Olla Maria Hansen was born on 24 September 1877 in Inverell. Her father was a Danish jeweller, Henry Olaf Hansen (1847-1934) and her mother, Mary Higgins (1847-1920) was the daughter of a convict, Henry Higgins. As a jeweller, Henry possibly was attracted to Inverell for its gem mining but he decided that Orange was a better opportunity and the family moved in 1882.
It is said Mary had a brother, T M Higgins who was a tailor in Orange which was an added attraction.
Olla was the second daughter of a family of four children, Lena (Helena Dagmar, 1873), Olla, Lou (Louis Anders, 1880) and Fred (Frederick Thorsen, 1886). They had a happy family life and were close siblings. A journalist friend Joe Glasson reported that ‘they had many musical evenings with Ollie on the violin and Lena on the piano’. The family lived on the same premises as the jewellery shop, Hansens Jewellers in the back rooms of the shop with the bedrooms upstairs at what is currently 34 Summer St, next to the AJS Bank building. It was usual to live at your business at that time.
Olla moved as a young person, when Henry moved the family to Sydney and to Cootamundra before returning to Orange. Olla was well educated by nuns and attended the local Catholic schools. At the age of 16 in 1893, she was working in her father’s shop as an assistant and then became the manager, buying fine china, glass ware, cutlery, ornaments and jewellery from a Sydney importer. During difficult times in 1896, when money was scarce, Mary and the two girls Lena and Olla set up a small shop in a front room where they sold knitted and embroidered clothing. Lou started working as an optometrist but left for dentistry and by the early 1900s Fred began working as an optometrist, with a room in the jewellery shop.
Olla's Family leave Inverell
Olla's home above the shop Orange ca 1882-1891
Olla's move to Sydney as Henry went into business with watchmaker R.B. Smith of Strasburg Clock replica fame
Henry leaves Cootamundra and Olla returns to Orange to live above the same shop on Summer St
During World War 1 (1914-1918) life was difficult for everyone. Fred went to France to fight and Mary suffered from poor health. In Fred’s letters home he referred often to Mary’s poor health. Olla ran the shop and the house, as her sister Lena was married to Frank Burrows and had two children, and Lou was a dentist with a young family.
In 1918 Blanche Wharfe moved to Orange to become the matron of Dudley Hospital and became good friends with Olla. They both belonged to the Orange Golf Club and when Fred arrived home in 1919 they were a close foursome with the addition of Stephen Fox Martin, a chemist who was courting Olla. Photos reveal a busy social life with trips in Fred’s GM Cadillac car to the Jenolan Caves, picnics, balls, various clubs, golf and tennis.
The next decade was a sad one, with an early death for her mother Mary in 1920, a tragic untimely death of brother Lou leaving wife Elsie and seven children and in 1929 sister Lena’s death after a long illness. Olla continued to run the house for her father and the jewellery shop although he had retired.
In 1928 at 51 Olla married Fox Martin in a quiet Catholic ceremony as Fox was an Anglican. Fox had been courting Olla for more than 10 years and was the subject of much gossip. General opinion was he didn’t like children and waited until Olla was too old to have children. Although Fox was popular around town he was not well regarded by the Hansen family. Although successful financially he was harsh and it is said he won an orchard in a game of poker and insisted on taking ownership. His presents to Olla were old shop stock and he spent much of his time at meetings and the social events of his clubs. When Henry, for his last couple of years, moved into their grand home at 22 Summer St he felt confined to his bedroom. At other times Fox was generous and agreed to help fund Olla’s nieces, Fred’s daughters Marg, Bet and Ruth to attend Santa Sabina boarding school in Sydney. Bet said she dreaded having to visit Fox each school holidays to report on her progress and kiss his moustached face.
Olla’s life changed with the death of her much loved father Henry in 1934. Hansens Jewellery shop was sold and Fred set up Western Optical Pty Ltd in Anson St, Orange. Olla was now free to travel with Fox Martin, Governor of Rotary for Australasia for the next 10 years to Rotary conferences in Australia and to Fiji and the USA. Fox was senior in many local organisations and their life was busy with events, balls and visiting dignitaries to Orange.
Life changed for her again when Fox developed heart problems and died in 1951 and her loving brother Fred died in 1952. Olla and Blanche became even closer and spoke to each other daily on the telephone, a big black device that sat on small table in the hallway.
After Henry’s death Olla continued letter contact with the Danish relatives that Henry left behind in 1866. She continued until World War 2 when Denmark was occupied by the Nazis. The Danish relatives asked her to cease writing and after that all contact was lost. Unfortunately no letters survived.
Although Olla had no children she was devoted and generous to her extended family. The old Dodge car was on constant loan to her nephews Bob and Lel and she often gave money to the nieces and nephew. She spent a lot of time with Fred’s children, especially nieces Margaret Picken (nee Hansen) and Elsie Hayes (nee Burrows, Lena’s daughter) who drove her aunt around in Olla’s new cream Morris Minor in the 1950s as Olla didn’t drive. She continued to have a pleasant social life with lunches, afternoon teas, visits to the orchard she owned and many visits from the family including me. As a 6 year old I had afternoon tea with Aunty Oll on her verandah every Saturday afternoon while my father Bob played tennis.
Fortunately Olla always lived in her home and had good health until close to her death on 14 April 1961 in Orange. After a funeral at St Joseph’s Catholic Church she was buried in the grave of her mother Mary Hansen (nee Higgins) and beside her father Henry Hansen, and brother Lou in the old Catholic section of Orange Cemetery. As was usual at the time for women there was no obituary in the local newspaper for Olla but Fox had a large detailed one as did her father Henry Hansen.
All 21 references to Olla Hansen/Olla Fox Martin or Mrs Fox Martin in Australian newspapers are found in the Trove database (a national digitised database) and publicly available under Olla Hansen Public List and Fox Martin Public List.
Olla and her family are in a local history book available at Orange Library:
Edwards, Elizabeth (ed) Gentleman of the Inky Way, Orange through Joe Glasson’s Looking Glass, Orange, 2011 pp188-189
Public List.
Trove Links:
Olla Hansen. https://trove.nla.gov.au/list/218738
Stephen William Fox Martin - incomplete. https://trove.nla.gov.au/list/219102
Written and compiled by:
Janet Hansen
Grand Niece
April 2025
