Ellen ‘Nellie’ Mariana Booker

Place of birth: Southerndown ?

Service: Secretary then Commandant, VAD, 1909 - 1917

Death: February/Chwefror 19, Southerndown, Not known / anhuybys

Notes: Nellie Booker was the sixth daughter of Caroline Booker [qv]. With her mother and sister Etta [qv] she established the Southerndown branch of the Red Cross Society. At the outbreak of war she was the Secretary of the Tuscar House Hospital, and later became its Commandant. Unusually she was given a military funeral: ‘a unique honour for a lady’ (Glamorgan Gazette). Her Red Cross record card does not survive.

Reference: WaW0472

Newspaper report

Report of the opening of Tuscar House Red Cross hospital. Glamorgan Gazette 28th May 1915

Tuscar House Red Cross Hospital, Southerndown. The house was used as a hospital in WW2 as well.

Newspaper report

Report of the troops recovering at Tuscar House. Glamorgan Gazette 18th June 1915

Newspaper report

Part of the report of Nellie Booker’s military funeral. Glamorgan Gazette 2nd March 1917

Ethel Anna Booker

Place of birth: Southerndown ?

Service: Nurse, Quartermaster, Commandant, VAD, 1915/04/01 – 1919/04/30

Notes: Ethel Booker began her service at Tuscar House as a voluntary kitchen-maid, but became an efficient quartermaster in August 1915. She became Commandant of the hospital following the death of her sister Nellie [qv] in 1917. Her record of service (filled out by her mother Caroline [qv]) says she lived at the hospital and took no leave for the last 18 months of her time there. Ethel and her sister Dulcie [qv] were the prime organisers of events both for fundraising and for amusing the patients at the hospital.rn

Reference: WaW0474

Red Cross record card

Red Cross record for Ethel Booker

Red Cross record card (reverse)

Reverse of Ethel Booker’s Card, detailing her service, and written by her mother. Caroline Booker.

Tuscar House

Tuscar House Red Cross Hospital, Southerndown. The house was used as a hospital in WW2 as well.

Newspaper report

Report of a Grand Matinée given at Bridgend Cinema by the soldiers of Tuscar House (and others). Glamorgan Gazette 29th November 1918

Newspaper report

Report of a presentation to Ethel and Dulcie Booker when Tuscar House hospital closed in April 1919. Glamorgan Gazette 4th April 1919

Etta J O Booker

Place of birth: Southerndown ?

Service: Nurse, Commandant, VAD, FANY, 1909 - 1919

Notes: Etta Booker served as Commandant of the Glamorgan [22] detachment when it was founded in 1909. In November 1914, she was part of a group of six nurses from Glamorgan sent to the French Base Hospital at Saumur for 6 months. After her return to Southerndown she worked for a while in the Tuscar House hospital, but then relinquished her rank as Commandant to go to Calais with the FANY. After a breakdown of health she was moved to Nice to work in the Officers’ Hospital, then back to northern France where she worked in several hospitals, ending as a charge nurse in the Anglo Belge Hospital in Rouen in 1919. She was nearly 40 years old by this time, and had had only short breaks at home, when she worked with her sisters [Booker qv] at Tuscar House. Etta seems to have remained a member of the Red Cross, as her medals include a Silver Jubilee medal (1935) as well as French and Belgian decorations.

Reference: WaW0471

Red Cross record card

Red Cross card for Etta Booker, heavily annotated.

Red Cross record card (reverse)

Reverse of Etta Booker’s Red Cross card, with details of her service (presumably written by her sister Ethel [qv].

Newspaper report

Report of Etta’s departure for France. Glamorgan Gazette 6th November 1914

Etta Booker’s medals

Etta Booker’s medals, which were sold at Bonhams, London for £1440 in 2013. They include the Medal of Queen Elizabeth; Belgium and the France, Ministry of the Interior, silver medal

Medal card

Record of medals awarded to Etta Booker. There are two separate cards in the National Archives, this one listing her as a Trooper then Nurse in the FANY

Medal card

Record of medals awarded to Etta Booker. There are two separate cards in the National Archives, this one listing her as VAD, French Red Cross and FANY

Mabel Booker

Place of birth: Southerndown ?

Service: VAD, VAD, May 1915 – May 1917

Notes: Mabel Booker was not so involved with Tuscar House Hospital as her sisters [Etta, Nellie, Ethel and Dulcie qv], though she was ‘ready to help when required’, and clocked up 500 hours service.

Reference: WaW0473

Red Cross record card

Red Cross record for Mabel Booker

Red Cross record card (reverse)

Reverse of Red Cross card for Mabel Booker, showing her activity.

Maisie Bowcott

Place of birth: Abergavenny

Service: Nurse, VAD, 1918/07/01 - 1919

Notes: Maisie Bowcott worked in English hospitals, first in Wimborne, Dorset, and then at the Military Hospital, Tidworth, Hants.

Reference: WaW0155

Red Cross card

Red Cross Card in name of Maisie Bowcott

Red Cross card (reverse)

Red Cross Card in name of Maisie Bowcott (reverse)

Frances Ethel Brace

Place of birth: Manorbier

Service: Nurse, QAIMNS, 16/06/1916

Death: 1916-09-21, Military Hospital, Malta, Malaria

Memorial: War Memorial, Cosheton; Llanelwy, Pembrokshire, Flintshire

Notes: Frances Brace trained at Carmarthen Infirmary, and joined QAIMNS in 1916. She was posted to Salonika as a staff nurse. There she contracted malaria and dysentery, and was transferred to Malta. She died there on 2ist September 1916, aged 30.

Sources: http://www.wwwmp.co.uk/pembrokeshire-war-memorials/;http://www.flintshirewarmemorials.com/memorials/st-asaph-memorial/st-asaph-cathedral-welsh-nurses-ww1/brace-frances-ethel/

Reference: WaW0001

Cosheton War Memorial

Frances Ethel Brace's name on War Memorial, Cosheston

Memorial plaque in Malta

Died in Military Hospital, Malta

Frances Ethel Brace on the left

Frances Ethel Brace and a colleague

Nurses

Frances Ethel Brace's name on the Nurses' Memorial, St Asaph

Frances Ethel Brace

Nurse Frances Ethel Brace before she joined QAIMNS

Newspaper report

Report of the death of Frances Ethel Brace, Herald of Wales 30th September 1918

Mary Brebner

Place of birth: not known

Service: Lecturer, University College Aberystwyth, 1898 - 1919

Notes: Mary Brebner was a University College, Aberystwyth, graduate and subsequently trained at the Cambridge Training College for Women under Elizabeth Phillips Hughes [qv]. She then took an MA at London University in 1891. After working in London as well as Wales, and travelled on a scholarship. Her book The Method of Teaching Modern Languages in Germany is still in print, and she has been described as the most influential women in the teaching of modern foreign languages in Britain. In 1899 she was appointed Assistant Lecturer at Aberystwyth in modern languages and Latin. At the outbreak of war Dr Ethē, Professor of German at Aberystwyth since 1875, was in Germany and did not return. Mary was promoted to lecturer and ran the department for the whole of the war, including the 1918-19 session which was ‘considerably interrupted owing to influenza’. She then retired, replaced by a man, to live in Penmaenmawr, though she remained on the board of the University of Wales.

Reference: WaW0451

Newspaper report

Report of Mary Brebner’s MA at London University. South Wales Daily News 31st July 1893.

Newspaper report

Report of Mary Brebner's appointment to the University College. Welsh Gazette 5th October 1899

Book catalogue

Mary Brebner’s book on teaching modern foreign languages 1898.

University College Report

Report of the German department, 1919. Reports submitted to the Court of Governors / University College of Wales, Aberystwyth

Annie Matilda Breeze

Place of birth: Machynlleth

Service: Nurse, TFNS ?, 1914 -

Notes: Annie Breeze probably trained in London, as her name appears at number 1 on the Roll of Honour at the Welsh Chapel, King’s Cross. She worked in hospitals in Aldershot before leaving for France in 1916. She was awarded the Royal Red Cross that year.

Reference: WaW0196

Roll of Honour

Roll of Honour of those who served in WWI, Kings Cross Welsh Chapel London

Annie Breeze’s name on Roll of Honour

Annie Breeze’s name on Roll of Honour of those who served in WWI, Kings Cross Welsh Chapel London

Newspaper report

Report concerning Annie Breeze, Cambrian News and Merioneth Standard 3rd November 1916

Annie Elizabeth (Nancy) Brewer (Mistrick)

Place of birth: Newport

Service: Nurse, Fondation Baye

Death: 1921/01/30, Newport, Brights disease

Notes: Annie Brewer, also known as Nancy, was born in 1874. Her father worked in the Dos Road Nail factory. She qualified in ‘the nursing and attendance of insane persons’ in 1899. After a few years working in hospitals she seems to have become a nurse/companion, travelling to many parts of Europe. At the outbreak of War she joined a private French hospital and ambulance organisation, the Fondation Baye, and worked as part of the Fondation in many war zones of France. She was wounded when her ambulance was bombed, and also suffered serious illness. She remained in France in the Army of Occupation until late 1920. She was decorated several times by the French government, including two awards of the Croix de Guerre and also the Legion d’Honnour. During her time in France she also married a young ambulance driver, Daniel Mistrick. She returned to Newport early in 1921 to nurse her mother, but died very shortly afterwards. Annie took many photographs of her time in France, and was also frequently photographed by others. A selection can be seen below.

Sources: www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/wales/authors/88112f9c-1724-34e3-8c65-6d48968dc06b22cb34378481r_date%22%20and%20%28gallica%20all%20%22nancy%20Brewer%22%29

Reference: WaW0187

Annie (Nancy) Brewer

Photograph of Annie (Nancy) taken in Torquay, 13 . 3 . 15

Annie Brewer and ambulance

Annie Brewer beside an ambulance possibly driven by Daniel Mistrick

Annie in the operating theatre

Annie Brewer giving an anaesthetic in a camp operating theatre.

Announcement of award of Croix de Guerre

Announcement in the Journal Officiel de la Republique Français, 17th December 1917: Miss BREWER (Nancy), voluntary nurse in the de Baye unit, at the hospital at Dugny: a highly skilled nurse whose moral strength and devotion have been conspicuously shown on many occasions, notably 18 August 1917 during the shelling of her ambulance. Gave on that day a magnificent example of coolness and of absolute disregard for danger, lavishing her care on the wounded while under enemy artillery fire.

Nurses looking at a zeppelin

Photograph by AB of a group of nurses looking up at a zeppelin flying over.

Young man bathing

AB’s photograph of a young man, possibly Daniel Mistrick, bathing in a river.

Annie Brewer

Annie Brewer in a snow covered dugout

Announcement of award of Medaille de la Reconaissance français

Announcement in the Journal Officiel de la Republique Français 22nd October 1920: Miss Brewer (Annie Elizabeth, Nancy), British, senior nurse in the unit of Mlle de Baye: has been with this at the Front since 1915, at Vitry-le-François, at Deuxnouds, before Beauzée, at Souilly, at Dugny; since the Armistice has been attached to the Army of Occupation, notably at Saarbrücken; taken ill in April 1918, has had to undergo a long period in hospital; scarcely able to return to duty, daily imposing on herself new tasks way beyond her strength; at present undergoing treatment in rnhospital in a condition that her doctors describe as extremely serious.

Lily Briggs

Place of birth: Barry ?

Service: Prostitute

Notes: Lily Briggs was sentenced to twenty one days hard labour in July 1915 for ‘trying to entice young soldiers [from the camp at Nell’s Point, Barry Island] into the fields’. She also used ‘filthy language’ when arrested.

Reference: WaW0476

Newspaper report

Report of the court appearance and sentence of Lily Briggs, ‘a common prostitute’. Barry Dock News 9th July 1915.rnrn