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For the descendents of Richard Dearie and his son John Russell


Archie's House at Port Dickson.

It was probably the best site on the Port Dickson coast which stretches from Cape Rachado (now called Tanjung Tuan) to Port Dickson town which is a distance of about 11 miles. The house was at the tip of a small promontory with a little bay of its own cut-off by jungle covered headlands from the rest of the beach and was at the top of a ridge linking these headlands. The beach was used by local Malay fisherman who hauled their boats up on the sand which was very picturesque.

Above:The house from the side looking down to the beach.

Right; The house looking up from the beach. Note the bay windows.

Above: The dining room looking through to the sitting room with the bay window.
Right: The bay window sitting room with two men sitting on the sofa. The man on the right could be Archie. The bay window and rest of the house had wooden shutters which could be closed at night or when the house was unoccupied. There were no glass windows.
The house was designed by Archie's brother Phil Russell. The work was supervised by Freddie Cunningham. The bungalow was sold by Archie to Cunningham during the slump. When Cunningham died, he left it to his Chinese cook who pulled it down intending to build holiday bungalows but never did.
Right: A group including Archie on the right in the bay window area. It is not known who the others in the photograph are. They do not include Kathleen, Archie's wife.
Left: Two photographs from John Drysdale's family album, the lower one showing his daughters at the house for a holiday when it belonged to Cunningham.