Z1205/244

Female. "Dinner Lady", Ridgmont. Widow of former brick worker. b. 19.03.1941 SIDE A (00 mins)Born in Woburn. Mother's family was Woburn; Father's family at Eversholt. After serving in the Army during the Second World War, Father worked for the Duke of Bedford's estate as a gardener at Woburn Abbey. Memories of everyone growing their own vegetables. (05 mins)Father would stoke the fire to heat the greenhouses on Sundays, Oranges, lemons, grapefruit, peaches and banana were all grown for the big house. There was a corn mill on the estate on Park Farm. She had 2 sister and a brother. Live in estate cottage with outside bucket toilet. Cut up newspapers for use as toilet paper. (10 mins)Father grew all the vegetables for the family in their big garden. Grandfather used to work at the timber yard on the estate, running the steam engine. (15 mins)Childhood pastimes at Woburn. Spent all day out playing, when not at school. (20 mins)Early death of a school friend in a road accident. Sunday churchand a family afternoon walk on Sundays. (25 mins)Snowball fights in the winter. Being frightened of tramps, as a child. (32 mins)End of Side A SIDE B (00 mins)Attended Woburn village school from 5 - 11. Then to Woburn Sands school, now no longer in existence. Remembers some of the teachers' names. When Christmas came, they used to make paper lanterns and "chains" for decorations. After school, she got a job at Gossards, the women's underwear manufacturer, in Leighton Buzzard. (05 mins)Made bras and corsets. Left there when she had a daughter in 1969. Met her husband to be in the Magpie public house in Woburn. He worked in the brickworks. Married him after only 3 months. Was married for almost 25 years, when he died. He loved working in the brick yards. Had an accident with brick falling on him from the back of a lorry. He had a heart attack and then a stroke. Ended up on the dole (unemployment pay). She went to work nights at Plysu plastics firm. (15 mins)Remembers the busy days at Brogborough brickworks. (20 mins)Still rents an estate house there. (25 mins)Now works as a "dinner lady" (supervising children at lunchtimes) at Ridgmont village school. (31 mins)End of Side B END OF INTERVIEW Original Interview 60 mins

1 October 2003

From: 1940 To: 2003

item

Gossards,
Marston Valley Brick Company Limited,
Plysu PLC

brick worker, widow, dinner assistant, gardener, World War Two, vegetables, greenhouses, oranges, Woburn Park Farm Office, sewage, games, timber, road accidents, snow, Christmas, Woburn Magpie Inn, injury, heart attack, unemployed, Ridgmont School, employment of women, RIDGMONT, WOBURN, Woburn Abbey, LEIGHTON BUZZARD, BROGBOROUGH