Interview with Rae Kyle Ballantyne [sound recording] Interviewer : Madeleine Regan, Part 3 of 3

Interview with Rae Ballantyne for the Italian Market Gardeners Oral History Project. Rae Ballantyne was born on 7th January 1933, at Mile End in Adelaide. He speaks about his parents. His father had finished his apprenticeship as a gardener in Scotland before migrating to Australia before World War I. He served with the Australian Army during the War and was discharged in December 1919, and in 1923 was allocated a Soldier Settler's block of land of seven and a half acres on River Road, St James Park, now known as Findon Road, Kidman Park. Rae's mother's family came from the McLaren Vale area and had worked as a milliner. His parents married in 1929. Rae and his younger sister grew up on their parents' celery market garden. He describes his parents' property in relation to the River Torrens and the surrounding area; first crops they sold at East End Market and impact of the Depression on sales. Rae recalls going to market with his father; ploughing with horses; his mother sharing the work on the garden with his father. He explains the cycle of growing and harvesting celery; providing celery for the Army during the War; pesticides; watering from the well and the River Torrens. Rae went to Lockleys Primary School. Describes the area surrounding the family property and Chinese and Italian market gardeners; the early structure of the bridge connecting Findon and Rowell Roads; playing on the River; recalls fathers digging trenches at Lockleys Primary School during the War; his father developing systems to manage the work on the garden. In the second interview he speaks about four or five market gardeners who were returned World War I soldiers and had been allocated soldier settler blocks in the suburb of St James (now Kidman Park) by the Government. They all attended RSL meetings and his father ran dances in the Lockleys RSL hall where Rae attended Saturday matinees as a child. He recalls the Lockleys area south of the River Torrens. He attended Urrbrae High School for a year and then worked full-time in the garden with his father for ten years until he was 25 years. In celery picking time he worked seven days a work. He describes his parents' social life, and food and clothes shopping. He speaks about his riding his motorbike in the country. Rae recalls the names of Italian market gardeners in the area though Anglo-Australians did not mix much with them. He reflects that during the War his father felt uncertain about Italians. In February 1958 he began working at Philips where he worked for nearly 40 years until retirement. For the first year he was working both at Philips and in the market garden. His parents sold their land in 1958/59. His parents retired, kept half an acre, and grew flowers. His mother died first, and his father, in 1977. Rae moved from the family home when he married Nancy in 1965, and they moved into their home in Carlo Ave, Kidman Park, had two children and now have four grandchildren. He reflects on the changes in the Kidman Park area south of Grange Road to the River from the 1960s when there were still a large number of market gardens which were gradually sold to developers, and the housing increased.

No restrictions on copying or publication except acknowledging State Library of South Australia OH 872/21 if published.