WW2 uniform, please tell me what this lady did?

[Ron Preece]

To give you a better idea of ATS uniforms here is a photograph of my late mother taken at Hatfield House, Hertfordshire. She served with the 93rd Searchlight Regiment and is seated front right. To signify the unit they were attached to, the units cap badge was worn above the left tunic pocket. Although difficult to make out I believe two of the girls are with the Royal Artillery, one is Catering Corps and my mother RASC (Royal Army Service Corp). Ron.

[medpat]

I don't know about how long the training was to rewire tanks but she was based at Chilwell army camp. Mum joined in 1941 and this is her on her 21st birthday in 1942

[guest259648]

I don't know about how long the training was to rewire tanks but she was based at Chilwell army camp. Mum joined in 1941 and this is her on her 21st birthday in 1942

medpat

Chilwell, that's Notts I think? From what I've been told, the camps were huge, thousands of people.

How precious this photo must be to you.  Thinking of myself at that age, I was away at University with vast opportunities ahead of me and not a care in the world. Very different scenario, though, for your 21-year-old Mum - and I'm so grateful to her and her kind, all of whom learned skills which were alien to them. They made a huge positive difference.

Thank you so much for sharing.

D x

[guest259648]

To give you a better idea of ATS uniforms here is a photograph of my late mother taken at Hatfield House, Hertfordshire. She served with the 93rd Searchlight Regiment and is seated front right. To signify the unit they were attached to, the units cap badge was worn above the left tunic pocket. Although difficult to make out I believe two of the girls are with the Royal Artillery, one is Catering Corps and my mother RASC (Royal Army Service Corp). Ron.

Hello Ron, very many thanks, this gives me a good solid idea of the ATS uniforms - and how glamorous the ladies managed to keep themselves, whatever the demands!  Your mother has a beautiful face.

In which ways was your mother changed (if she was) by her War service? e.g. Did it make her wish to be more independent?

D

[guest259648]

My husband thinks she was in the WAAF's.

He says there is an RAF wings shoulder flash.

Hope this helps.

Dorrie

Dorrie, are you able to point me please to an image of the 'flash' your husband mentioned, which would appear on the shoulder of a WAAF? I want to compare it with the ATS photo which Ron has just posted up.
Thank you.

[Sandblown]

Just a quick pointer. There are a good number of Personal Women's Stories, regarding Service Life, during WWII, on 'YouTube'. Plus some excellent Documentary Films, covering Women's Roles in the Army, Navy and Air force.

[Ron Preece]

Hi Dulciebun, My mother was born and brought up in a small Herefordshire village where her mother was Postmistress and her father was the village Baker. When the war broke out, eager to "do her bit" she went to work at the local munitions factory at Rotherwas in Hereford. The work was unpleasant and dangerous, so when the opportunity arose she enlisted in the ATS thinking it would be a lot safer and much more glamorous, it was neither. She spent the rest of the war living in a wooden hut heated by a pot bellied stove, spending her day's working in the stores and her nights shining a very bright light into the sky over London, making herself and her friends a target for every German aircraft that happened to be flying by on it's way to bomb the capital. She loved every minute of it and wouldn't have missed it for the world.

[guest259648]

She loved every minute of it and wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Morning Ron
Thank you for sharing this photo, I love it.

After wars are concluded, we (quite rightly) focus on those who lost their lives, however there were millions of people - including ladies like your mother - whose contribution needs to be acknowledged and celebrated in every way we can find.  I'm tickled to hear that she wouldn't have missed it for the world, even though it was very dangerous work.

Now, do you happen to know what colour your mother's uniform was? I'm trying to get my black & white photo 'coloured' so we can get a sense of the colour of my own lady's coat etc, which will really help to ID what she was.

[Ron Preece]

Morning Dulciebun, For many of the girls including my mother this was their first time away from home, in the few photographs I have they always seem to be smiling so Service life couldn't have been that bad. Here is a photo I found online. Uniforms were a bit mix and match at the time but I think the colour is near enough.