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Munitions factory

My Great Grandmother worked in a munitions factory in around 1900s, she lived in Aston, can u tell me what big factories were around there , that would have been used for this purpose..xx:rolleyes:
 
My Great Grandmother worked in a munitions factory in around 1900s, she lived in Aston, can u tell me what big factories were around there , that would have been used for this purpose..xx:rolleyes:
Hi Julie, there was Kynochs,at Witton which I remember from the 1930s but I think it went back a lot further than that, but i expect some one out there will know a lot more than i can remember. They used to make cartridges for shot guns in peace time but no doubt during war time they made munitions for artillery etc. sometimes you could hear explosions when they were testing. regards Reg
 
Hello Julie,
I have seen 2 photo's of women munitions worker,from the time you speak,I would like to see them again myself but am not sure where I saw them:rolleyes:,it is most likely in a Carl Chin book or reproduced newspaper.
In my family tree is a Kate Anderson who married William Smith,lived in Aston and worked in a munitions factory,I never found out where either.
happy hunting.:)
 
Should also have commented on your question regarding the existence of records. I feel that, regrettably, there is absolutely no chance of any individual Kynoch employee records having survived from 100 years or so ago. Some Company archived material does survive, much of it not very accessible, but it will almost certainly not go into that sort of detail - the Company was just too big and there were so many employees (some 18,000 in the Great War) for any such records to have been retained.

Chris
 
Hi Folks.

In the 1950's there was very large explosion at the Kynocks munition works' I'm not sure if there wan't a death .

Ray
 
There was certainly one in 1973, Ray - see the potted history I have provided a link to previously.

Chris
 
Chris,
The 2 photo's I'm thinking of were groups of women,one taken in c1880 the other during the 1914-18 war.
The difference between the 2 photo's was profound,in the early one the women all looked downtrodden and filled with apathy,in the second they looked confident,and sure of themselves.:)
Shall have to go on another search,for these photo's...watch this space...:rolleyes:

Oh,I think, Deritend was where the photo's were taken.
 
Some family friends grandparents worked at Kynochs on munitions.

A core of trained staff were sent from the Ordnance works at Waltham gunpowder Mills, London to set up the plant (fathers side), and many people during the wars were put into munitions work (mothers side - came from Leeds).
many, such as these, settled and never returned.
I know theat staff also went from London to Poole in Dorset to set up another shell making facility
 
Hi Julie. I too had grandparents working in munitions. They worked at the Electric and Ordnance Accessories Co in Drews Lane Washwood Heath. They made munitions fuses and shell cases. (After the war the site was taken over by Wolseley Motors). My grandparents lived in Lozells and I too assumed they would have worked at Kynochs but they obviously travelled a little way for work. Munitions was commonly known to be well paid work during the war. Unfortunately I've not come across any employee records in my searches. Viv.
 
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