Z1205/057

Male. Brickworker. b. 09.11.1933 Side A (00 mins)Rural upbringing in Gloucestershire (7 children). Father was farm worker. Moved to Bedfordshire with farmer (1946). (05 mins)Maternal grandmother. Wartime experiences as child in Gloucestershire. (10 mins)Father in First World War but too old for Second World War. Older two brothers were away for 6 years of war and another permanently in hospital. Only grew up knowing younger members of family. (15 mins)Enjoyed sport t Stewartby Modern School. First job in brickworks at Ridgmont for Marston Valley Co. (20 mins)Working conditions. Foreign workers. (25 mins)Left brickworks to work on building sites, plastering. National Service in army, 1952 - 54. Dispatch rider for Royal Signals in Germany. (30 mins)Worked on building M1 motorway from Ridgmont to Newport Pagnell 1958-1960. End of Side A Side B (00 mins)Working conditions on motorway construction. (05 mins)Returned to brickmaking. Conversion from hand-drawn brick kilns to fork-lift truck fed chambers. After 15 years, became joiner's mate for Eastern Electricity, then store keeper. Retired in 1995. Now part-time gardener in retirement. Happiest years were at Marston Valley brickworks. (10 mins)"Tiny" Barnes was well-liked Manager. Resentment at takeover by London Brick Co. Feeling that LBC bricks were inferior in quality and yet Marston Valley Co. and Ridgmont were the works closed. (15 mins)More on varying quality of the two bricks. Suspicions regarding landfill sites and housing in Vale. Annoyance at tips being allowed to grow well above ground level in height. (24 mins) End of Side B.End of interview Original interview 55 mins

9 October 2001

From: 1930 To: 2001

item

Marston Valley Brick Company Limited,
Eastern Electricity

brick worker, farm worker, World War Two, World War One, hospitals, schools, wages/conditions, plasterer, M1, gardening, Gloucestershire, STEWARTBY, RIDGMONT, Germany, Newport Pagnell