was born on 1 May 1897 in Stanley St. Arncliffe, Sydney N.S.W. and died on 26 Apr 1970 in his home "Staverton' Upper Beaconsfield, Victoria.

Whilst my own Tasmanian family did not arrive in Tasmania until 1857, the Margetts name was present from the first days of English settlement. John Margetts was tried at Middlesex Gaol Delivery on the 20th May 1801 and transported to Van Diemen's Land on the 'Calcutta' in February 1803. Isaac Margetts, also a convict, arrived aboard the 'Indefatigable in 1812.

Dr John Margetts arrived aboard the 'Caroline' November 27, 1820. The Hobart Town Gazette of December9, 1820 carried his Public Notice of commencement of Practice in Davey Street, Hobart.

Hobart Town Gazette - April 8, 1825 'We have this week to record, after a prolonged illness, the lamented death, on Saturday morning last of Dr John Margetts, Esq. M.D. In this testimony of respect to his eminent abilities, we offer the effusions of the whole community, for there never was a more general sympathy of condolence paid by all ranks to the obsequies of departed worth. In early life he studied at Edinburgh under Professors of medical and surgical science, Doctors Hamilton, Gregory, Duncan and Surgeon Bell, and completed an industrious course of studies, as the devoted pupil of Abernethy. As a practical chymist, his remarks were extensive, and difficulties of science were often overcome by laborious perserverance. Mild, unassuming, yet resolute in his professional practice, he acquired the confidence of his numerous freinds; whilst in private life, domestic happiness was his envied lot, which leaves a void to his surviving and afflicted widow, which time alone can mitigate.'

The Margetts family in which we are interested came from the villages of Theddingworth and Enderby in Leicestershire.in 1857. A visit to the Liverpool Maritime Museum gives a glimpse of the conditions migrants from Europe faced when embarking on the arduous and hazardous voyage to Van Diemen's Land in the colony of New South Wales. The harshness of the 91 days at sea undertaken by the Margetts family is best recognised by the story of Mary Margetts aged 69 who accompanied her children across the seas. Mrs William Margetts snr. became so moribund from seasickness that at times the only sign of life the family could elicit was the condensation from her breath on a mirror held close to her mouth.

The Margetts family initially settled in the New Norfolk area as farmers. William Peck Margetts farmed on the Inglis River then selected Crown land in Flowerdale. His brother-in-law George Blackwell and his wife Anne Frances Margetts settled initially at Longford where George was contracted to manage the Newry Flour Mill. In 1868 George Blackwell purchased property in the Table Cape area. The dangers facing the early settlers are exemplified by the loss of two of the Blackwell boys as young men by drowning in the Inglis river.The first being George Francis in 1860 and the second Thomas William in 1868 not long after the purchase of the property. George died of a heart attack in William Margetts' house a week after the loss of his second son.

Stephen Ward Margetts was an auctioneer and general dealer in property and goods. Stephen was active in the Baptist Church and was President of the Baptist Union in 1921-22. Stephen and Charlotte lived in 66 houses during their married life, never settling long in any one home. Vernon Margetts' growing up years and schooldays were thus very disturbed and he carried a distrust and disrespect for academics in general and schoolteachers in particular all his life. I remember when I was studying at University his concern that I might adopt a bohemian lifestyle, forsaking the conservative reactionary ways of my upbringing.

Vernon worshipped his brother Ivor, who by all accounts was an outstanding personality and sportsman, the humour and loving relationship being reflected in the few scraps of letters that are in my possession. I grew up with the picture of my Uncle Ivor that always hung in my father's room and never fully appreciated the significance of it until I started later in life to research family papers. Captain Ivor Margetts died a young man in the prime of life, surviving the full Gallipoli campaign only to die on the battlefield of the Somme. The poignant photograph of his lonely grave in the shell pocked battlefield of Pozieres appeared in Beans official record of the First World War and other publications since.

Vernon opened a hardware store when he was only eighteen or nineteen. It was a difficult time for him and he sold out after a year or so, having found that running a business was quite demanding. He worked selling advertising and studied via correspondence with the Hemingway Robinson Correspondence School a course in advertising. There were a few stories relating to this time. Once he visited Melbourne on behalf of a Tasmanian newspaper selling advertising space and sought an interview with the advertising manager of the Herald and Weekly Times which was refused. He re-attended the great man's office the next day only to be rebuffed by the secretary again. My father asked " is he in his office" and was told "yes". Whereupon he climbed onto the secretary's desk with the request "you wont mind if I just look over the partition at him? I can't go back home and say that I haven't even seen him". He got his interview and an order, the order was accompanied by a note to the manager in Tasmania saying that it was a reward for persistence.

Being in on the early days of the motor car provided a period of excitement and interest. Selling cars to people who had only driven horse drawn carriages presented certain obvious problems. My father used to tell me of the difficulty he experienced in persuading people used to holding the reins of horse drawn vehicles in becoming pioneer motorists with their hands on the steering wheel. Taking the buyers down to the local public sports ground and shouting instructions from the fence seems pretty rough by todays standards, but even many years later Dad would tell the stories with enjoyment, as he recalled himself sitting on the 'post-n-rail'.

From Northern Tasmania to the Ford Agency in Geelong in the early 1920s brought other tales. Vernon and my mother Marjorie would take delivery in Melbourne of Ford Chassis and, perched on kerosene boxes, drive to Geelong where bodybuilding and sale took place. Margetts Motors continued in Geelong under the ownership of Athelstane Margetts until the 1940's.

My own youth was during the pre World War 2 period, through those war years as a small boy and then into the second half of the 20th century. Vernon, my father was a successful businessman in the city of Melbourne. He became involved in the Malvern Furniture Company with his father and brother in the 1920's. My memory however is of the Mack Furnishing Co Pty Ltd in the city of Melbourne, on the corner of the Centreway and Flinders Lane. During the war he was a director for the State Emergency Services in the city of Melbourne. Vernon was also the proprietor of radio station 3AK during the 1940's and early 50's, known as 'the voice of the night'. It is hard now to realise that in those times the major broadcasters only held licences to broadcast between 6AM and 11:30PM. 3AK commenced transmission at 11PM and closed down at 6AM weekdays. Special conditions on Sundays allowed 2 hours in the middle of the day and 10PM opening . The conditions were later changed and a new licence was created specially for 3AK giving it broadcasting rights during daylight hours.

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