Cyril Johnston

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Biography

Birth

• Cyril was born on Thursday 13 November 1913 at his home at 27 Ormond Street in Paddington.
• His parents were Cyril Johnston and Elizabeth Stephens
• He had two siblings - Amy and William. He did a lot with William.

Baptism

• At some point, probably during 1914 he was baptised a Catholic.

Childhood

• Cyril was around 8 when his mother died so his childhood was unclear and clouded in uncertainty as he moved between boarding school and family members.
• In about 1927, while he was a teenager he was swimming at a beach with a friend and as they were swimming across a channel between a sandbar and the beach his friend who was behind him was attacked by a shark.

Education

• At the end of his primary education he was placed into the technical stream for high school.
• He attended the Paddington Junior Technical School.
• He left school early to get a job.
• While working he was studying Accountancy part-time at the Metropolitan Business College.

Pre War

• Prior to the war he was a truck driver and a clerk with AGL.
• At this time he was living with his father at 118 Darlinghurst Road.
• At around this time he met Jessie Blackmore.

1st Marriage

• Cyril married Jessie Gertrud Blackmore on 27 April 1942 at St. Mels Church in Evaline Street at Campsie.
• This marriage occurred during the war after he had been away for 2 years in the Middle East and he had been given 3 weeks leave to get married before deployed to New Guinea.
• Cyril was 28 years old and Jessie was 25 years old.
• Cyril and Jessie didn't have any children.

Divorce

• Sadly this marriage did not survive and they were divorced on 27 March 1947.
• This seems to have been by mutual agreement as they had both met someone else during the war and they both wanted to remarry.

World War 2

• Cyril enlisted in the Australian Army on 8 July 1940 at Martin Place and after his recruit training he was allocated to the artillery.
• During the war he served as a gunner in the Artillery HQ in the Australian 7th Division in Syria for 7 months fighting the Vichy French.
• With the Japanese threat to the north of Australia the 7th Division was returned to Australia and then redeployed to New Guinea where he served for 20 months.
• During August 1942 he contracted Bronchitis, which was aggravated by emphysema. He was treated at the Yarella Hospital
• On 11 September 1944 he transferred to the RAAF and started training for aircrew, but he was considered too old for pilot and started training as a navigator.
• With the end of the war approaching all aircrew training was stopped in mid 1945.
• Cyril was transferred to No.1 Central Reserve No. 1 Sub Depot at Lithgow. This unit controlled the storage and supervision of RAAF chemical weapons, including bombs and storage containers holding mustard gas and phosgene gas. Australia did not produce these chemical weapons but acquired them from the UK and the USA. These weapons were stored in tunnels in the Blue Mountains – areas that today are still considered polluted and unsafe. What his role was is in this unit is not known, maybe clerical, truck driving or stock / storeman.
• While he never talked about this part of his service there is a strong possibility of him being exposed to some chemical weapons, as the men working with the barrels or bombs full of liquid chemicals, only wore shorts and boots and socks. Post World War 2 he had a large brown stain on the ankle area of one leg, which he told family was caused by an operation when he was young. Yet no early photos show this stain and it matches the scars caused by mustard gas.

2nd Marriage

• He married Helen Wilkinson on Saturday 31 Jan 1948 at St. Stephen's Presbyterian Church in Macquarie Street in Sydney.
• He had met Helen while they were both serving in the RAAF at Toowoomba.
• Cyril was 35 years old and Helen was 25 Years old.
• The wedding was at 1.45pm and the reception was at the Coronet at 2.45pm. They then honeymooned at Lapstone in the blue Mountains.
• Cyril and Helen had two children - Geoffrey Stephen and Janine Elizabeth

Occupation

• After the war he returned to AGL and served as a driver and clerk again, as he retrained to be an accountant. He did this part-time at the Metropolitan Business College in Sydney
• He completed the course in 1948 and began working as an auditor with his brother William.
• In around 1950 he formed an accountancy business with a partner. The partner absconded with all the business funds and Cyril was declared bankrupt and suffered medically as well.
• Once he recovered he worked as an accountant for a number of firms - RAVA, Robert Paxton Real Estate, Sangara and VTC.
• After serving as an accountant for a number of years he was also appointed as a Justice of the Peace.

Sport

• Cyril enjoyed sport and after his marriage he played cricket for the Mosman Cricket Club with a neighbour Percy Winter.
• He was a strong supporter of the North Sydney Bears Rugby League team.

Medical and Death

• Later in life he suffered from a number of medical conditions - anxiety and alcoholism, reoccurring bronchitis as well as the effects of headache medication.
• In 1969 his spleen was dying and was gangrenous while his pancreas had already died inside his body making him a diabetic and giving him blood poisoning. He had two operations but they discovered that it was a terminal condition.
• His condition was further aggravated by acute Bronchitis and acute Emphysema, from smoking.
• Cyril died in the early evening of 20 November 1969 at Hornsby Hospital.
• The Army accepted some responsibility for the Bronchitis and Helen received a small pension, but the impact of Chemical Weapons was not considered, as this was still a military secret and was unknown.

Burial

• Cyril's funeral was held Monday 24 November 1969 at the Sacred Heart Church, Pymble with a mass being said by Jesuits from his son's school.
• He was buried in the Northern Suburbs Lawn Cemetery, Catholic Section Row 67, Grave 48.
• In 2001 his wife's ashes were buried in his grave.

Sources

• Family tree history maintained by his son
• Birth Certificate
• New South Wales Registry of Births, Marriages and Deaths / Births / No. 45963/1913
• Australia, World War II Military Service Records, 1939-1945
• Australia, Marriage Index, 1788-1950 / Marriage to Jesse / No. 11840/1942
• NSW, Births, Deaths and Marriages / Marriage to Helen / No. 310/1948
• Death Certificate
• Sydney, Australia, Cemetery Headstone Transcriptions, 1837-2003
• Australia and New Zealand, Find a Grave Index, 1800s-Current
• Sydney Morning Herald, Monday 24 November 1969 / Funeral Notices

JOHNSTON - Requiem Mass for the repose of the soul of the late CYRIL STEPHEN JOHNSTON of Turramurra and formerly of Neutral Bay will be celebrated at the Sacred Heart Church, Pacific Highway, Pymble.