Winifred Nixon Ellis Oral History Tape 1 Side A

title:

Winifred Nixon Ellis Oral History Tape 1 Side A

creator:

Ellis, Winifred "Nicky" (Nixon)

subject:

American Red Cross

description:

Tape 1 of 2, side 1 of 2. By the time World War II had begun, Winifred “Nicky” Ellis had already been involved with the Red Cross, volunteering as a nurse’s aide and taking some home nursing and first aid courses. As the war continued, she wanted to participate and felt that it wasn’t enough to be a secretary at a war industry and the WACs and WAVES were too impersonal. While at the Wilmington, Delaware Red Cross Headquarters, she was told about their overseas club and clubmobile, and joined with parental permission. She was sent to Washington, DC to be inducted in 1944, and got orders to serve in the U.K. shortly after. They landed in Scotland and were sent by train to London, where they learned how to make doughnuts and change tires. From there, she went to the Red Lion Inn in Whittlesford to serve the 8th and 9th Air Force bases nearby. Although they were largely based out of the Inn, they also worked in hospitals and at the nearby cemetery. She was then stationed in Liverpool, serving coffee and donuts to troops who arrived by train to the city and keeping them company as they waited to be shipped off. In October she was told she would be sent to the continent, which she was excited for since she had majored in French and German in college. She made it to Le Havre, France in November and moved through France towards Aachen, Germany to serve the men on convoys coming through to get to the Front in the nearby Kornelimünster. In late December, they moved into Belgium and were billeted places including a prison and an insane asylum. The clubmobilers stayed in Aachen as the troops pushed towards Cologne, and the fighting was severe enough that they served hospital trains en route to Paris, England, and the U.S. for treatment. They also served convoys coming through, making sure they could enjoy the breaks they had from fighting. They followed the troops to Cologne and, from there, towards Leipzig. Before V-E Day, she and her friend Dottie got a break and went to the Riviera, where they spent time biking and relaxing on the beach. After spending their break there, they returned to Leipzig, where they remained on V-E Day. She remembers that for the troops, it wasn’t a day of celebration, but a day of rest. Many in the service also knew they would be sent to the Pacific if they couldn’t get out, which put a damper on some celebrations. She wanted to return to the U.S. at this point, especially because her father was ill, so she requested to return as soon as she could. In the meantime, she was apart of occupation forces in Halle until the Russians took it over. A transcript of this interview is available.

publisher:

Military Women's Memorial Foundation

contributor:

Osbun, Jo | Board, Barbara

date:

1999-08-16

type:

Audio

format:

Cassette

identifier:

51.012.01

source:

NSCD | CLIR - Recordings at Risk

language:

English

relation:

399005

coverage:

World War II (1939-1945)

rights:

Restricted