大象传媒

I joined the Land Army in 1941 because I was anxious to make a contribution.
My father would not let me join the armed forces, so I decided the Land Army was best. Whilst my mother and father were away on a short break, I joined the Land Army. On the Saturday of their return, I confronted them dressed in the Land Army uniform.
I was sent to the YMCA at Haydon Bridge with about 40 other girls. Farmers would telephone when they had jobs for us to do.
My best friend was Sadie Franklin and we did most of the jobs together. Our first job was weeding fir tree seedlings by hand. We did this back-breaking work for six weeks. We worked between 8am and 5pm with Beetroot sandwiches for lunch.
My most interesting experience was working at a high altitude sheep farm which was being converted to mainly arable. Sadie and I, plus two others, lived in a caravan whilst the farm was developed. After the land was ploughed, we prepared the land for seeding, driving Fordson tractors and a big caterpillar. We erected 5 miles of fencing to keep the sheep out.
After harvesting the oats and barley, we left the farm at the end of October, but continued working with the traction engine and threshing machine.
I met my husband, Gerald, whilst he was on manouvers nearby. We married in 1943. He was soon transferred to the South and was involved in the D-Day landings. He was later wounded in his tank.
I left the Land Army in June 1944 and my son David was born in the December.
I loved my time in the Land Army. I felt fit and well and met both my husband and best friend.

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