NEWHAVEN LAUNDRY STAFF PARTY

A Christmas party and a royal celebration.

By Myrtle Foard , Heather Allen and Ray Woolven

Our aunt, Mrs Annie Bundock, came to Newhaven with her husband, sister Miss Ruth Langdon and her niece, Miss Ethel Williams, (later our mother Mrs Ethel Woolven) and bought the laundry in approximately 1925. Miss Ruth Langdon worked as an ironer, using an old gas iron, and our mother was a packer. There was a coal fired boiler for which the coal was delivered around the alley behind the laundry right through the war years when it was managed by our father Mr Arthur Woolven, when they had to do all the laundry for the troops in the town. Then, in approximately 1946 she sold it to her friend Mrs Miles. They owned it for a short while but they sold it to Mr & Mrs Armitage.

The first photograph shows Mr & Mrs Bundock in the middle front row with Miss Langdon next to Mr Bundock and our mother next to Mrs Bundock.  This was taken at a Laundry Christmas party which was held annually at the Sheffield Hotel. We are sorry we do not know the date of this.

The second photograph is taken outside the Laundry with Mr & Mrs Armitage in the middle front row and our Mother and Mrs Bundock standing on the extreme right of the photograph.

I'm assuming that the ER banners indicate that the second photo was taken in the Queen's coronation year, 1953. Is this correct? - Andy, Editor.