Oral History collection: Lizzie Morgan (born 1894, Overton, boarding house keeper) interviewed by J. Mansel Thomas about Gower life

Track 1. [00:00:54] Gower: Born in Overton in 1894. She was in a private school and became a cook at Borfa House Port Eynon. Hospital opened in 1914 when her sister became cool there and later the speaker took over from her sister at the hospital. Talk about how many people she would cook for. [00:02:54] Gower: Nurses slept in the Bay View. Details of chores carried out from 6. 30am until 9am. [00:04:03] Gower: Details about the Private house being turned into a hospital and wounded soldiers arriving from Cardiff with arms missing, leg and stomach wounds. [00:05:00] Gower: Cleaning of lavatories. Her legs swelling up and the need for 2 hours off every afternoon to reduce the swelling. 2 red cross nurses there. [00:06:48] Gower: Gables Cottage was done by Mr Cooper who parted from his wife. He had 2 sons in the war. Mr Cooper gave Christmas Dinner to the Soldiers and took the soldiers on days out. [00:08:07] Gower: Talk about 213 romances and a fiancée in London who was a boozer. [00:08:42] Gower: Talk of various nationalities in the area around the war time and our local boys being jealous of the Australians as they earned more money than ours did. [00:09:20] Gower: Sand Dunes was where she leaned to ride a bike. Speaker talks about peace day celebrations. [00:11:03] Gower: Food was rationed and this made cooking hard. Discusses the foods she used to prepare. [00:11:42] Gower: Miss Simons taught the speaker to cook and the speaker used to cook in the school in Port Eynon. [00:12:24] Gower: Father of speaker came from Llangenech and her mum fro Oxwich. Her mums maiden name was Grove related to the Groves of Borfa House and the Groves in Horton. Her dad was a farm labourer with William Clement in Port Eynon. [00:13:36] Gower: Speaker had 2 brothers and 2 sisters. Sister died but her brother Jack was deaf and dumb from the age of 2 details of places he went for care and what was the matter with him. [00:15:27] Gower: Village Life revolved around the church and Sunday school. George Tuckers father used to be a teacher there. [00:16:31] Gower: Mrs Tucker from the Beaches had them learning things to read in Chapel. [00:16:59] Gower: Speaker married age 33. As a small child her husband at the time was some what older (20 years) and had wanted to adopt her as his own. Details of his first marriage and his children and how they became a couple. [00:19:27] Gower: After she married she went to live in Swansea he had 2 houses, one in Mai Terrace and one in Windsor Street. [00:19:39] Gower: Talk about her step-son and his split from his wife. [00:20:59] Gower: Wedlake owned a house they wanted to purchase and rent out. Details of Mrs Mumbray's father getting involved and wanting share of rent money. [00:22:39] Gower: Mr Thomas's house wasn't built during the holiday makers time in Horton. The Dingle was built and Perkins next door. Sea Lodge was built by David Tucker and the Gibbs family used to have it. David Tucker also build the Perking family home as well as his own house. Mr Chapman put in all the public pathways. [00:24:36] Gower: George Tucker was born next door to the speakers house/. Talk about what the garden was like with trees etc in it. Edith Tucker was a parlour maid there Edith was wife of George Tucker of Nelson. [00:25:20] Gower: Frogsleap was a new house. Talbot Lodge was a garage and Grey cottage was 1 cottage. [00:26:00] Gower: May 11th 1928 visitors taken in first were Mr Thomas and Dr Morgan of Clydach who came for 5 consecutive years. [00:26:57] Gower: Details on how the visitors were take care of, the jobs that the owners would need to take care of. 16 people on average would visit 12 in front room and 4 in another. [00:28:25] Gower: She got into it by watching others taking in visitors and she then followed suit. Payments for boarding discussed. Families such as the Jenkins's, the Kitsons and the Ashleys came regularly with Professor Coulston and also Dr Edward Short a surgeon and preacher from Bristol. [00:32:32] Gower: Water was carried in in jugs and basins before running water was piped in. [00:33:18] Gower: Husbands chores and duties and a gentleman making her husband a yoke to use which was later given to Earnest Richards. [00:33:40] Gower: cost of having a WC connected. [00:36:29] Gower: Tap was moved from inside of the gate to inside of the house. [00:36:52] Gower: Electricity wasn't put in until after her husband passed away. [00:38:05] Gower: Speaker and her husband used to love going wrecking on the sea front and would walk up to Oxwich point and back. [00:39:37] Gower: During the war there were a lot of sticks washed up that they collected and used for fire wood and mending things. [00:40:37] Gower: Speaker had a Scotty dog that they used to walk and one day they found Jaffa oranges washed up from a boat. She also found a smoke bomb and removed it so the kids didn't get hurt. [00:42:06] Gower: There used to be a lot of mines around. Chat about being evacuated from the house so they could get one of the mines to go off. Talk of Mrs Hillman and Mr Simons. [00:44:11] Gower: Talking about a game of whist and hearing a plane come down near by. [00:45:47] Gower: House windows were smashed with one mine going off and as they couldn't get the same glass they had to make do with another style. [00:46:21] Gower: Speaker used to go to the rocks and pick lava bread to sell in the village for 4 pence a pound Track 2. [00:00:05] Gower: Details of cooking Lava bread. [00:02:00] Gower: Vegetarians often picked Paragon. Recipe detailed for an Irish dish said to be good for invalids. [00:02:50] Gower: Nettles were prescribed and used for patients with water troubles. [00:05:38] Gower: Elizabeth used to go ito Swansea to get herbs for remedies. [00:06:12] Gower: Horton Hall was build around 33 and her husband made up a verse about the hall. [00:08:55] Gower: Elizabeth's husband gave 10 shillings towards the hall. Glyn Richards mentioned as knowing a lot about the Gower. [00:10:24] Gower: Story of Elizabeth's and her sister-in-law May cycling past Jarvis Cottage and colliding with Mrs Jenkins. [00:12:11] Gower: Walk to Penrice, corsets were made by Mrs Griffiths in Bishopston and you'd walk from there to Burton Mill before Swansea became popular. [00:13:06] Gower: Ship wreck the Bluebell. Hepadora. Doosburgh. Story about a ship wreck on the cliffs and the captains wife being rescued and taken to Oxwich Castle. [00:15:03] Gower: Life boat in Oxwich mentioned. [00:15:59] Gower: Simons family spoken of. Sydney Simons was a solicitor and came from Merthyr. Another 2 were doctors. Sydney built Frogsleap. More details on the Simons fore fathers and wives. [00:19:30] Gower: The Simons women took an active part in the women's institute. One sister Maude spoken of fondly and was different to other sisters. [00:22:17] Gower: One of the Simons sons committed suicide. [00:22:40] Gower: Frogsleap was not named by the Simons family. It was originally called Big Enough. [00:23:46] Gower: The Robins Rest had to go after Sydney Simons passed away due to lack of money