Clarrie Willbatt owned a service station, motor repair towing business in Wentworth Street and ran a daily Hudson Sedan Motor Service between Glen Innes and Grafton in the 1920s and '30s
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
He married local Mt Mitchell girl, Ethel Kerr in 1917 and the first reference we have of him is as a farmer.
He and Ethel they had four boys, Ronald Clarence, Ross Edward, Harley Stuart and Mervyn William.
Willbatt' s Motor Service to Grafton cost £1 each way - leaving Glen Innes at 6 .30 after the arrival of the Brisbane Mail train, the car arrived in Newton Boyd at 8.30 where a half an hour stop was permitted for breakfast, before proceeding to arrive at 12 noon in Grafton.
The return run commenced at South Grafton at 1.30 pm after meeting the Sydney and Lismore trains, and the passengers were due in Glen Innes by 6.30 pm.
When he died in Fairfield in Sydney in 1953 there was but a small obituary in the Glen Innes Examiner just referring to his businesses.
What was not mentioned were some of his motoring feats such as in 1927 (nearly 100 years ago!) when he drove his new Hudson sedan from Sydney to Glen Innes in a day, having left the city at 5 o'clock in the morning and arriving back in Glen Innes at 11 O'clock that night - the journalist noted it was 'a particularly smart trip'.
In February 1928 after about seven inches of rain and floods at Newton Boyd Willbatt was involved in the thrilling rescue of more than a score of stranded travellers, where some of the children were reported to be suffering from whooping cough.
Glen Innes Examiner 21 Feb 1928 headlines of RESCUED FROM ISOLATION. WHEN FOOD RUNS OUT AT NEWTON BOYD. Perilous Journey to Waiting Cars. FLOOD THRILLS AT THE FOOT OF THE HILL.
... 'the story of the rescue of these stranded passengers at Rosemount Hotel, Newton Boyd, makes thrilling reading and conveys some conception of the almost overwhelming difficulties which beset the rescuers...'
[ Too long to repeat here but this easily downloaded complete article can be found online on the free site, Trove. https://trove.nla.gov.au/
Digital Issues of the Examiner from 1874 to 1954 can be found there. In 1936 Clarrie Willbatt sold his business to another skilled mechanic, Urban Kempnich.
