I was born in St. Marks Rd. Easton, but I can't remember that. I was brought up in King Street Cottages, Totterdown. My father worked for the Oil Cake Mills in Redcliffe St. Then he went to work at Hills dockyard.
I can remember my grandmother and grandfather on my father's side. My grandfather worked at Terrels, the book factory. He had a wooden leg. I can always remember that. He used to make me mustard and say it was custard. Well my grandmother, she was a bit on the strict side. She used to come up to our place. The neighbours used to say, 'There's the old witch coming'. She used to wear a cloak and bonnet.
But I was brought up religious. Always went to Prewett St. Baptist church — till they closed down. We all 'went to Sunday school — different from what it is today. We was never allowed to play on Sunday. I can see it now — a red table cloth, hymn books. You could play church or chapel but you couldn't do nothing else. But we had a loving home — different from what it is today. The table would be cleared at night. Then they'd get the games out. Either ludo or rings.
My mother didn't go to work. Not when I was young. When she was younger I think she started in Mardens, when they were in Milk St. I worked in Mardens. I worked in number two factory down in Temple Meads. I was there for 46 years. I enjoyed it — I enjoyed it when I was young. You started on the machine. You put a bonnet on. I worked half past seven in the morning till five or half past at night. Then during the war I done shift work. (Second World War). I started at Mardens at the end of the First World War.
I can remember when the war finished. We all stood on the steps and watched all the people outside hooraying. I started with 5 shillings a week and I had 6d pocket money. I used to buy stockings and all odds and ends out of that 6d.
I was a twin. My brother started in Mardens before me. He caught his fingers in the machine. He had two fingers off. He was only fourteen. He had £60 compensation. We thought that was the world.
We used to have a fine time when I first started, but as the years went on, it got a lot stricter. You had to work. When I first started you stopped sometimes for hours when a machine broke down - talk, play games, do what you like.
I done the cartons which the cigarettes go in. When I first started I had to glue up the parcels. They came out of the machine and the girl on the table put them in the parcels and I had to glue them up. Then as I got better I was put on the table where the work came out. And from there I was put on what was called running out. Then I was put on the feeding. That was the top job - feeding. During the war I done a man's job. Wages went up to 35-shillings during the war. Then when I done a man's job, they gave me an extra 10s a week, but that was took away as soon as I was took off.
I remember one foreman, Mr. Insoll. We didn't know he was there learning to be a manager. He did watch everything that you were doing. If you had these breaks and do nothing, he'd soon put a stop to it. He made us do sorting night work. That was bad. I can always remember Alf Ellis the first foreman I had. He was very nice. But it was terrible in those days. I saw one man come down and he only just larked about, and they had he in the office.
There wasn't a union then. They did try and start one. There was one before I left. I was the mother of the chapel really. I didn't care for it much. There was no-one else to do it. We had to go up in Nicholas St. to the union meetings once a month. I think it changed for the worse. You had incentive schemes. Do so much work and you'd get so much money.
We paid 4/6d rent for the cottages in Totterdown that we lived in. I lived in a terraced cottage. It was lovely really. Friendly. Different from what it is today. You had neighbours. You used to go up to Totterdown to do your shopping. Queued up for margarine in the First World War and in the Second.
My mother always made a cake, no eggs or anything in it. She couldn't afford it. We used to get a farthing every Saturday morning when the baker used to come. That was our pocket money. We went down the coke house early. I used to love that when it was dark. I wheeled the barrow over Peter's toes many a time. My brother done errands for the grocer. He used to lend us his cart to go down the coke house on a Saturday morning.
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