Gerry Gilliland - Designer and Modeler
Gerry has been a member of WoSP since 2012? and is a valued and experienced Toy Maker. His commitment to the design and careful construction of our toys is very much appreciated.
Since first meeting Gerry, I have been intrigued with his family name – Gilliland – had never heard of it before. Gerry explains that ‘Gilli’ is a name the Irish gave to a tavern boy. The consensus online appears to be that the family name has deep roots in Scottish and Irish history and the name is a reduced Anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic ‘Mac Gille Fhaoláin’, which means “son of the servant of St Faolán.” From Wikipedia ‘… Saint Fillan (Faolán) is the name of an eighth century monk from Munster, who having studied at Taghmon Abbey, travelled to Scotland and settled at Strath Fillan.’ . Guess I asked the question…. 😐 When Gerry arrived in Australia, his family was the only Gilliland in the phone book – but not anymore.
Back to the topic. Gerry was born in the UK – Birmingham. His father was a motor mechanic working for BSA, before moving to a very old house in a village called Shenstone Woodend when Gerry was 9 years old. Originally built in 1896 as a house for the local Rector, it was renovated when they moved in. His father ran his own business from here till cash flow got the better of him. Gerry and his two brothers had a ball while living there. The family migrated to Australia on the P&O ship Oriana 4 years later. Initial accommodation in Melbourne was in the Holmesglen Hostel (immigration hostel – Nissan huts) one family per hut – bedroom each end with dining and living facilities in the middle of the hut. The hostel was designed to be temporary accommodation while the family got established (job, home, etc). Gerry’s father got a job at General Motors – a GM bus picked up the employees at 7:30am and dropped them back in the arvo after work. They left Holmesglen nine months later when his father saved enough to buy a house in Ferntree Gully. The house had been owned by a Manager from Shell Petroleum. From GM, his father changed jobs to New Oakleigh Motors in Ferntree Gully Road, Oakleigh.
Gerry moved out of the family home when he married Angela. When his father retired the other members of the family moved to Woodside on the 90-mile beach. His brothers (a house painter and an Auto Electrician) moved with the family and found much work in Yarram.
Gerry’s initial ambition to be a Marine Engineer was triggered by a visit to the engine room of the Oriana on his trip to Australia – he loved engineering. But when it came to the crunch, he had to make the choice – engineering career or get married – marriage won and he took up a 5-year apprenticeship in Fitting and Turning. He took tool making in the last year of his apprenticeship – working at Silcraft in Notting Hill. This company’s processes included roll forming. After 13 years, all those who had started as apprentices were given the ‘flick’. The run down of work from the auto manufacturers was taking its toll. Government subsidies to the auto industry was vital to its existence and that was being phased out. From there, Gerry moved up the road to Australian General Electric (AGE) as a tool maker and worked there for some 12 years. When AGE folded, Gerry found himself with a second involuntary redundancy. With the prompting of a couple of other ‘redundantees’, Gerry decided to try working for himself. Three years was enough for him to realise it was all too hard – cut throat jobs and chasing payment… Black and Decker called and Gerry was now an industrial model maker till the Chirnside Park facility was closed down. The Chinese were now starting to make big inroads into products manufactured in Australia – their low labour costs signalled the end to so many Australian businesses.
Time for another job – Accurate Profile in Ringwood as a tool maker. Great company with excellent staff relations – in the business of roll forming. A ‘father and son’ business where the father would come around every Friday and ask how the employee’s family were travelling, etc.
In Blairgowrie, Gerry has a nice workshop set up just to do modelling. He recently donated his scaled model of the Hygeia to the Nepean Historical Society (see the WoSP Newsletter May 2022). Currently, he is building a model steam engine (a Foden Steam Wagon) for his 7-year-old grandson – to be a present on his 13th birthday when he will be old enough to appreciate the gift (and avoid getting burned and/or scolded). Now that’s a looong project…. Or maybe a radio-controlled boat that he can run around on the local lake at Skipton where Gerry’s daughter lives. Woodwork is done at the WoSP workshop – at home, it’s all metal work.
Having some stainless-steel tubing left over from the balustrade (too good to throw away), Gerry created two coffee tables of his own design (unusual shape – see photos below). There are other items of metallic origin around the Gilliland house, but that’s another story.
