Malcolm D. Finlayson

(1915-1974)

Malcolm Donald Finlayson was born on 26 April 1915, only child of Donald James ( b. 1884 Glebe, NSW) and Eva Bean ( b. 1883 Wangaratta, Vic.). Eva had arrived in Fremantle from Victoria in 1910. She was a beautiful singer and piano player and she and Donald would sing at family gatherings. Malcolm’s father worked at the Railway workshops at Midland Junction and they lived in Stirling Road in Claremont, where their son Malcolm Donald was born

Six months after Malcolm was born Eva suffered a nervous breakdown. The baby had been put onto bottle feeding and she felt she was not doing justice to her child. On 19 October 1915, Eva left home early in the morning and her body was later found at the water's edge to the north of North Road (now Swanbourne Beach). (reference)

After this tragedy Malcolm, with his father, moved back to the family home at 24 King Street, East Fremantle (became 4 -now in Ghost Histories) where Malcolm’s 60 year old grandmother, Elizabeth, after raising five children of her own, took on the role of bringing up her grandson.

From 1923- 1927 he attended the new Richmond Primary School in East Fremantle and his final two years of primary school- at the East Fremantle primary (1928 - 1929). He also did two years at Fremantle Boys school completing his education in 1931. At some time in his child years he fell and badly cut his right knee and this limited what he would be able to do in military service. 

In the 1930’s, Malcolm worked as a Projectionist at the Richmond Theatre and Gardens on the corner of Canning Highway and Silas Street, East Fremantle. This theatre (which opened in 1934) and the Mayfair Theatre in Westbury Cres. Bicton, (opened 1938 ) were run by the Franklin family. The show would be the same at both theatres with one film being shown first at one theatre and the reels of film being transported by vehicle between the theatres for showing at the other theatre.

The Richmond Theatre had gardens and two projectors were moved and set up for either the theatre or gardens screening. If the weather was good during the summer, the projectors could be set up for some months in the gardens. Malcolm spoke of one evening where they had a fire in the projection box and a reel was lost in the fire.

His interest in films and projection equipment was still with him in the 1950’s and early 60’s and he had his own 16mm movie projector. He would get short films from several sources and go to various sporting clubs in the area and show general interest films as part of fund raising for the group. Also screenings were held in the front yard of the King Street home and neighbours would come from nearby to see the films. There was no television in those days.

Malcolm was also interested in radio, amplifiers and electronics and made several amplifiers and also did some radio repairs. He smoked a pipe in his younger days and ‘‘roll your own’’ in later life.

In 1940 he joined the PMG (Post Office) as a Postman. Sadly his father Donald James died at age 57, after a short illness on 14 January 1941. His funeral service was conducted at the King Street residence with his remains being placed in the family grave in Fremantle Cemetery.

In 1941 Malcolm enlisted in the Australian Military Forces. Because of his past injury, and as he was a Postman, he became the Postman for the Army- at Fremantle, Rottnest Island and at the Nungarin camp- during the course of the war. He was discharged from the Army in December 1945, and returned to his civilian job, becoming a mail sorter at the Fremantle Post office. He never had a Driver’s licence and would ride his push bike complete with Gladstone bag on the handlebars to work from his home in King Street, East Fremantle, no matter what the weather was. One of his workmates nicknamed him “Gladstone”, a name that stuck for the rest of his life.

Malcolm met Elva Margaret Hopkins (b. 1917 in South Fremantle) outside the Princess Theatre in Fremantle. He was going to a movie by himself and spoke to Elva who was there with her sister, and they sat together. Elva had first seen him at high school (Elva attended Princess May girls school and Malcolm went to Fremantle Boys).

On 26 September 1942, Malcolm married Elva at the Beaconsfield Congregational church in Hampton Road, Beaconsfield. As Malcolm had inherited his father’s home when his father died, the couple had their home ready for them at 4 King Street, East Fremantle (was 24).

After the war, Malcolm, a keen stamp collector, made contact and kept in touch with pen pals around the world and they would send him stamps and small gifts from their respective countries. He would reciprocate by sending stamps and small gifts from Australia to them. Through his work at the mail sorting area of the Post office he got to know people who came to collect the mail for their employer from their post boxes at Fremantle Post office. Often he would arrive home with his Gladstone bag full of envelopes from the various companies and would cut and wash the stamps off the envelopes.

He also liked to grow sweet peas and gladioli flowers, planting the seeds around his birthday in April and for a time some of his plants went on exhibition at the Perth Royal Show where he won some prizes.

Donald Arthur (b. December 1946) was the first of their two children, followed by Marcia Joan (b. June 1951). Both children were born at Nurse Bathgates San Hedrin Maternity Hospital at 20 Staton Road, East Fremantle.

Malcolm really enjoyed fishing and he would regularly go to North Wharf (usually White landing near No. 3 shed). He fished using a hand line and would clean the fish when he got home - much to the approval of the cat! When Marcia was quite young she enjoyed going fishing with him. On one of these fishing trips, Marcia fell into the water. Malcolm, being a non-swimmer, panicked at the situation facing him and he was greatly relieved when a nearby fisherman came to the rescue, fishing Marcia out of the water.  

Making pancakes over the wood fired stove was one of Malcolm’s proudest cooking achievements. He would prepare the pancake mix (enough to make a number of pancakes), pour some of the mix into a fry pan and act like a sword fighter with one hand on his hip and the other swishing the pan around with its mix in it. To flip the mix and much to his children's delight, the pancake would briefly go up the chimney and out of sight. On one occasion, the pancake didn’t come back into the pan but dropped out onto the top of the stove as a black, charred mess several days later. Elva was not impressed. The kids loved it. 

After television came to Western Australia in 1959 the family got a TV set in 1960, and this medium of entertainment really changed Malcolm’s life. He became a “couch potato” and Elva would wake up long after the TV stations had ceased their transmissions for the evening, go to the lounge and the small white dot was on the TV screen with Malcolm fast asleep in his chair. Medical shows were particularly bad for him as whatever the medical condition was for the patient on Ben Casey or any medical show he watched, within a couple of days he would be saying that he thought he had the symptoms of whatever the condition was.

The family moved from the King Street home where Malcolm had spent most of his life in July 1971 to Gill Street where the Finlayson name is still on one part of the property title.

Malcolm retired due to health issues from the Post office in July 1974 and he died in Fremantle hospital on 8 September 1974. He never travelled outside Western Australia and never went to the North West either. He had lived almost all of his 59½ years in East Fremantle and is commemorated with wife Elva (d. 2001) at Fremantle cemetery.

Prepared by Malcolm’s son Donald Finlayson. With thanks to friend Eileen Geraghty and daughter Rachel Finlayson.