then" which is a group entirely dedicated to the town where I live... little old Benoni, where you don't need to be famous to be able to say "do you know who I am?"... The title of the post jumped out me:
My mother and father, Isabella and Jubel Webster were from England and came out to South Africa with their 2 year old son Sutton in 1916. They liked Benoni and decided to settle here. I was born 6 months later in a house in Kemston Avenue.
When I was 3 years old my dad bought a plot on the Main Reef Road, approximately 3 plots away from the Standard Brass Foundry.
My mother worked hard on the plot growing all her own vegetables, raising chickens etc., I thoroughly enjoyed living on the plot.
In 1922 there was a strike on the plots with the miners and we had a lot of Scottish soldiers fighting against the miners and we had to dive under the beds as bullets were flying across our plot and we had a lot of bullet holes in different parts of our house. My mother’s very large pumpkins were blown to smithereens (see attached letter dated 21.3.1922 my mom had written to her family in England).
In about 1930 I met a young Scotsman named Eddie Aitken whose family lived in Moore Avenue and he used to play tennis at our friends house in Dunswart, which at the time was a part of Benoni.
In 1931, my mom and Mrs Nestadt started Benoni Homecrafts, in which unfortunately my mom was only involved for 2 years as when I was 16 years of age, she was admitted to hospital, a single storey building which is now the Glynnwood Hospital. She was not at all well and passed away in the hospital. It was so very sad to lose her. I have also been a member of Benoni Homecrafts for approximately 25 years.
My dad decided to move to another house in a more built up area in Woburn Avenue which was not far from our plot. Life was somewhat different to that which we were used to. I had a friend called Pat Waddle who lived in a double storey house on Princes Avenue. She owned the land opposite her house where she kept a couple of horses. The Fountain Flats are presently built on that land. We often rode the horses to Dunswart Avenue and beyond, where at the time there were only farms and we had to open gates to get to the open fields. Nowadays, this land is full of houses, buildings, second hand car dealers and flower farms. That particular road used to be called the 7-mile stretch which is now known as North Rand Road.
I played badminton and table tennis at the Constitutional Club in Lake Avenue for many years and loved it.
By this time it was 1938 and I was engaged to Eddie. One day his brother Jack came to visit and I told Jack that Eddie was at the Airfield Aerodrome with his brother-in-law Willie Davis. Jack borrowed Eddie’s car and went to the airfield. As luck would have it, there was a slight problem with the light aircraft in which Eddie and Willie were flying and it came down and landed on Eddie’s car ! (see photos attached).
I married Eddie in April of 1940 and we lived with my dad in Woburn Avenue until the birth of my first child. We then lived in Railway Avenue, then moved to Dunswart, where in 1948 the whole of Dunswart Avenue was lined with people to have a glimpse of the Queen Mother when she visited Benoni. We lived next to the greyhound race track which became the Greyhound Drive-in, but even that has long since gone. We then moved back to Woburn Avenue around 1949 as my dad had asked us to come and stay with him. He passed away in 1950.
We often went down to the country in Klipvaal and borrowed horses to ride as Eddie was also a keen rider. We used to race horses around the race track in Westdene. Most of this area is now a suburb called The Stewards. Eddie passed away in 1957 after which I had to go out and find employment. My first job was at the President Knitting Mills in the Industrial Sites, 6 days a week, 10 hours a day and my grand wage was 1 Pound, 17 Shillings and 6 Pence ! I worked there for some 5 months and then found a job at Boksburg Printers and worked there until I retired at the age of 68.
My family of 5 have all married. I have 4 sons and a daughter, 12 Grandchildren and 12 Great grandchildren all of whom I still manage to see on a fairly regular basis.
I have always enjoyed drawing and painting and have done so since about the age of 9. I still draw and go for lessons, although it is more a social afternoon for me.
Benoni has grown so much over the years and at 90 years of age can say I have had a good life and that Benoni has been a wonderful place to live in for all these years.
Wow!! My Gran's name was Joan Aitken... could it be her? I started reading through the story below and, sure as eggs, it was an article written by my gran, who passed away a few years back... My eyes filled with tears as I read the story, fondly remembering my Gran. I would love to share it with you:
THE MEMOIRS OF JOAN AITKEN (NEE WEBSTER) - 3 July 2007
MY 90 YEARS IN BENONI BY JOAN AITKEN (nee WEBSTER)
My mother and father, Isabella and Jubel Webster were from England and came out to South Africa with their 2 year old son Sutton in 1916. They liked Benoni and decided to settle here. I was born 6 months later in a house in Kemston Avenue.
When I was 3 years old my dad bought a plot on the Main Reef Road, approximately 3 plots away from the Standard Brass Foundry.
My mother worked hard on the plot growing all her own vegetables, raising chickens etc., I thoroughly enjoyed living on the plot.
In 1922 there was a strike on the plots with the miners and we had a lot of Scottish soldiers fighting against the miners and we had to dive under the beds as bullets were flying across our plot and we had a lot of bullet holes in different parts of our house. My mother’s very large pumpkins were blown to smithereens (see attached letter dated 21.3.1922 my mom had written to her family in England).
In about 1930 I met a young Scotsman named Eddie Aitken whose family lived in Moore Avenue and he used to play tennis at our friends house in Dunswart, which at the time was a part of Benoni.
In 1931, my mom and Mrs Nestadt started Benoni Homecrafts, in which unfortunately my mom was only involved for 2 years as when I was 16 years of age, she was admitted to hospital, a single storey building which is now the Glynnwood Hospital. She was not at all well and passed away in the hospital. It was so very sad to lose her. I have also been a member of Benoni Homecrafts for approximately 25 years.
My dad decided to move to another house in a more built up area in Woburn Avenue which was not far from our plot. Life was somewhat different to that which we were used to. I had a friend called Pat Waddle who lived in a double storey house on Princes Avenue. She owned the land opposite her house where she kept a couple of horses. The Fountain Flats are presently built on that land. We often rode the horses to Dunswart Avenue and beyond, where at the time there were only farms and we had to open gates to get to the open fields. Nowadays, this land is full of houses, buildings, second hand car dealers and flower farms. That particular road used to be called the 7-mile stretch which is now known as North Rand Road.
I played badminton and table tennis at the Constitutional Club in Lake Avenue for many years and loved it.
By this time it was 1938 and I was engaged to Eddie. One day his brother Jack came to visit and I told Jack that Eddie was at the Airfield Aerodrome with his brother-in-law Willie Davis. Jack borrowed Eddie’s car and went to the airfield. As luck would have it, there was a slight problem with the light aircraft in which Eddie and Willie were flying and it came down and landed on Eddie’s car ! (see photos attached).
I married Eddie in April of 1940 and we lived with my dad in Woburn Avenue until the birth of my first child. We then lived in Railway Avenue, then moved to Dunswart, where in 1948 the whole of Dunswart Avenue was lined with people to have a glimpse of the Queen Mother when she visited Benoni. We lived next to the greyhound race track which became the Greyhound Drive-in, but even that has long since gone. We then moved back to Woburn Avenue around 1949 as my dad had asked us to come and stay with him. He passed away in 1950.
We often went down to the country in Klipvaal and borrowed horses to ride as Eddie was also a keen rider. We used to race horses around the race track in Westdene. Most of this area is now a suburb called The Stewards. Eddie passed away in 1957 after which I had to go out and find employment. My first job was at the President Knitting Mills in the Industrial Sites, 6 days a week, 10 hours a day and my grand wage was 1 Pound, 17 Shillings and 6 Pence ! I worked there for some 5 months and then found a job at Boksburg Printers and worked there until I retired at the age of 68.
My family of 5 have all married. I have 4 sons and a daughter, 12 Grandchildren and 12 Great grandchildren all of whom I still manage to see on a fairly regular basis.
I have always enjoyed drawing and painting and have done so since about the age of 9. I still draw and go for lessons, although it is more a social afternoon for me.
Benoni has grown so much over the years and at 90 years of age can say I have had a good life and that Benoni has been a wonderful place to live in for all these years.
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