We have been to the Lincolnshire Archives twice now and have found some fascinating material that could be included in our piece:

Letters:

Letters from WW1, BBC, 2014

There are several sets of letters from people during WW1. The most interesting ones are from Private Officer Harry Butt of the second Fourth Battalion Lincoln Regiment to Alice Smith which span from 1915-1918. They discuss his whereabouts, what he has been doing and in one place he talks about going ‘over the top’.

Photographs:

A Munitionette, BBC, 2014

Significant photos at the archives are of Tanks, Planes and their construction, with several images of women in factories and ‘Munitionettes‘ (women working in munitions factories). There are some very memorable images, such as Munitionettes pulling a Ruston plane on Monks Road, in Lincoln, to raise support for the troops.

Postcards:

Library of Birmingham, 2014

Not only were there letters at the archives but there were delightful embroidered postcards. Many of these embroideries opened like an envelope and held tiny message cards such as ‘Happy Christmas’ and though they wouldn’t have been made by the soldiers themselves the beauty of the cards certainly wouldn’t have gone unappreciated.

Works Cited:

BBC (2014) Women at war. [online] BBC. Available from http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/worldwarone/hq/hfront2_02.shtml [Accessed 22 February 2014].

BBC (2014) World War One: How did 12 million letters a week reach soldiers? [online] BBC. Available from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25934407 [Accessed 22 February 2014].

Library of Birmingham, The. Silk Embroidered Postcards. [online] The Library of Birmingham. Available from http://www.libraryofbirmingham.com/silkembroideredpostcards [Accessed 22 February 2014].

Lincolnshire County Council (2014) Lincolnshire Archives. [online] Available from http://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/residents/archives/ [Accessed 14 April 2014].

Lincs to the Past (2014) Letters and photographs relating to Private Harry Butt. [online] Available from http://www.lincstothepast.com/Letters-and-photographs-relating-to-Private-Harry-Butt/699691.record?pt=S [Accessed 14 April 2014].

Lincs to the Past (2014) Photograph. [online] Available from http://www.lincstothepast.com/photograph/301780.record?ImageId=113280&pt=S [Accessed 14 April 2014].

Lincs to the Past (2014) Photograph. [online]. Available from http://www.lincstothepast.com/photograph/302778.record?ImageId=114349&pt=S [Accessed 14 April 2014].