´óÏó´«Ã½

Submitted by Christine Rome at Spennymoor Library on behalf of Elizabeth Hodgson (née Monaghan)

I worked at the Royal Ordnance factory (ROF) at Spennymoor. I was chosen along with 2 other girls to visit Goosepool Aerodrome (now Durham/Tees Valley International Airport), where the Canadian airmen were stationed. We were chosen because we had produced the most cases in a certain time and had been neither late or absent.

Mr Hosie who was chauffeur for ROF at the time was our driver. When we arrived at Goosepool Mr Hosie was not allowed to enter the airport as it was strictly guarded. We were introduced to several top men who told us our visit had been delayed due to various reasons, because of raids and moonlight.

We were shown how the airmen assembled our bullets and taken to try the Frainer Bomber (named the Lincoln Frainer). We were also allowed inside a Halifax Bomber and according to a map we flew all over Darlington and Durham. We were then taken to the canteen for lunch, which consisted of battered spam and chips.

Next we went with the WAAFs to see how they packed parachutes for the boys. This was very interesting — there of course was a special way of doing this that it opened properly when required. Custom was when the boys used these parachutes successfully it was usual for them to send a letter of thanks and a present to whoever had packed the parachute as the girls would have their name and address inside the package. We were then introduced to a number of Canadian boys. By this time we were given mugs of tea and corned beef sarnies.

At the factory we made .303 and .5 cases and caps, as well as bullets. Aycliffe filled the cases which we produced and this was very dangerous work. We had workers playtime during our half hour break. We sometimes danced and had concerts given by our work mates.

I was an Air Raid Warden which meant seeing my workmates into the air raid shelter safely and staying with them until the air raid was over after the all clear siren.

The ROF Regiment were stationed in Spennymoor factory under the leadership of Captain Calderbank. They had a goat mascot named Monty who ate the vegetables which the lads were growing, "Dig For Victory". The Captain without thinking shouted 'shoot the bugger' and this is what the lads did and were in serious trouble.

My husband worked in the mines with Bevin Boys. My Father worked at the factory. I remember Tudhoe Colliery being bombed. Durham Light Infantry Brigade had lots of men from Spennymoor were sent to Oxford to train for overseas, they were billeted in a brewery in Nook Norton. I remember lads coming home from Dunkirk, I helped WRVS to feed and sew stripes on their clothes. It was really pitiful, these lads had had a terrible time.

We had evacuees in Spennymoor, these were from Gateshead and people were given 8/- a week to keep them in food, which today is 40p! I was given a badge for helping to raise money for the war effort. We used to shelter under the stairs during air raids. We had stirrup pumps to put out fires from Incendiary Bombs. My sister lived in Billingham which was badly bombed, the sky was full of barrage balloons to protect the ICI factory.

I remember Lord Haw Haw on radio speaking from Germany calling. I listened to Vera Lynne and Tommy Handley who's catchphrase was 'Ta Ta for now (TTFN)'.

My brother-in-law was taken prisoner in Italy. He was in a parachute regiment when Italy capitulated. As he was being transferred from Italy to Germany he escaped by jumping from the train and for this among many other things he received the Military Medal. There has been a film made about these men "The guinea pigs".

A nursery school was opened in the park to look after children while mothers did war work.

After ROF I worked for C.I.E.M.E. — this was examining and weighing capsules to be used in Burma for killing mosquitoes and fleas.

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