大象传媒

This story has been written onto the 大象传媒 People鈥檚 War site by CSV Story gatherer Jessica on behalf of Sylvia Parry. They fully understand the terms and conditions of the site.
I received my call up papers for the Women鈥檚 Land Army on my 18th Birthday on August 11th 1943 and went to Caernarvon, North Wales, on 16th August 1943. Never being away from home it was quite an adventure, just travelling alone, and no idea where Caernarvon was. We were met at Caernarvon station by an open truck and taken to Lord Newboroughs estate eight miles from Caernarvon, it was a beautiful estate, living in the old stables where grooms lived, and the coaches were still there.
My first job was potato picking, only ever working in an office it was really hard work, we worked on farms around the estate doing all sorts of work, hay making, thrushing, feeding animals.
I was sent to Hull for excavator training to drain the fields in the Conway valley.
Then I was sent to Cornwall, I think the happiest place, I spent about three weeks in a hostel in Wadebridge then on to a private farm at Lostwithiel, the farm was called Burns farm. There I met some of the nicest people who made me very welcome. The work on the farm was very hard getting up at six and during harvest working until eleven; I spent my 21st birthday harvesting barley it rained at five o鈥檆lock so I was able to celebrate with my friends. One of my jobs on the farm was cleaning the pig sties, then feeding them, the farmer was supposed to put the pigs back but forgot, I had two buckets of pig swill and all the pigs rushed at me pushing me in a pile of pig manure, with no bathroom I had to clean myself up with a jug of water.
On a Sunday morning my W.L.A representative picked me up and took me to St Winnows church, her name was Angela Dumaurier and it was only later I realised she was Daphne Dumaurier鈥檚 sister.
This year (2005) I went back to St Winnow鈥檚 church to see where she was buried.
My days in Cornwall were very happy. In 1947 I left the W.L.A and married a Welsh boy from Caernarvon. We had been married 58 years when I lost him.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.