OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Personal Histories GEORGE YELVERTON JULIUS - Talent & Tragedy

Hello ODK history lovers
We all know about the once-iconic Victa; the Australian-
grown rotary lawnmower that shaped our horticultural nation.
But behind that story is another dramatic story …

This is the story of George Yelverton Julius, a talented
engineer, man of mystery, and convicted con man. He was a valued
employee of Victa Mowers in the 1950s.

He was central to Victa Mowers’ success in the 1950s.

Many Victa patents list him as ‘actual inventor’.
I suspect he ‘sold out’ to commerce for his other ideas …



BACKGROUND: -
There is more … George Yelverton Julius was the
infamous son of a very famous Australian, Sir George Alfred Julius (1873-1946): -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Julius

http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/julius-sir-george-alfred-6890

http://www.thekingscandlesticks.com/webs/pedigrees/577.html

https://csiropedia.csiro.au/julius-sir-george-alfred/

You get the idea. That the son must have been such a ‘disappointment’
to the family must be a gross understatement.

As one Judge said in 1946, “He came from a good family,
and had used his position to embark on a career of fraud.”

He became known as “Gentleman George.”

‘Career of fraud’ seems appropriate; given criminal activity
continued into the 1950s!

But I am not here to judge...

This is a story of a talented engineer -
with a criminal defect - probably in-part because he walked in the
footsteps of a successful father. But there are other reasons that
I hope to explore here. We’re not likely to know why Julius junior
fell from grace in acting as he did.

In Australian mowerlore history this is a BIG ONE!

TO BE CONTINUED …

PART TWO – 1930s Event
In the three decades I discuss here – 1930s, 1940s and 1950s –
there appears to be one seminal event that I would like to
discuss about Julius that occurred in 1932. In many ways,
it helps explain his later behaviour… Maybe ...

Nineteen-year-old George Julius was involved in the tragic
deaths of two young brothers in a vehicle accident that
occurred at Pennant Hills on the upper North Shore of
Sydney on the night of 19 April, 1932.

The official finding was ‘Accidental Death’. Regardless,
the event was widely reported across Australia, most
probably because of George’s famous father.

That must have had an impact on his youngest son
and everyone around him.

I’ll let the records speak for themselves, and I will restrict
further comment when I address the next decade of
George Yelverton Julius.

TO BE CONTINUED …

PART THREE – 1940s Marriage & Divorce
For George Yelverton Julius, the new decade started well but
ended in disaster. The first event was a 'hurriedly' arranged wedding.

The stated reason was Julius’ war-time commitments. Maybe…
His Service Record is unexceptional and basic. He did no overseas service.



In any case, as an understatement, the marriage did not go well.
Again, I’ll let the documents speak for themselves…

I will say, this is not the first time I have come across this situation.
I will put a link in ‘Related Reading’ to the story of another engineer,
Frederick Prosper Lark, who made Australia’s first power mower,
the New Moon. What is it about engineers and their slide rules!?

TO BE CONTINUED … 

PART FOUR A – 1940s - If Things Couldn’t Get Worse
George Yelverton Julius continued his spiral of decline
and took that into a whole new dimension – criminality.
He became a fraudster who obtained money by false pretences.

The crimes started small but quickly escalated and he
served jail time. The thing is, he did not learn the lesson
of prison. He continued the same practices after release!

The Gallery (below) presents a selection of newsprint records.

Again, I feel the documents should speak for themselves.
Note the newsprint articles linking son to famous father.

TO BE CONTINUED …

PART FOUR B – 1940s – New Horizons
This is an adjunct to Part 4A. George’s decline is represented
in his criminal activity in 1946.

What else happened that year?

His father died and this was announced …



This is a classic ‘read between the lines’ scenario.
What do you make of it?

TO BE CONTINUED …

PART FIVE – Early 1950s – House Breaking
In the early 1950s Julius continued on with his extensive
criminal activity. This time he engaged in house breaking in SA.

This resulted in considerable jail time.

TO BE CONTINUED ...

PART FIVE B – Late 1950s – Declared Habitual Criminal
I don’t know when Julius joined Victa as a design engineer,
but it must have been early in the second half of the 1950s.

It may have been his first job after release from prison.
He was highly regarded, given his contribution to Victa’s success.

He left Victa in January of 1958. Why? Well, one answer is
in the news reports. Julius said he left Victa because of,
“… taxation and bankruptcy troubles.”

That was true, given the sequestration proceeding against him in late 1957.



In any case, by February of 1958, Julius became a professional burglar.
That didn’t end well. In late 1958 George Yelverton Julius was
sentenced to eight years’ gaol and he was declared a habitual criminal.

I include thee important newsprint articles and they are telling!

The presiding judge said,
“… I am not going to point out the wrongs you have done.
It would take a Shakespeare or a Zola to tell the tragedy of your life.”

PART SIX – Fame and Infamy
When I started researching this story some years’ ago,
I found another astonishing connection. Julius’ failed
marriage produced two daughters, one of whom was
born Wendy Susan Julius.

We know her as a famous celebrity – Wendy Whitely –
widow of the very famous Australian painter, Brett Whitely.

In an ABC Australian Story from 2004 she said this:



Well, not the story I uncovered … but a credible story nonetheless.
It would explain why Julius left a well-paid job (with bonuses)
at a time when he needed it the most.

I wonder what genetic dispositions Wendy took from father?
She, like her father, do not easily fit the 'normal life' ...

TO BE CONTINUED ...

PART SEVEN – Concluding Thoughts
I realised when writing this story that historical records may
not grasp the full story. For sure, this was a story I wanted to tell –
simply because it revealed eternal truths.

It is a sort of Shakespearean tragedy – as the judge hinted -
in attempting to explain the son’s fall from grace; that a
talented engineer, was born into a family whose father was a
world-famous, talented engineer. That must have been hard –
walking in daddy’s shoes.

We don’t know what the relationship between father and
son was, but we do know he was less-favoured in daddy’s will.

Was George Julius Junior a black sheep? Maybe… Probably…

In any case, I would like to present a positive side to
George Yelverton Julius in a separate article.

This will be about his achievements at Victa in the 1950s.
That story should be told too!

There are some big surprises there.

TO BE CONTINUED …

An article on Julius' Contribution to Victa: -
https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/u...e-victa-and-george-yelverton-julius.html


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