- Contributed by听
- ameliaalice
- People in story:听
- "Mickey" Marshall (now Amelia Sockett)
- Location of story:听
- South Wigston, Trowbridge, Beaumanor Hall
- Background to story:听
- Army
- Article ID:听
- A4879209
- Contributed on:听
- 08 August 2005
Amelia "Mickey" Marshall
Early days
In 1941 I joined the ATS and was stationed at South Wigston Barracks near Leicester. After several months of training I was made a Corporal. It was a cold winter for marching up and down the parade ground. I still have a loud voice which I got from shouting commands. In 1942 I was sent to Trowbridge on a new course for three months to learn to read morse and all the communication signals.
On to Beaumanor
I was then transferred to the Royal Signals and became part of the War Office "Y" Group. We were known as the "WOYGITES." We intercepted German messages in code which were then sent by teleprinter to Bletchley Park to be decoded. I enjoyed this and became quite good at reading fast morse. I was a class 1 operator which meant I could receive 25 words per minute (200 letters in groups of 5 ). We were based at Beaumanor near Loughborough and I was first billeted at The Towers on Chaveney Road in Quorn. Later we were transferred to nissan huts in Brand Hill Camp at Woodhouse Eaves. Eventually I became Sergeant "Mickey" Marshall and then lived in Brand Hill House with the other sergeants. We were divided into "watches," and I was in charge of D Watch. We were transported to and from Beaumanor in troop carriers. We had to do a few route marches. We marched from Bradgate Park to Woodhouse Eaves singing all the latest war songs. I was on leave on VE Day, but on VJ Day I was working when peace was declared. I heard later that we took some of the messages.
Romance
I was asked to write to a soldier, a Lance Corporal Edward Sockett, who was getting ready for D Day. I wrote to him several times while he was in Normandy. He was in the 11th Armoured Division and drove a Cardon Lloyd tank towing a 7 pounder gun. I first met him in 1945 when we had a very enjoyable 48 hours' leave in Birmingham. He was demobbed in November 1945 and I was demobbed in February 1946. After several more meetings - he lived in Hereford and I lived in Nottingham - we were married in May 1946.
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