Mills Edna June. Mills Edna June. Mills Edna June.
1932 – Current
By June Mills
I was born to William (Bill) and Joan (nee Webb) Davis on the 16th June 1953. I am the youngest of their seven children; Margaret, Phillis, George, Charlie, David and Ronald, and me, Edna June. Edna is my given name but my sisters being 15 and 16 years older than me, called me by my second name, as they believed you couldn’t call a little baby Edna.
My grandfather, Allan Webb farmed at Chinocup from 1932-44, and this is where my mum, Joan, and her siblings grew up. My dad, Bill Davis, came from Wales. He came to Nyabing as a farm hand where he met mum and they were married in 1936.
The grader that Dad drove, with his caravan & Mr Reeves car to the right
Dad got a job as a Grader Driver on the Kent Roads Board, so he used to camp out on the job, in a caravan, and he only came home once a fortnight to pick up his pay, and fill up his tucker box for the next fortnight. He then became the first caretaker of the Nyabing Town Hall. The pictures were held once a fortnight, and Dad was on the door, so it was good for us as we got to go to the movies a lot.
I remember the first time I meet Slim Dusty, he was setting up in the Hall for the Show, and I had to pick up the mail from Dad on my way home from school. Slim gave me a free ticket so I could go to the show, what a treat I thought it was!! As I got older, I didn’t miss any of Slims shows here in Nyabing.
I can still remember my first Ball dress. I had to wear it to the Show Ball. It was green and I brought it off Tressa Harvey and thought it was so lovely. I used to go to all the dances when I was young, because Dad was on the door, and Mum was in the kitchen getting supper ready or washing dishes. I learnt to dance by dancing with the other girls my age, we would watch and follow what everyone else was doing. Ray White was one of the dance bands that I remember and Mr Webse would take his fiddle and play along.
Growing up we didn’t have a car so we used to go to Katanning on the train. When I broke my collarbone, it was on the train and into Katanning and back the next day on the train. Uncle Eric Webb had a truck and we used to go places with him, on the back of his truck. From the beach family Christmases and even to Nannup for my eldest Sister’s wedding – it was on Boxing Day so everyone got sunburnt on the way down there.
Mum, Dad and my other siblings used to go on the “Miss Nyabing” bus to the beach, or whatever they were doing, but I can’t remember ever doing this. Mrs Bell (Aunty Cilla) lived next door to us. She used to run the boarding house for the teachers after her husband died. She managed to marry off a few of the Jack girls (her nieces) to the male teachers, and many more courtships were started in front of her house, after the dances or movies.
Aunty Cilla was also the cleaner for the school. She never had children of her own so she enjoyed going to sports days to see her nieces and nephews in their races etc. It was then that she decided to donate a trophy (the Bell Trophy), which is still in use today!
June Mills with Cathy Crosby
After finishing school, I got a job at the General Store where I worked until I married Neil Mills. We have four children together; Robin, Sandra, Jason and Michael. None of our children live here in Nyabing. I have lived in seven different houses in my lifetime, all here in Nyabing.
I now live on the South Fence Road with my partner Byron, and work as a cleaner at the Nyabing School.
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