Dorothy Medley

‘The war began when I was 15 years old and as we lived about 10 miles from Manchester, I remember well the Manchester Blitz. Sitting in our cellar and hearing the German planes flying overhead, anti-aircraft guns going and the crunch of bombs exploding.

In 1942, when I was 18, I became a Land Girl, after a course at an agricultural college in Staffordshire, and was kitted out with my uniform in Chester.  For most of my time in the Land Army I was stationed at Mickle Trafford Manor where we had a pedigree jersey herd. We milked by hand at 6.30am and 4.30pm every day.

Each cow had a name and had their own personalities, and they knew their place in the shippen. They knew us and responded to us as individuals. Cows are always very curious and interested in things. I loved them, especially Sprite and Sparkle.

Each cow’s milk was weighed after milking and a record kept of each cow’s yield. Also our cows were regularly checked for TB, which can be rife in dairy herds. So our milk was special as it was very rich in cream and also germ free.

We had at times to act as midwives to the cows although they usually managed on their own. I hated it when it was a bull calf as I knew it would go to the slaughterhouse after a few weeks and they were such lovely little things. I have never eaten veal since then!

In the winter we kept the cows in the shippen, so we had to muck out and swill down before each milking. This meant we had a good midden for muck spreading in the fields – the best fertilizer there is. We also had to wash their udders and teats and our hands! 

We worked outside in all weathers and in harvest time we worked until almost dark in order to get the corn in before the rain came. Incidentally I once fell off a loaded cart and broke my leg. This meant a few weeks in plaster at home but I was soon back working all strapped up! We grew wheat, oats, kale and mangols. Mangols are like swedes but dark red on the outside and we stored them in clamps for winter feed, when we chopped them up for the cows.

Our farm horse was called Prince and he was such a gentle giant. A Shire, he knew exactly what to do and taught me how to turn the harrow at the end of the field. I walked up and down behind the harrow and Prince feeling safe and confident.

The other Land Girl Peg and I shared a flat in the Manor House and we remained friends until she died a few years ago.

On VE night we were allowed to go into Chester to join in the celebrations.  It was amazing to see the lights on after years of blackout. The square in front of the Cathedral was crowded with people singing and dancing and we got kissed and hugged but lots of lads in uniform. We were offered free drinks and it was a wonderful evening. We couldn’t stay late as we had to be up early for milking the next morning and had to walk 2 miles back to the farm! We also thought of our loved ones, both friends and family, who were bombed or never came back from overseas service.

We were awarded a medal for our services in the Women’s Land Army (WLA) and I have to say I loved the life, even though the war was raging at the time. It was very hard physical work in all weathers, and we worked very long hours for very little pay but even so, I have very happy memories of my nearly 5 years in the WLA.

One day which was to have a great influence on my life I was going home on leave on the train from Chester to Manchester and I sat next to a soldier who was also going on leave, to Yorkshire. As a result of our conversation, we met up in Chester and two years later we were married!!  That was in 1948 after we were both demobbed. Such very happy memories.’