Joan Evelyn Byron (née Smith)

Joan Evelyn Smith in 1942.

General Information

First Name(s): Joan Evelyn

Unmarried Surname: Smith

Married Surname: Byron

Date of Birth: 1.1.1921

Place of Birth: Leicester

Date joined WLA: January 1942

Date left WLA: 2.3.1945

WLA number: 60282

Previous occupation: Clerk to W.H.Chamberlin, Tidmas Factory, Alfred Street South, Nottingham. The company manufactured aprons.

Reasons for joining: As per reference given by W.H.Chamberlin on 21 March 1941, Joan ‘is leaving owing to being compelled to take up work of national importance’.

Reasons for leaving: Getting married.

Joan Evelyn Smith pictured in 1942.
Joyce Mawdsley and Joan Evelyn Smith.

Employment & Accommodation

Carried out general farm work, including harvesting in Nottinghamshire. Lived in Hodsock Priory (hostel), along with Joyce Mawdsley.

Joan Mawdsley and Joan Evelyn Smith pictured on the front row.
Hodsock Priory in Nottinghamshire.
Hodsock Priory in Nottinghamshire.
Joan Evelyn Smith pictured with fellow Land Girls and farmers.
From left to right, pictured third is Harold John Byron, fifth is Joan Evelyn Smith and sixth is Joyce Mawdsley. Harold and Joan married on 17 March 1945.

Life after the war

Post-war occupation: Farmer’s wife, managing the home and helping on the land.

Joan Evelyn Smith's discharge documents
Joan Evelyn Smith’s discharge document, signed by Alice Beale, county secretary for Nottinghamshire on 2 March 1945.

Contributor Information

Name: Sandra Orgill

Relationship to Land Girl: Daughter

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