Tuesday 12 April 2011

Red Cross Nurses.

During the last war, many expectant mothers from London were sent out to the countryside to give birth; things were considered much safer there. One such reception village was adjacent to my native Surrey village of Lingfield; it's called Dormansland. Apparently, throughout the war, the whole village was permanently awash with hundreds of heavily pregnant women.

Like so many who wished to 'do their bit', my mother enrolled with the Red Cross to become a temporary war-time nurse, and her main duty, after some initial training, was to walk the pavements of Dormansland just in case any of the expectant mums was to be 'caught short'.

I believe that my mother (not amongst those above) was the only nurse during the whole period of the war to actually assist in an outdoors delivery; 'on the pavement'.

The baby was a boy, and the young woman assured my mother that had it been a girl she would definitely have named it after her.

Well, I suppose you can't have everything. She did receive a few kind letters from The Queen, however; but then I believe everyone did in those days.

13 comments:

  1. A lovely little bit of history Cro, very apt as it is almost Anzac Day here in Oz..

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  2. So that's where your fetish originated.

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  3. I remember when small a next door neighbor who was a British war bride, telling of when the whistling noise from the rockets stopped they ran for cover. I can not imagine the fear. How lucky you are.

    Cro, I just got back from Florida where I saw a Bugatti being driven in a sheik area of town. Thought of you.

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  4. A 'sheik area of town'; what's that, a Muslim Ghetto?

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  5. it was 5am here and spell check accepted it. OK,0k..chic.

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  6. That makes more sense. Sorry, I should have guessed!

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  7. I've always wondered about the notion of getting 'caught short' while giving birth.
    Both the labours I experienced were six hours long and hurt like hell (and considered quick!). How the heck could you not know what was happening and decide to pop down to the shops???

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  8. Not something I'm able to comment on, I'm afraid! But I do have a friend who was born in a taxi.

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  9. I once nursed a man who remembered being evacuated from singapore before the attack of the city by the japanese...
    He recalled as the European population lined up on the docks Japenese bombers started to bomb the city.
    All the civilians dived for cover he said but he remembered all of the red cross nurses with their capes and hats on still standing to attention on the dock sides......

    hey ho....I can feel a blog coming on

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  10. What a fabulous story here. This would make a great idea for a movie, don't you think?

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  11. Just a little note about not knowing for Jacquie, my sister in law was told not to sneeze after her first born simply popped out after a slight tummy ache!She went on the have 4 other children in the same manner with one born in the lift at the hospital,she says the only way she knew they were coming was a "thought"it was close moment..ahhh some people have all the luck!

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  12. My grandmother was one also during the war and she loved it. That influenced me to go into nursing but I have yet to birth a baby on the street in 40 years! Your mother must have been quite a woman!!!

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