Ann Allcoat

Title: Land Army memorabilia

Event: Land Army changed the direction of my mum’s life

Who: These are photos of my mum, Doris Ingram, in her Land Army uniform, a copy of the poster which encouraged her to join up, her certificate of gratitude from the government and her medal.



This is special to me because: My mum was a cockney and her family had lived in the east end of London for generations. During the war as a teenager she was evacuated to the Cotswolds. She was so homesick for London and her family that she said she would rather take her chances with Hitler than stay in the Cotswolds, so she went back to London and as soon as she was old enough got a job near Old Street in the east end.
 
One morning she arrived for her day’s work to find that the office she worked in had been bombed during the night and her workplace no longer existed. She was given the choice of working in a factory making munitions, joining one of the military services, or joining the Land Army. She said she couldn’t possibly be responsible in any way for killing people so she joined the Land Army where she was posted to Wisbech in the East Anglian Fens.
 
There she made friends with another young lady of a similar age - Mary Ingram. Mary invited her home for tea and introduced her to her younger brother, Frank, who was still at home as he had a reserved occupation (shoe repairer!). Doris and Frank started courting and married after the war, settling in Wisbech for the rest of their lives. They reached their Diamond Wedding Anniversary but have since both sadly passed away after long and happy lives together.