Interview with female wartime brick worker and Women's Land Army volunteer

  • Women's Voices and Life Writing
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Title
Interview with female wartime brick worker and Women's Land Army volunteer
Interviewer
Semeraro, Carmela
Document Type
  • Oral history Recording
Date
18 Sep 2001
Interview Date
18 Sep 2001
Biography
The interviewee was born 23 July 1923 at Upper Shelton, Marston Moretaine. She had six siblings, one whom died in the Second World War. She recalls having a lot of freedom during her childhood. She attended primary school in Upper Shelton and Marston Moretaine, secondary school at Stewartby School. Leaving school at fourteen, her first job was at Meltis confectionery factory in Bedford. A few years later, she started brickworks at Stewartby. She recalls the dangerous and physical aspects of the job, including injuring her wrist at work. She joined the Women's Land Army, stationed at Hulcote Moors Hostel, Cranfield. Her father was against her joining WLA, and refused to let her return home until he saw what a good job she'd made in ploughing a local field with a tractor. She speaks about the assumptions people would make about Land Girls. After leaving the Women's Land Army, after the end of the war, she married a farmer and continued to work for him.
Length (minutes)
60
Copyright and Source Archive
Material sourced from Bedfordshire Archives and Records Service