A WOMAN IN A MAN'S WORLD

I was a shy, timid 23 year old girl living in Islington in London when I had to give up my job as a cook, which I enjoyed, to either join the forces or do war work. I chose the latter and was the first woman to go to work in a local engineering factory called Potter Rax. It was 1939 and there were no facilities for women at first, so I had to use the Managing Directors toilet! A ladies loo was built later as more women came to join me. To begin with many of the older men were resentful and unhelpful, as they didn't approve of women working, but we were gradually accepted, especially when we proved we could cope with the work and long hours.

The happy outcome was that I met my husband Bert there, before he was called up into the Royal Sussex Regiment. We married in 1942 and he was then sent to fight in Italy where he survived the battle of Cassino. We didn't see each other again for three years, thankfully he came back safely and we had over forty happy years together.

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