THE HAIRDRESSER
Updated: May 18, 2022
ALFRED HAND (1869-1910)
ADA ANNA HAND (1868-1952)
Alfred worked as a hairdresser, which was a relatively new occupation in 1902 and 1903 when he was living at Corio Bay Villa. Alfred and his wife Ada had moved from Richmond to Surrey Hills with their four sons.
Alfred Hand and Ada Anna Jenkins had similar backstories prior to marrying in 1888. They had both been born to English immigrants and had grown up in the inner easter suburbs of Melbourne.
Alfred was the only child of Robert Hand and Angus Joyce. His parents had met in Australia in 1968 and Alfred was born three years later. Apart from two uncles living in Melbourne, the rest of his extended family was still in England.
Ada Annie’s English parents Edward William Jenkins (1823-1870) and Sarah Ware (1835-1918) had also met in Australia. Unlike Alfred, however, Ada came from large family, with six siblings as well as grandparents, uncles and aunties living nearby.
When they were both around 19 years old Ada and Alfred married and became parents to Everard William Alfred Hand (1888–1896). Alfred and Ada lived in Richmond where they went on to have five more sons before moving to Corio Bay Villa. Unfortunately they lost two sons early on: Everard aged eight, and Clement aged seven. Perhaps this inspired their move to the greener pastures of Surrey Hills.
There may have been a number of reasons the Hands decided to leave Richmond. Richmond was, and still is, a densely populated suburb with a pub on nearly every corner. An Alfred Hand was struck in the face at the London Tavern in 1892. This information appeared in the Melbourne newspaper, the Argus, on page 6 on the 7 March under the title "Police Intelligence." It describes Alfred Hand as a young man, which fits in with our Alfred who would have been around 23. Further, the London Tavern is a well known Richmond pub which is in the area Alfred was living. The article states that:
"...a young man named Alfred Hand was drinking a glass of ale at the London Tavern on the evening of the 21 inst. The accused, in company with some companions, entered the hotel, and without the slightest provocation struck Hand some violent blows in the face."
The article says little else about Alfred but hopefully he made a full recovery. Perhaps this experience made Alfred consider moving to a less populated, safer, outer suburb of Melbourne.
Image: Extract from an article in the Argus, Monday 7 March 1892, page 6.
Source: https://trove.nla.gov.au/
Alfred made the first move to Corio Bay Villa in late 1902.[1] After the birth of their fifth son, Ada and the rest of the family followed. The rate book for 1903 shows him living with six people, including his four sons:
Horace Vivian (1889-1979), aged 13
Norman Victor (1892-1967), aged 10
Clarence Rupert (1897–1956), aged 5
Lionel Vincent (1902–1943), less than one year old.
Alfred worked as a hairdresser, which may have been an unusual occupation for a man. Male barbers had been servicing men for centuries, but it was only in recent decades that hair salons for women were popping up all over the world. Traditionally wealthy women's hair was styled at home by their female servants, but by the early 1900s hairdressing had become accessible to all social classes. Going by Alfred's experience, there must have been both male and female hairdressers at this time.
Unfortunately we do not know where Alfred worked or if he had his own salon nearby. The nearest shops were 2 kilometres away at Union Road which would have been up to half an hour walk by foot. All we know is that by 1904 Alfred and his family had settled in Hotham in regional Victoria. Perhaps they were seeking more affordable accomodation because a few years later they welcomed another child, their first daughter, Myrtle Irene (1906-1943). After six sons, a daughter must have been a nice surprise.
Myrtle did not get to spend many years with her father. Alfred died when Myrtle was just fours years old. Alfred was only 41 years old when he died, leaving his wife Ada, a widower at 42 with two children under 10.
I'm not sure how Ada got on after Alfred’s death. Her two eldest surviving sons were adults now, at around 21 and 18 years old. Hopefully they were able to provide some financial support to their mother and two younger siblings.
Alfred died in 1910. I feel sorry that he did not get to witness the hairstyling revolution of the 1920s. Ada went on to live another 42 years without Alfred, witnessing two world wars and many changes in hair fashions. She saw the marriage of her adult children and maybe the birth of some grandchildren. Unfortunately she also witnessed the passing of two of her adult children that died before she did: both Myrtle and Lionel died in 1943, aged 37 and 41 respectively. Ada died in 1952, aged around 84. Ada Anna Hand was buried with her husband in Kew, Victoria.[2]
REFERENCES
[1] Rate Records, Shire of Nunawading, all ridings 1903, November 1902, page 112.
[2] Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/