Ada May King

Place of birth: not known

Service: Railway Porter, TVR

Notes: Ada, a railway porter, possibly at Aberdare station, was sworn at and ‘struck on the chest’ by one Alfred Collins. He was attempting to avoid paying for a ticket (again).

Reference: WaW0372

Newspaper report

Report of the assault on Ada King. Aberdare Leader 5th May 1917.

Evelyn Kirk

Service: Munitions worker

Notes: Nothing is known of Evelyn Kirk, who was awarded the MOBE for ‘devotion to duty in munitions factory Queensferry’ 10th June 1918. She may have been from County Durham.

Reference: WaW0202

Evelyn Kirk

Photograph of Evelyn Kirk collected by the Women’s Subcommittee of the Imperial War Museum.

Evelyn Kirk

Reverse of photograph of Evelyn Kirk showing inscription.

E Kitson

Place of birth: Cardiff

Service: Munitions worker and rugby player

Notes: E Kitson captained Cardiff Ladies. She was a team mate of Lilian Rees [qv] and Maria Eley [qv] and probably a co-worker.

Sources: https://cardiffrugbymuseum.org/articles/earliest-photograph-women%E2%80%99s-team

Reference: WaW0398

E Kitson

E Kitson is sitting in the middle of the photograph holding the ball.

Newspaper report

Advertisement for the match between Newport Ladies and Cardiff Ladies, December 1917

Press cutting

Cutting giving the score of the match between Newport Ladies and Cardiff Ladies, December 1917. Source not known.

not known / anhysbys Knott

Place of birth: Pontypridd

Service: Nurse, not known / anhysbys

Notes: Nothing is currently known of Nurse Knott, whose name appears on the Roll of Honour of St Matthews Church, Trallwn, Pontypridd.

Reference: WaW0140

Roll of Honour

Name of Nurse Knott on the Roll of Honour of St Matthews Church, Trallwn, Pontypridd. Courtesy Dr Gethin Matthews.

Mathilde Augusta Lilian Laloe

Place of birth: Carmarthen

Service: Administrator, SWH, 1916 - 1920

Notes: Lilian Laloe was the daughter of Auguste Felix Laloe, a teacher from France who became headmaster of the Queen Elixabeth Grammar School in 1874. She joined the Scottish Womens Hospitals as a cook, but was rapidly promoted to Adminstrator.

Sources: http://scottishwomenshospitals.co.uk/women/

Reference: WaW0086

Lilian Laloe (rear, second left).

Lilian Laloe (rear, second left) with Doctors from the Scottish Women's Hospital, Salonika, 1917?.

Lily Maud Leaver

Place of birth: Aberdare

Service: Munitions worker, Not known / anhysbys

Death: 1917/12/28, TNT poisoning / Gwenwyni gan TNT

Notes: Little is known of Lily Leaver, who was born in 1896. Her parents later lived at Abertridwr in Glamorganshire.

Reference: WaW0325

Lily Maud Leaver

Lily’s photograph was collected by the Women’s Subcommittee of the Imperial War Museum as part of its collection of women who died during the War.

Letter

Letter to the Secretary of the women’s collection from Lily’s mother, Mrs A[nnie] Leaver.

Mabel Sybil (May) Leslie (Burr)

Place of birth: Woodlesford near Leeds

Service: Scientist, Chemist, HM Factory Penrhyndeudraeth, 1915 - 1918

Death: 1937/07/03, Bardsey, Leeds, Cancer / canser

Notes: May Leslie was born 1887, the daughter of a miner. Her father was very interested in education and self-improvement, for himself and his children. May won scholarships to High School and to Leeds University, where she gained First Class Honours in Chemistry in 1908, followed by a three year scholarship to study with Marie Curie in Paris. In 1914 she obtained an assistant lecturer’s post at University College Bangor, and in 1915 was called on to start work in the Explosive Factory in Litherland. She was promoted to Chemist in Charge of a Laboratory, a very rare position for a woman, and then moved into the same role at H M Factory Penrhyndeudraeth, working on explosives. This job ended with the War, and she returned to academic life in England.

Sources: https://newwoodlesford.xyz/schools/may-sybil-leslie/ Devotion to Their Science: Pioneer Women of Radioactivity, Rayner-Canham Marelene and Geoffrey

Reference: WaW0438

Photograph

May Sybil Leslie while at University College Bangor

Photograph

May Sybil Leslie, Leeds University, c.1920

Ada Doris Maud Lesser (Radcliffe)

Place of birth: Nova Scotia

Service: Worker, QMAAC

Death: 1918/12/04, Tidsworth Military Hospital, Wiltshire, Influenza / y ffliw

Memorial: Danygraig, Swansea, Glamorgan

Notes: Born c.1879, Ada moved with her parents to Swansea. She married Arthur Charles Lesser in December 1899. The inscription on her grave says she was 36 when she died, but she was probably older. Thanks to Diana Morgan

Reference: WaW0190

Grave of Ada Lesser

Grave with the name of Ada Lesser, QMAAC

Gwen Lewis

Place of birth: Swansea

Service: Teacher

Notes: Gwen Lewis set sail from Tilbury for Gibraltar on 26th February 1916, to be married in Gibraltar. The following day, at about 10.30, the liner, SS Majola, struck a mine off Dover and sank with the loss of 155 lives. Gwen survived, but lost all her possessions including the travelling watch with which she had been presented on leaving Terrace-roads school. Her story was published at length in the South Wales Weekly Post and Llais Llafur.

Reference: WaW0265

Gwen Lewis

Miss Gwen Lewis, published in the South Wales Weekly Post 4th March 1916rnrn

Newspaper report

Report of Gwen Lewis’s experiences (1). South Wales Weekly Post 4th March 1916rnrn

Newspaper report

Report of Gwen Lewis’s experiences (2). South Wales Weekly Post 4th March 1916rnrn

Newspaper report

Report of Gwen Lewis’s experiences (3). South Wales Weekly Post 4th March 1916rnrn

Newspaper report

Report of Gwen Lewis’s experiences (4), South Wales Weekly Post 4th March 1916rnrn

Gwenllian Lewis

Place of birth: Treharris

Service: Nurse, TFNS, November/Tachwedd 1914 – Jul

Notes: Gwenllian Lewis seems to have been working as a private nurse in the Midlands before she was called up in 1914. She spent three years at the 5th Northern General Hospital in Leicester before going to France in 1917. She remained there until early 1919 when she returned to Leicester. Her annual appraisals all refer to her as a ‘good nurse’ who was kind to patients. Her only misdemeanour was losing her TFNS badge, and having to pay for a replacement.

Reference: WaW0426

Annual Review

Gwenllian Lewis’s last annual report before being deployed to France.

Testimonial

TFNS testimonial for Gwenllian Lewis on resigning from the force.