I don't remember the date that I interviewed Auntie Winnie about both her own life and that of my grandad, Ernest. It was a phone interview and she was hard of hearing so I never managed to ask all of the questions I wanted, or if I did, she often never answered them directly. Much of the conversation was just me listening to what she wanted to share, which is how it should be. The order of the questions may, therefore, seem somewhat random, but I've edited out those that weren't answered. You will see that we jump around a bit.
I did conduct one other short interview with Aunt Winnie but she has since passed away and there is no opportunity for another. As with all good interviews, she often left me with more questions to ask than those she answered.
Without further ado, here's the beginning of the interview.
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Full name: Winnifred May Hilton
Who were your parents?
Clara Drakely, and George Hilton. They met at Bolebridge Street Mission in Tamworth and were both Christian people.
Do you remember Ernest and May's wedding?
Yes, I was at the wedding of May and Ernest, it was a lovely day, they were married at the Elim Church. Your grandma wore white, and she looked lovely. Your grandad, I am sure, wore his navy uniform. Pastor Byatt (1) married them. They went to live in rooms (2) until they got a council house which they bought later in life.
When did Grandad join the navy, why did he join?
It was WW2 and at 17 1/2 years of age, you had to join either the army or the navy. Morris and Ernest volunteered for the navy because they believed it would be a little safer than the army and still a way to serve their country during World War 2. Morris was Ernest's younger brother.
Where did the family live when you were a child?
Number 5 Spinning School Lane, Tamworth.
What was life like growing up? How many siblings did you have?
My siblings were Irene, Winnie, George, Joyce (Died at 5 1/2) Ernest, Ken, and Morris (Married Auntie Gill).
We were a very close knit family and we had a lovely home life but there were times when we didn’t do as we were told. For example, when I was a little girl I loved to go and watch dad at his allotment. Mum said I could go as long as I didn't go anywhere else. But when I reached the top of the road I saw my friend and she said, "shall we go and play by the river at the top of our street?" This was something ma had forbidden us to do. I went with my friend and ended up falling into the river. I was very lucky to get out. Mam was furious and kept me in for quite a while after that.
Do you remember the name of the church your family would attend?
First of all we all went to the Bolebridge Street Mission Tamworth, and from there to the Gospel Hall which was later bought by the Elim Church and that was where we spent our lives. Dad, your great grandad George was the assistant Sunday School attendant until he died, and by doing this meant we never left Elim. Me and your great aunty Irene started the Sunshine Corner(3) with Pastor Banks.
That's the end of part 1, and I'll transcribe the rest of the interview in part 2.
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1. I am not sure if this is the correct spelling of the pastor's name. I will have to do some more research to find out.
2. I am sure that rooms refer to some form of cheaper boarding, but I don't know the entire history behind this reference.
3. To the best of my knowledge, Sunshine corner is the children's department of Elim church.
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