大象传媒

I used to live south west 8 (SW8) 鈥� that鈥檚 near London.

I was working in a sweet shop at the time and was called up 鈥� natural enough. I said I would like to go in the Land Army, but my Mother said 鈥渘o, no, no鈥� I thought 鈥淥h dear, I鈥檒l have to go on war work鈥�, so I did that. I went into a flour mill, which was doing a man鈥檚 job 鈥� moving big sacks of flour. You had to get hold of them, tie them up, put them on a trolley pushed them down the chute, and had to get back in time to catch the next one and you had to put a bag on before you leave it. It was pretty hard going, but you never got men鈥檚 money.

I stayed there, and I was thinking of getting married to my partner Walter, as we鈥檇 been together so long, we had planned to marry in the October, but all of a sudden they called me up again saying that they鈥檇 like me to do a different kind of work. I went along to see them, and found out that they wanted to send me to Coventry. I said 鈥淚鈥檓 getting married in a couple of month鈥檚 time鈥�, the man replied 鈥淥h, well that鈥檚 different; we might be able to hang on until you get married and then we鈥檒l call you in again.鈥� I knew that when you get married you don鈥檛 get much leave when you鈥檙e married- you only get two days, but all the same we got married 鈥� we had a proper wedding but it wasn鈥檛 as good as it could have been. They rationed everything.

We got married and then Walter got called up 鈥� he went into the R.A.F and his first leave was re-location leave and he didn鈥檛 tell anybody 鈥� he didn鈥檛 even tell me.

I was working then 鈥� I鈥檇 left the flour mill and I鈥檇 gone on to a munitions place where they made big stanchions When he went he didn鈥檛 seem upset or anything, but the next day I had a letter he鈥檇 gone to Blackpool. I was in work, I was working the night shift, but I got up from the bench and I said 鈥淚 want to go, I want to go and see my husband鈥�, and they said 鈥淥h, I don鈥檛 think you鈥檙e allowed to do that.鈥� I replied 鈥淲ell what鈥檚 going to happen? I鈥檓 going anyway!鈥� So I got on the train and up to Blackpool I went. I got there in the early hours of the morning, and I went to an office and they said to me 鈥淵es, he鈥檚 in a house just up the road there.鈥� They gave me the number and I walked all up the front, which had all barbed-wire up it 鈥� I didn鈥檛 realise the sea was like that. When I got there, they told me he鈥檇 gone. But when I got back, they told me that he鈥檇 gone to Morecambe, which was obviously only a stone-throw away from where I鈥檇 been! So of course I went back up to Morecambe 鈥� I didn鈥檛 care a tuppence 鈥� I just wanted to see him. I stayed with him for nearly a week. The people with whom he was staying put me up quietly for nearly a week in the room. I had to keep myself to myself though. When I went out he was marching up the high street with the rest of them. It was nice, but touching.

From there I went back to work 鈥� I thought they鈥檇 tell me off but they didn鈥檛 care. I then went on welding. They were stanchions 鈥� they were about eight foot long and had four sides, with holes at the top and then you had a square bit to do too. You had get on a pulley, and pull these up and down. It was really hard going, but I enjoyed it.

I went out with my sister once to go on holiday. It was going to be the first holiday I鈥檇 ever had and we went to a farm. It was nice, because they felt really sorry for you as we weren鈥檛 having nearly as much food as them 鈥� with them being on a farm, so they treated us well - and even gave us some eggs to bring back.
These stanchions were made for the Bailey Bridges. The Bailey Bridges were things that would pull across the rivers, so that the tanks could go across.

One day I got hit in the eye 鈥� as I pulled the pulley up, this thing swung around on its chains and caught me in the eye 鈥� so of course I had a nice black eye and it was going through to the other one. I went to hospital, and they kept saying to me 鈥淵our husband鈥檚 come home and caught you hasn鈥檛 he鈥� I kept replying 鈥淣o he hasn鈥檛!鈥� It was quite a dig 鈥� I鈥檝e still got a scar.

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Becky Barugh of the 大象传媒 Radio Shropshire CSV Action Desk on behalf of Dorothy Cottis and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

See more of Dot's stories:

• Red skies for miles
• I must have looked nuts!
• I had to collect my own flowers!
• 鈥渗辞辞尘!鈥�
• They went to work in slippers
• 鈥漃ing Ping鈥�
• You had to have a laugh

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