Philip John Howlett and Ambrosine Adelia Worden
Philip John Howlett was the son of Michael Howlett and Mary Ann McNamara, who were both Irish by birth, and were married in Ebbw Vale, Wales, on 31/8/1872. His birth certificate gives the family surname as "Hulet", and says that the birth occurred on 25/4/1874 in Newtown, Ebbw Vale (in the subdistrict of Aberystruth, district of Bedwellty (sic), county of Monmouth). The birth was registered on 20/5/1874, the informant being "Mary Hulet, Mother, Newtown Ebbw Vale". It is possible that the birth date was not accurately reported, since his age was recorded as 3 when the family left the United Kingdom (28/7/1876), and as 26 at his marriage (14/4/1900). Since fines for failing to register births were introduced in 1874, it is conceivable that the parents decided that registering the birth late was better than not registering it at all. On the other hand, the other records could very easily be inaccurate; for example, on the birth certificate of his son (6/9/1916) the age of Philip John Howlett is given as 41 (and his birthplace as "Wales, England"). It should also be noted that the second name "John" does not appear on the birth certificate.
Since his parents were married in the Roman Catholic Church at Ebbw Vale, it seems quite possible that a Catholic baptism record for Philip John may exist somewhere.
Ambrosine Adelia Worden (known as "Amy") was born in Williamstown, South Australia, in 1878. Her parents were Thomas Worden and Ann Eva, who were both Cornish by birth.
Philip John Howlett and Amy Worden were married on 14/4/1900 at the Manse, Glenelg. The federal electoral roll for 1905 lists them as living at Willaston; Philip's occupation is given as "striker", and Amy's as "home duties".
The first child of Philip and Amy Howlett lived only seven hours (died 22/10/1900). She was named Marie, and is buried at Willaston. The only two children to survive infancy were Ann Eva Howlett (born 4/2/1904) and Philip Thomas Michael Howlett (born 6/9/1916). It is believed that there were some miscarriages or still-births.
Ann Eva Howlett was known by the name Eva. She married Norman Veale; there were no children. She died on 1/9/1968.
When Philip Thomas Michael Howlett was born a Catholic priest was hastily obtained to perform a baptism, since it was feared that the baby would not live long. My guess is that the baby's paternal grandmother may have been the organizer of this, since the Howletts were Catholic and the Wordens Church of England (I think). Philip and Amy were not at all religious themselves, or had agreed to never mention religion. A consequence was that their son had not heard of Christmas before he started school. When the children sang "Away in a manger" young Phil had no idea what it was about, although he concealed his ignorance skilfully!
We believe that the household of Philip and Amy was often not a particularly happy place, and that young Phil blamed his father for this. Nevertheless, he did respect his father for always, on payday, handing over his unopened pay packet to his wife.
The family lived mainly at Marino, a place that has now been absorbed into the southern suburbs of Adelaide. We do not know when they moved from Willaston. Philip John worked at the Brighton cement works.
In the 1930's the family lived at Longwood for a few years before returning to Marino.
During their time at Longwood Phil junior attended Adelaide High School, travelling from Longwood by train. The railway line passes through Belair, then makes a wide loop before passing through Torrens Park, about two kilometres from Belair, down the hill. Phil and his school friends would get off the train at Belair, leaving all their things on the train, run to Torrens Park and catch the same train. This amazed the conductor when he discovered that they were doing it. They abandoned the practice after one of the girls twisted her ankle and almost didn't make it to Torrens Park in time.
Philip John Howlett died on 11/3/1947, Ambrosine Adelia Howlett on 1/10/1951. Their last place of residence was Marino.