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WW1 Christmas boxes for the troops

Vivienne14

Kentish Brummie Moderator
Staff member
To show Birmingham soldiers they weren’t forgotten at Christmas, plum puddings from the Lord Mayor in 1915. Viv.


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From British Newspaper Archives
 

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For the first Christmas of the war, the Birmingham Gazette ran a scheme whereby for every 5 shillings donated, a Christmas box to the value of 12s 9d was sent to Midland men serving in the army and navy. These boxes must have been incredibly welcome given what we now know about the conditions these men were having to tolerate. Viv.

Both images from the British Newspaper Archives
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The records that I have show that the Midland Cycling Club used to send parcels to its members that were serving during the 1st World War. Also they also contributed cash collected from various sources to the National Egg Fund. During the second World War, all members wherever they were serving received regular parcels & letters, plus the club magazine Roll-Call.
 
By 1915 the Christmas box contents had expanded to include useful medical products from Boots the Chemists. I notice the relative value of the contents had dropped.

Interestingly, munitions factories/workers were notable contributors to pay for the boxes. Viv.

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