WRLSC Barwick Camp Yeovil

[carom]

I have a copy of a letter written by my gt uncle back to his sister in England.
The address was originally written as
Miss G Porter
W.R.L.S.C
Ilchester camp
Yeovil

Someone has crossed out Ilchester and written Barwick Park Camp.
I've tried Google but not found much.
Can anyone enlighten me? I thought it might be Women's Royal...

It was his last letter home as he was killed just 10 days later.

[cath151]

Hi
I have found a few snippets in the newspapers all 1918
Barwick Camp seems to have been home to  women who came to help harvest flax.
Nottingham Journal 5th July1945
"Three hundred college girls, the first contingent of 3000 women workers for the flax harvest are leaving London for Yeovil, Somerset , on Monday.
The Womens National Land Service Corps is establishing six camps at Yeovil and three near Peterborough".

Other mentions include 150 scots women volunteers coming  to Barwick Camp to help with the flax harvest.

Cathy

[cath151]

So Land Army Girls really not sure what the R would have stood for, perhapsa mistake in the address.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30077017

Cathy

[carom]

Thanks so much for that Cathy. Looking at the address again I can see the second letter is N rather than R, so Women's National Land Service Corps makes perfect sense. I was aware of the Land Army in WW2 but hadn't realised it started in 1916.

[carom]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01q9ypd

For anyone interested in learning more about the ww1 land girls, a fascinating oral account from someone who was there in 1918.