These are short stories about some of my ancestors. Eventually, in the book, the stories will be more comprehensive and interrelated.
Reading time: 9 min 1 – Miss Grime and her art school friends 1913 Miss Grime had little interest in talk about Germany preparing for war. At art school classes, Jack Handley had spoken about what he saw coming and why he had […]
Reading time: 5 min 2 – Miss Grime ignores the war 1914 The third of August was a sunny Bank Holiday. Mother kept the shop closed so that all three could go to the beach. With thousands of others, they crossed […]
Reading time: 8 min 3 – Gladys Grime’s cousin dies 1915 As winter turned to spring, Gladys noticed the streets of Liverpool had a different bustle. The previous unrest, due to the Suffragettes and the many strikes for fairer wages, […]
Reading time: 7 min 4 – Gladys’s dreams evaporate 1916 At tea-time on a day in March, Gladys’s father read in the Liverpool Echo that Government had introduced conscription. “Will they call you up, Father?” Gladys asked. “No, I’m […]
Reading time: 4 min 5 – Gladys the art teacher 1918 In January, Mr John Grime read in the paper that rationing would soon start. Supplementary rations were available for dockers, tramway men, postmen, policemen and other people engaged in […]
Reading time: < 1 min My grandfather’s story Below is John ‘Jack’ Handley’s story, from 1909 when he was 18 years old, till 1919 when he left the army after World War 1. Read his story in the following 14 short posts.
Reading time: 4 min Chapter 1 Jack argues with his father Jack finds his father’s strict rules far too limiting.