I was born in south London, UK in 1890, and then raised by my mother (Ellen Mary Shepherd b. 1870) & my maternal grandmother (Mary Ann Shepheard (nee James) b. 1838) in Battersea, Wandsworth, London during my first decade.
In 1901, I moved into North Surrey District School and my mother to a Workhouse.
In 1903 I became a Royal Navy "Band Boy", and in 1906 a Royal Navy Marine.
In 1912, I travelled from Portsmouth, UK to Sydney, Australia on HMS Drake (Armed Cruiser Class), and in December 1912 I was honorably discharged (as I decided to stay and put down my roots in Sydney, Australia).
During my life, my various occupations were Navy Band Boy (playing the Bombardon), Royal Navy Marine (pre-WWI), Farmer, Australian Soldier (WWI) and Musician (Sydney Symphony Orchestra) (paying the Double Bass).
I married my wife Hughina Catherine McPhee (of Scottish Highland / Irish origins) in 1916, and we lived in Sydney.
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