Constance Mottram

Constance Mottram was born on 4 April 1917 in the Barton upon Irwell district, to Charles Mottram and Jessie Mottram (née Rogers). Slater’s 1919 Street Directory shows Charles living at 12 Sandy Lane, Stretford. Constance’s mother was Charles’ second wife and she served as part of the Voluntary Aid Detachment (V.A.D.). Constance had an older half-sister named Winifred Alice Mottram, who was the daughter of Charles’ first wife, Florence Pickles.

Constance entered Victoria Park Girls School, Stretford, in 1922. Her father, Charles Mottram, was the Headmaster of Victoria Park School, Stretford, and worked there from 1905 until his retirement in 1938. The Headmistress was Miss L. Bilkey. In 1924, Constance moved with her family to Llanbedr, Wales. Constance would return to Victoria Park Girls School in 1937 to teach; the school was evacuated to Lymm in August 1939.

On the 1939 England and Wales Register, Constance is shown to be living at 177 Urmston Lane, Stretford, with her father and Eliza Annie Rogers (her grandmother and Charles’ mother in law). Constance’s occupation was written as “Teacher Elementary” and her father, a widower at that time, was “Headmaster Retired”. The register also shows Eliza to be widowed at this time, and she carried out "Unpaid domestic duties".

From October 1942 to July 1944, Constance was the Unit Commander of the Women’s Junior Air Corps, No. 389 Squadron, Unit 29, Stretford.

.................................................................................................................................................................

*At the onset of the Second World War in 1939, the Army Cadet Force, Air Training Corps and Sea Cadets Corps were already established as organisations for boys. At the time, it was common for married women to not be employed outside the home. However, the outbreak of war dramatically changed this and women joined the Women’s Services, Land Army, and worked in factories etc. This still, however, neglected the eagerness of girls who were not old enough to join these organisations.

Eventually the Government realised that something should be done for these younger women and in 1942, Miss Florence Horsburgh, who was the Minister of Education, was tasked with setting up an organisation – the National Association of Training Corps for Girls. Three Corps were formed under this association: the Girls Training Corps (GTC), the Women’s Junior Air Corps (WJAC), and the Girls Nautical Training Corps (GNTC). Cadets were taught Morse code, semaphore signalling, map reading, aircraft recognition, small household repairs like changing a fuse and fitting a tap washer, and carried out regular drills. In the logbook (covering October 1942 to November 1945) for Constance Mottram's Unit, the “Handywoman” session is frequently mentioned.

..................................................................................................................................................................

In 1947, Constance researched and wrote a piece titled The Development of Elementary Education in Stretford 1740-1947 and in the same year she obtained a degree, B.A., from Manchester University. Between 1949 and 1951, Constance lectured at Emergency Training Colleges at Warton near Blackpool. She also delivered lectures in Didsbury, Manchester.

On 17 April 1954, Constance married Douglas Francis at St. Matthew’s Church, Stretford. The reception was held at the Civic Theatre (now the Stretford Public Hall).

In 1963, she moved to Didsbury and retired as a senior lecturer.

Constance passed away at the age of 81; her death was registered in 1998.

Sources

Ancestry Library Edition, ancestrylibraryedition.co.uk

Constance Mottram, The Development of Elementary Education in Stretford 1740-1947. [*held in the Local History Reference Book section at the Trafford Local Studies Centre]

Find My Past, findmypast.co.uk

Girls Venture Corps Air Cadets, ‘History’, < http://www.gvcac.org.uk/about-us/history/>

The National Archives Catalogue [search ‘Constance Mottram’] < https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/>

Women’s Junior Air Corps, Log Book, October 1942-November 1945. [*held in the Trafford Local Studies Archives]