Front Londonderry to London: Identity and sense of place for a protestant northern Irish woman in the 1930s

This article was downloaded by: [University of Leeds] On: 12 November 2014, At: 13:28 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Immigrants & Minorities: Historical Studies in Ethnicity, Migration and Diaspora Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/fimm20 Front Londonderry to London: Identity and sense of place for a protestant northern Irish woman in the 1930s Colin G. Pooley a a Professor of Social and Historical Geography , Lancaster University Published online: 21 Jun 2010. To cite this article: Colin G. Pooley (1999) Front Londonderry to London: Identity and sense of place for a protestant northern Irish woman in the 1930s, Immigrants & Minorities: Historical Studies in Ethnicity, Migration and Diaspora, 18:2-3, 189-213, DOI: 10.1080/02619288.1999.9974974 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02619288.1999.9974974 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/fimm20 http://www.tandfonline.com/action/showCitFormats?doi=10.1080/02619288.1999.9974974 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02619288.1999.9974974 completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. 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Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and- conditions D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions 8 Front Londonderry to London: Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman in the 1930s COLIN G. POOLEY INTRODUCTION This study focuses on a relatively neglected aspect of the history ofmigration from Ireland to England: the movement of young Protestant female migrants from Northern Ireland to London in the 1930s. Although some recent research has examined Protestant female migration from Ireland,1 most studies of Irish migration (and indeed most essays in this volume) focus on flows of Catholic migrants, especially in the nineteenth century.2 It can be suggested that there are a number of reasons for this relative neglect of the movement of Protestants from Northern Ireland to England in the twentieth century. First, the number of such migrants was much smaller than the large volume of Catholic migration from Ireland in the nineteenth century; second, Protestant migrants from Northern Ireland in the 1930s not only moved within the United Kingdom, but were likely to have a strong sense of identity with Britain; third, and following from these points, such migrants were likely to be less visible and more easily assimilated in their new communities. However, there was a long tradition of migration from Northern Ireland to London, and the experiences of such migrants form an important part of the history of Irish migration to England. Examination of this theme allows assessment of both the specific experiences of Protestant Irish women in London, and of some more general themes relating to place identity following migration to a large city. Thanks are due to Mrs Rhona Ward for making the diaries available, allowing them to be copied and agreeing to be interviewed; to the ESRC for funding a research project on the longitudinal analysis of residential histories during which the diaries were initially identified; and to Dr Jean Turnbull who was Research Associate on the ESRC project. D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 190 The Great Famine and Beyond In this chapter the experience of migrating from Northern Ireland to London is explored through the eyes of one individual [R] who moved alone from Londonderry to London at the age of 18 to take work as a typist with the Inland Revenue. Her experiences are recorded in a series of detailed personal (unpublished) diaries which form the basis of the analysis presented in this study. These have been supplemented by one extended interview with the diarist undertaken in 1996 when the respondent was 77 years old. More details of the source, and the problems of using diary and oral evidence, are discussed below. Following presentation of some brief contextual material, and some theoretical and methodological considerations, the analysis is organized around three main themes. First, the study considers the experience of leaving home in Londonderry for the first time and of migrating to London; second, it examines the way in which R built a new life for herself in London and constructed a new place identity; and, third, it assesses the nature and significance of R's identity with Northern Ireland and the way in which this affected her adjustment to life in London. Although the material in this study is based on the experiences of one person, and it is impossible to assess the typicality of such experiences, it is suggested that the themes that emerge have much wider relevance for the migration of Protestant Irish women to England in the twentieth century. CONTEXT: MIGRATION TO LONDON IN THE 1930S Although in the first half of the twentieth century London experienced a net loss of population, as those who were able to moved to expanding suburbs and satellite towns,3 there continued to be a substantial inflow of migrants to London from most parts of the British Isles. Thus in 1931 29.9 per cent of the population of the County of London had been born outside the metropolis. In addition, London had by far the largest labour market area of any British city, drawing its daily workforce from an ever-expanding zone around the home counties.4 Employment opportunities were the main motivation for most people migrating to London in the late 1930s. Although the worst of the depression years were over, economic restructuring of the inter-war years meant that a much wider range of work was available in London's offices and factories than in most other parts of the country.5 There was a long tradition of migration from Ireland to London. In the nineteenth century London contained the largest Irish-born community in Britain,6 and opportunities for employment meant that the capital was also a prominent destination for second-wave Irish D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 191 migration following the partition of Ireland in 1922.7 Young Irish women were especially attracted to work in London in the 1930s, where employment as nurses, in shops, offices and in new automated factories was widespread. Although the bulk of female migration from Ireland to Britain, and especially London, was of Catholic girls (often from the Irish Republic), there was also a steady stream of Protestant migrants from Northern Ireland.8 Thus in 1931 there were 39,229 Irish-born women living in the County of London, forming 1.7 per cent of the total female population. Of these 12.4 per cent had migrated from Northern Ireland, though their religious affiliation is not known.9 Such migrants were often following well-established migration paths, with existing Irish support networks for new migrants in London. However, despite these networks movement away from home and Ireland was a severe break and meant a substantial adjustment to new places and people. Such movement must also be set against the complex political relationship that existed between Britain, the Republic of Ireland and Ulster after partition.10 The inter-war years saw a significant expansion of female employment in the office sector. Although many supervisors' jobs continued to be male, female secretaries and shorthand typists gradually replaced the army of male clerks that had dominated the office sector in the nineteenth century. However, some women who had been employed during the First World War lost their jobs to men returning from the forces." Within the hierarchy of office employment the Civil Service was perceived as an attractive option. The various branches of the Civil Service employed large numbers of office workers in London and elsewhere (around 387,000 non-industrial workers in 1939 of whom one quarter were female), and offered a secure career structure with short hours, good working conditions and reasonable rates of pay. The disadvantages of office employment in the Civil Service included the fact that there was a competitive entry examination and the expectation that further qualifications would be gained, a very hierarchical structure with most employment in large anonymous typing pools, restrictions on the employment of married women, and lower rates of pay than in some private companies.12 The experience of R, migrating from Northern Ireland to London to take employment as a typist in a Civil Service office, was thus typical of many girls who moved to the metropolis from Ireland and other parts of the British Isles in the 1930s. THEORY AND METHOD: SPACE, PLACE AND DIARY EVIDENCE Sense of place is a central concept in social and cultural geography, and is particularly pertinent in the consideration of migration and identity.13 D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 192 The Great Famine and Beyond Many studies have explored different dimensions of the associations between people and places, ranging from highly individual and even personal accounts14 to more generalizable analyses of the meaning of place and place identity.15 All these studies are predicated on the assumption that particular places have meanings which influence everyday decisions and the nature and quality of life of individuals. Most frequently such associations are not articulated or recognized in a formal sense, but provide the taken-for-granted framework which allows individuals to make sense of their everyday lives. Some of the same concepts are also embodied in the work of Bourdieu, in which he explores the notion of 'habitus'.16 This encompasses not only the everyday physical spaces which people inhabit, but the social and cultural worlds which they construct around their lives, including patterns of shopping, social contacts, and the social environment which people inhabit. Such worlds are not static, and during a life course most individuals will move through a series of life worlds, inhabiting different spaces and constructing new everyday environments. Some of the dynamic elements of the life spaces associated with routine patterns of movement are captured in the work of those who have used concepts of time geography to construct and interpret everyday action spaces of individuals,17 while the interpretation of place identity often draws heavily on structuration theory.18 Sense of place may be explored in a number of different contexts and four themes are central to this chapter: analysis of the impact of migration on place association and identity;19 examination of levels of alienation and marginalization experienced by individuals in particular places;20 exploration of the meaning of everyday associations with place;21 and the investigation of feelings of anxiety or fear associated with particular places.22 For obvious reasons, most studies of sense of place have focused on the present. Data are typically collected through a combination of extended interviews and observations over a period of time.23 Literature can provide some insights into place association in the past,24 and for the twentieth century some relevant issues can be explored using oral history.25 Such studies are often linked to concepts of community development.26 However, as all oral historians recognize, recollections from the past are filtered through many different lenses and what an 80-year-old respondent tells of life 60 years previously may be very different from the feelings and associations that were experienced at the time.27 The contemporary written record, including diaries, commonplace books, life histories and autobiographies, can provide some clues to sense of place in the past, recording feelings and perceptions at the time rather than relying on memory. However, most D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 193 surviving evidence comes from a small and atypical elite group who were both literate and leisured, and often had a particular reason for putting their thoughts in writing.28 Historical geographers and others have concentrated especially on the meaning of landscape in the past, expressed through the literature and art of the time,29 and on the genre of travel writing.30 Though revealing about one group of influential opinion, such studies tell little about the importance of place in the lives of ordinary people. The best glimpses into the everyday lives of relatively ordinary people come through rarely surviving diaries, autobiographies and life histories written at the time, though these too can only reflect the lives of a literate minority amongst the working class.31 As with accounts written by the rich and famous, we must also question why such accounts were kept, what the intended audience was, and whether the writer was trying to convey a particular message.32 However, in comparison with autobiographies and other writing, the analysis of diaries has received very little critical attention.33 Analysis presented in this study is based on one set of diaries covering the period 1937 to 1942. They form an extraordinarily rich account of everyday life for a young woman who migrated from Londonderry (Northern Ireland) to London (England) and of her adjustment to life in the metropolis prior to and during the Second World War. The validity of the interpretation presented obviously depends on the reliability and content of the source. The diarist (R) was born into a Protestant family in Londonderry in 1919, and in total her diaries cover the period 1932-59. The most detailed entries run from 1937 to 1942, during which time R migrated alone from Londonderry to London to take work as a typist with the Inland Revenue, having taken the Civil Service typing examinations in Ireland. This is the period analysed in the study, covering the process of migration and adjustment to life in London of a young, single, Protestant Irish woman between the ages of 18 and 23. In total the diaries run to some 19 volumes, with 1938 alone (the year she moved to London) covering four large hand written volumes. The level of detail included in the diaries between 1937 and 1942 is extraordinary. They were clearly written up each evening, and record almost everything that she did during the day, including where she went, whom she was with, what food she ate (and how much it cost), what books she read, the films she saw, and her thoughts, hopes and fears. In particular they provide a vivid insight into the process of migration, her feelings on leaving home, and her adjustment to life and work in London. It is probably not uncommon for a young woman to keep a personal diary, but these records are unusual in their detail and consistency over D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 194 The Great Famine and Beyond a prolonged period, in the fact that they have survived some 60 years and have been made available for historical analysis, and in the degree to which they provide information on the process of migration and adjustment to life in London which is, to some degree, generalizable to a larger population. The diaries were clearly written as a personal document, with no expectation that they would ever be read by anyone else and, as far as can be ascertained, factual information in the diaries is accurate. Some contextual details have been added from an extended interview with the diarist conducted in her own home in 1996, and this is also used to probe some diary evidence in more detail. However, in this paper most emphasis is given to the diary entries which record R's feelings about life in London at the time, rather than her later reflections. All references to individuals have been anonymized in the following analysis, but everything else is reported as recorded in the diary or interview. LEAVING HOME: THE EXPERIENCE OF MOVING FROM LONDONDERRY TO LONDON Although R was the eldest child in the family, and the first to leave home, the expectation and experience of moving to London at the age of 18 seemed an unremarkable occurrence. R attended a small Commercial College in Londonderry and worked towards her Civil Service typing exams taken in September 1937. There had thus been a long period of expectation and planning leading up to her eventual movement away from home, and it is clear from the diary that she had many friends and acquaintances who either had followed, or were planning to follow, the same path. However, as she waited for information about where she would work she naturally experienced a degree of nervousness and uncertainty: She (a friend) is crossing on Saturday night. She is in Bloomsbury Law Courts. I wonder where I will be. I am feeling vaguely nervous because I have heard no news since the medical examination. (Diary, 14 Jan. 1938) R's parents made arrangements about accommodation in London, contacting the Civil Service Association about hostels, writing to some boarding houses directly, but eventually getting a room in a hostel in Earls Court which was recommended and booked by the daughter of family friends who had already moved from Londonderry to London. The network of contacts which already existed in London clearly gave practical advantages and reassured R about her move. Reflecting on D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 195 her first move from home in the interview R felt that she had really given very little thought to leaving home, that she passively accepted what had been planned for her by her parents, and that she was not unduly troubled by the thought of leaving. ... nobody ever asked me, nobody asked me at all what I wanted to do. To be perfectly honest I didn't have any great thoughts, any great ambitions ... Whatever they said was the right thing. I wouldn't have dreamed I wasn't going to do it. ... I didn't do anything. I was a passive thing. ... Oh dear. It is difficult. I think I just went. I'd got to go so I just went. (Interview, 1996) Although the move had been planned for some time, and all practical aspects were taken care of by her parents or by friends in London, according to the diary entries the actual act of leaving home did cause R some distress. She had a strong attachment to home - especially to her mother - and to Londonderry, and the few days before her departure on 28 January were spent visiting friends and saying goodbye. She was particularly upset that her father, not her mother, was to accompany her to London: I heard for the first time that Daddy was going over instead of Mamma with me, and I felt awfully angry and weepy because Mamma wasn't going to come with me. (Diary, 26 Jan. 1938) However, in the interview R expressed the view that she did not really think of travelling to London as leaving home, more as a temporary adventure, because it was intended that her sister [L] would join her in London and that she always had the option of coming back. In fact, as is shown below, she returned infrequently and made London her permanent home. I suppose I thought that L was coming after, and it wasn't going to be for so long, and that I would be able to come back. I suppose in a kind of way I didn't really think of it as leaving ... curious really ... what did I think? ... I think it was a big adventure. (Interview, 1996) The journey by train and ferry from Londonderry, via Belfast and Heysham to London, was undertaken with R's father and another girl from Londonderry (who was also going to work at the Inland Revenue) and her father. Thus, not only was she accompanied by her father during her migration, but she also had the company of a friend who was going to work in the same part of the Civil Service. R's first impressions were dominated by the size and bustle of London: D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 196 The Great Famine and Beyond The road to Earls Court was very interesting. Full of people, buses, cars and great big shops. (Diary, 29 Jan. 1938) In the interview she recalled similar impressions, but also noted the extent to which she felt a stranger in a large anonymous city, very different from the relatively close knit community which she was used to in Londonderry: Terrific size and great distance ... And another thing was that nobody knew you ... we were a pair of innocents abroad, oh dear, and we arrived at this hostel and knocked at the door, and nobody rushed to open it, and when we got in you felt as though you were definitely a stranger, nobody offered you a cup of tea. Do you know that. I thought this was very peculiar. You sort of introduced yourself and said a few words, and there was no tea. (Interview, 1996) However, her introduction to the capital was eased by the fact that her father stayed in London over the weekend (though not in the same accommodation as R), and they visited friends in London and relations in Tonbridge (presumably to introduce R to people who might be of help to her). For her first journey to work (from Earls Court to Holborn) she was accompanied by the same friend who had organized her hostel accommodation, and she discovered that she was to work in an office adjacent to one in which the friend who had accompanied her from Londonderry was employed. Given the network of contacts which existed, and the protected world of Civil Service employment and a residential hostel for girls, it is not surprising that despite her initial misgivings R settled easily into life in London. She seemed not to miss her home unduly, though this was not true of all girls in the hostel. Thus when she had been in London a little over five weeks, R remarked: The new girl S had an attack of homesickness at breakfast, she had one yesterday too. I wouldn't like to be homesick. (Diary, 9 March 1938) However, in April R's mother visited her in London, and she was very upset when her mother left again. In July R used her annual leave to return home to Londonderry and it was at this time that her separation from home and her continued identity with her family in Londonderry returned most strongly. When she was leaving after two weeks in Northern Ireland she wrote: Round about this time I lost control of my feelings and felt altogether dreadful. I said goodbye to everyone. ... It was awful D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 197 having to go away. ... I felt like weeping when I said goodbye to Daddy. (Diary, 24 July 1938) Whilst she was caught up in her everyday life in London R appeared not to miss home unduly, but renewed contact brought back memories which suggest that she had not yet transferred her place identity to London. However, by September, after R had been in London under nine months, her attitude changed and she had clearly begun to gain a much stronger place identity with London despite the threat of war: Nearly all the Irish and Scotch girls say that if there is a war they are going home. Did you ever hear of such a cowardly lot! There are, however, a few people like myself who would stay here. (Diary, 14 Sept. 1938) I wonder why all the girls here are simply dying to get home for good? I see only a very few advantages and a whole lot of disadvantages. The chief is, I think, that I would not be able to do exactly as I like. (Diary, 15 Sept. 1938) In January 1939, less than a year after she arrived in London R heard about a possible transfer to Belfast, but decided not to apply. She clearly valued her independence and, although retaining close contact with family, had transferred her place identity to London which she now viewed as her home. This is reinforced by comments made in the interview: Oh after a year or so. When the war came I never though of going home. I don't remember anyone at home saying why aren't you coming home ... I would have said I was beginning to become a native, yes, I liked London. (Interview, 1996) R's movement to London, and her initial adjustment to life in London, was made relatively easy by the planning and help which she received from family and friends, and by the fact that she was one of many similar girls, including others from her home town in Northern Ireland, who underwent the same experience. Although initially concerned about the size and apparent unfriendliness of the capital, she only expressed homesickness when there were particular events (such as a visit home) to remind her of the distance from her home and family. However, within nine months she had effectively become a Londoner, pouring scorn on similar girls who wished to return home, and clearly determined to build an independent life in London. This experience fits with that demonstrated in other studies, where the D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 198 The Great Famine and Beyond importance of family and friendship networks in the initial stages of female migration were often important, but where place loyalty was quite quickly transferred to a new location.34 The implications of this process of adjustment for R's identity with Northern Ireland are explored in more detail below. CONSTRUCTING A NEW PLACE IDENTITY IN LONDON One indicator of increasing ease and confidence in a new location is the range of places visited and activities undertaken. It is to be expected that, initially, the everyday action space of a new migrant will be restricted, but that it will extend over time as the individual becomes familiar with and confident in the city. The life world of R in London was relatively wide ranging, but also followed a constraining routine which meant that most of her journeys were through and to familiar places. She walked frequently, used public transport for longer distance travel in the city, rarely felt scared or alienated - though commented on the peculiarities of new locations - and did not mind travelling around London alone, although many of her trips were in the company of friends. The everyday action space of R during her first three years in London is shown in Figures 8.1 and 8.2. She moved lodgings in February 1939 from Earls Court in West London to Canonbury in North London, and these two maps represent the places visited and recorded in her diary whilst resident in these two areas. Clearly the majority of R's daily activities were centred around her home, workplace, central London tourist attractions, cinemas and theatres. Not surprisingly, the location of some of these activities changed when she moved lodgings. Thus after moving to Canonbury, she transferred her evening classes in shorthand typing to a college at Highbury much closer to her new home. She also attended a different church and her regular walks were taken in different parks. However, other activity patterns overlapped and many of the places she visited whilst living in West London continued to be part of her action space when she moved further away. This partly reflects an increasing range of activities and locations because she had been in London longer, but also indicates the importance of certain contacts and activities. Thus she regularly visited a friend in Ealing (the family she was introduced to by her father when she first arrived in London), and with her went to places such as Kew Gardens and Richmond Park. When her travels round London took her to a new area she always expressed interest in the character of the area, and was usually surprised by how pleasant it was. The reality of visiting an area usually D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 FIGURE 8.1 PLACES IN LONDON VISITED BY R WHILST LIVING IN EARLS COURT, Ñ î . Northfields _ - S ) ' • Richmond Hampton 1 Court 1 I JANUARY Hampsteacr» Heath Hyde Park •Earts • Court /•—S "•*•' ' ' f 1 1 * • / ] t Hammer- • . / / Vvm* / Putney • Wimbledon Common 1938-FEBRUARY Highgate • * • * • Regents . • P a r k m Holbom i Battersea 1939 Canonbuiy t x East India Dock Greenwich Home: Eardley Crescent Work: Turnstile House, Holbom 0 1 2 3 4 5 Kilometers FIGURE 8.2 PLACES IN LONDON VISITED BY R WHILST LIVING IN CANONBURY, FEBRUARY 1939-DECEMBER 1940 N î " Stanmore Northfields ( r— Park • Bamet ' Chlngford . ._ . Highgate' . • * • Hagipsfëad • I .• ' Heath" \ | Ä . .Reg"en.s . V C a n o n b u r y Park yf " * - . • . . . - . ' . • East India Hyds " ;. . " v . \ HoTbom . Dock -V * • - • •?/ ^ ~ ^ Z j Woolwich I 1 / / " * .Battersea Greenwich NC~- JJ t ' Home: Canonbury Park (Feb. 1939-Sept.1939) t 2 Home: Canonbury Square (Sept. 1939t) X, Work: Turnstile House, Holbom X2 Work: Wobum Place (from June 1939) 0 1 2 3 4 5 Kilometers D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 200 The Great Famine and Beyond turned out to be better than the reputation she thought it had. Thus in May 1938 she ventured into the East End for the first time to visit the East India Dock: The route there is most interesting and you do see some queer looking people. There is one place I noticed which was very Jewish. It was all not at all like what I thought the East End was. It is very nice indeed in parts. (Diary, 7 May 1938) Over a year later she took her sister along the Mile End Road and wrote in her diary: L did not think the E. End looked very slummy. It was a main road we were on however, and it looked much the same as anywhere else. (Diary, 27 Aug. 1939) Much of R's everyday action space was routine, passing through familiar places which she scarcely thought about, and remarking only when she did something different (even if trivial). This suggests that she was comfortable with the environment through which she moved, and there is no suggestion in the diary that she ever felt threatened or even uncomfortable. This feeling of safety was also expressed in the interview: I was quite safe. It never crossed my mind for a minute that I was not safe. The only time I thought I was unsafe was once on the Strand when a man was trying to pick me up. He bought me an ice cream, he was being, you know, very friendly. I was a bit nervous then. (Interview, 1996) The spatial pattern of R's life world, ranging over quite a wide area but in a constrained and regulated way, was matched by the pattern of her social activity. Inevitably, the range of activities she undertook increased as she grew older and lived in London longer, but for most of the time her life had a very regular pattern to it. Until September 1939, when she moved to new lodgings where there were male lodgers, all her company was female and most outings consisted of walks, swimming and ice skating, visits to the shops, cinema, theatre, church, and attendance at night classes. She had a small circle of close friends, including her sister who joined her in London for most of 1939, and these were the people with whom she shared most activities. Even after her sister had left London, and R had more male company, the basic pattern of activities barely changed. She noted the first (and only, according to her diary) time she went to a public house with the group of young men in her lodgings in March 1940, and her only regular D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 201 company consisted of people she either knew before she came to London or people with whom she lodged or worked. Inevitably the outbreak of war had an effect on R's life, though initially very little changed. She seemed to enjoy the enhanced sense of community which she perceived in the run up to and during air raids, she volunteered as an air raid shelter marshal and initially found the air raids themselves exciting rather than frightening. She noted how she enjoyed herself talking to people in the shelter when there was an air raid warning, and even when a bomb fell close by she described the event as 'great excitement' (Diary, 24 August 1940). However, although there was still an element of excitement, by September 1940 she was finding the air raids tiresome and frightening. She described one particularly bad raid as a 'Great but dreadful night' (Diary, 29th December 1940), and on another occasion was 'nearly scared out of my wits by bombs' (Diary, 13 September 1940) and admits to having a weep. During the worst of the raids her activity pattern was reduced slightly, though she continued to go out regularly for walks and to the cinema or theatre, and even as late as 1942 she still got a thrill from fire fighting following a raid: Lovely day of putting out fires, crawling about and holding branches from hydrants and motor pumps. Beautiful time. (Diary, 16 March 1942) In summary, the life world which R quickly established in London was based around a limited number of reasonably wide ranging social contacts which took her over a wide area of the city, but usually through familiar routes. She seemed unconstrained by fear, but her life took on a routine in which mundane locations and activities were clearly important. In some ways the war added excitement to her life, though this was not always welcome. The importance of local communities is emphasized in past surveys of urban life,35 and in some contemporary comment on life in wartime London.36 However, R did not seem to be attached to a particular local community which could be spatially defined. Rather, hers was a community of association,37 in which her contacts with a clearly-defined group of friends were important, and through which her activities took on a reasonably widespread but clearly-defined and routinized pattern. The extent to which this life world was constructed around an identity of Irishness, and contact with other migrants from Northern Ireland, is discussed below. D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 202 The Great Famine and Beyond SENSE OF IDENTITY AND CONTACTS WITH NORTHERN IRELAND People can be a part of many different communities, not necessarily spatially defined, and these support mechanisms can be used for varied purposes. Although R appeared to settle quickly in London, she also had a network of contacts elsewhere in England which to some extent provided those aspects of life which she missed most by being away from home. She also returned home at least once every year, and these visits were clearly important to her. Thus during her first three years in London (1938-40) she returned to Ireland on four occasions, visited an aunt in Tonbridge (Kent) six times, an aunt in Kettering (Northants) on four occasions, yet another aunt in West Hartlepool (Durham) once and her sister who was lodging in Morecambe (Lancashire) once. Although she undertook such visits each year, their frequency was greatest in 1938 when she had least attachment to London, and by 1940 her most frequent contacts outside London were not with relatives, but were visits to the home of a female friend she had made in London. Throughout the period of her diary she wrote regularly to her parents, her sister (when she was not in London) and to other relatives and friends. An extended network of communication and contact was an important but not central part of her life. Visits to home in Londonderry and to relatives or friends outside London fulfilled a number of functions for R. Most importantly, they enabled her to experience aspects of family life which she missed by being alone in London, and enabled her to behave again as a child rather than the responsible adult she was required to be whilst working and living in London. Thus in June 1938 R spent the Whitsun holiday with her aunt, uncle and cousin in Kettering. Their activities were mundane, but clearly enabled R to revisit aspects of her life which she had left behind when she moved to London: After tea Uncle H. took us all to the park [Wicksteed Park]. Here S and I had two rides on a water chute. It was thrilling. Then we went for a ride on the train right round the park. After this Uncle H took us out in a rowing boat. ... He rowed us up to the end of the lake and then let me try to row... It was awfully nice. (Diary, 4 June 1938) Similarly, when R returned home to Londonderry in July 1938,, she slipped immediately back into the family life she had left behind. She visited a range of friends, had a dental appointment in Londonderry and went on holiday with her family to the coast just across the border in the Irish Republic. Her comment on seeing her family was simply: D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 203 They look the same and so does everyone else. L didn't look very different even though her hair is cut. (Diary, 9 July 1938) Her comments on Londonderry also emphasize familiarity with the place, though she does remark on its size in relation to London. She also comments on mundane changes and immediately falls back into everyday activities: Londonderry is the same as usual. It seems quiet and a bit dusty. Everything appears smaller. The paths on the bridge have been done with pinky asphalt and the lamp posts done in aluminium paint. I went to make my appointment with the dentist. (Diary, 15 July 1938) Other visits were simply used to relax in a way which she could not do so easily in the girls' hostel in which she lived in Earls Court. Thus in December 1938 she spent Christmas with her aunt and family in West Hartlepool. Here she was able to unwind in comfortable surroundings in the company of people with whom she felt totally relaxed: On Monday P and I did not wake up until near dinner time. We had a cup of tea and bread before we got our dinner. After dinner we sat in the sitting room. I read a book and the others talked and slept. It was very nice and warm and comfortable. We ate nuts, fruit and chocolates at intervals. After tea there was more card playing, we had the wireless on and it was very nice. (Diary, 27 Dec. 1938) Although R was not unhappy in her hostel in London, the sense of warmth, comfort and family-based security which emerged from diary entries on her visits to relatives was usually missing from her life in London. However, apart from seeing her immediate family, Londonderry and Northern Ireland did not seem to have any particular association for her. She was just as happy visiting relatives in England and it seems likely that people rather than places were centrally important to R's life at this time. Although R continued to visit relatives in Ireland and England, by 1940 such visits had become less important. This was partly because R was now living in lodgings which provided a more secure home, but also because a close female friend (Miss W) began to replace her relatives. Thus in 1940 R accompanied Miss W on seven occasions when she visited her family home in a village in Hertfordshire. R was welcomed into the home and again valued the relaxed company and family life which was evident. As the intensity of bombing in London increased, these visits to Hertfordshire for the weekend become more D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 204 The Great Famine and Beyond important as a way of escaping from London's air raids. It is clear that Miss W's family home provided a haven of rest and relaxation. For instance, on her first visit R wrote: After a large tea ... we all sat by the fire. Miss W took me around the farm and showed me the cows etc before tea. Everyone sat round the fire including several dogs. P is just as I had imagined her and so is B. I had a big room to myself. I had 2 hot water bottles. (Diary, 20 Jan. 1940) Although infrequent, contact with family and friends outside London was clearly important to R. In some ways these visits acted as a safety valve: as an 18 year old allowing her to temporarily shed some of the responsibilities of an adult; and during the war giving some respite from bombing in the capital. Although a sense of warmth and comfort was not entirely absent from the record of R's home life in London, it rarely came through with the intensity shown on these visits. Places such as Kettering and the Hertfordshire village she visited clearly had a strong attraction to R and she developed a strong place identity with these locations. Such visits provided aspects of her life which were missing in London and, especially, became a surrogate home compensating for the fact that she could only rarely visit her family in Londonderry. They also provided contrasts with her life in London: a rural environment rather than a large city; the opportunity to play rather than work; family life instead of the company of relative strangers in a girls' hostel. As families have become more spatially dispersed in the twentieth century, and the nature of kinship ties changed,38 such patterns of interaction with friends and relatives, and the functions which they served, must have been an important part of many people's lives. The diary mostly records the factual details of R's life, but through diary entries and the later interview, we can also begin to get glimpses into a wider cultural space: the extent to which R had and maintained an identity as a Northern Irish woman. There is a massive literature on issues of ethnic and national identity in general,39 and on Irish identity in particular.40 There are obviously many possible dimensions to Irish identity. They may relate to place association with the island of Ireland, to religious affiliation, to political beliefs, to particular customs, literature or music, or simply to a feeling of belonging which cannot be specifically defined. All of these may be affected by distance from Ireland, but London had a large Irish community in the 1930s and, as we have seen, R maintained contact with her family in Ireland. As a Protestant from Northern Ireland it is to be expected that R would have D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 205 had a much stronger identity with Britain than Catholic Irish migrants. To a large extent this is borne out by evidence in the diary, but there are other ways in which she seemed to maintain a degree of Irishness in her life. In her diary R often commented on people and events in London that were connected with or reminded her of Ireland, irrespective of whether they were associated with Northern Ireland, the Irish Republic, Catholics or Protestants. Thus she notes the number of Irish girls in the hostel, records listening to a band playing Irish airs at Marble Arch and even found an IRA speaker at Hyde Park Corner 'amusing'. Her perception of class differences within the Irish population were at least as important as religious differences. From her middle-class perspective, she commented on two new girls that arrived in the hostel: Two girls from Kerry arrived today. They have come to London without any situations. They are going to be housemaids. (Diary, 25 Feb. 1938) Although not making any judgements, she was clearly comparing their situation with her own when she arrived in London with a post in the Civil Service. On another occasion she commented on fellow travellers on the train to Heysham on her way back to Ireland for a holiday: I found [a seat] in a compartment in which there were two lots of Irish people and I think two English or refined Irish men. The Irish people seemed very Irish to me. They seemed very low class to me. (Diary, 8 July 1938) However, she also had clear views on the political and religious situation in Ireland which she was prepared to give when necessary. Her father was committed to the Presbyterian Church and the Orange Order in Londonderry (though her mother was Church of Ireland), and although at one level feeling an association with most things Irish, and differentiating her degree of association according to class affiliations, underlying this was a clear belief in both the Protestant church and the Union with Britain. She commented that her father got involved in an argument about the 'Irish question' on the train from Heysham when he first brought R to London, and on several occasions she expressed her own views: Miss W. started about an United Ireland so I went against her as vigorously and as vehemently as I could. (Diary, 18 Oct. 1938) After lunch I wasted a bit of time because there was an argument D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 206 The Great Famine and Beyond on about whether Northern Ireland would join with the Free State. Piary, 27 April 1939) She [J. at evening classes] gave a little talk on the 'I.R.A.' as the topic of the week. Unfortunately she nor anybody else never touched the whole point of the subject which is just religion. (Diary, 13 March 1939) However, R did not reject all things Catholic. When asked at interview to talk about her life in Londonderry before migration she emphasised that her family had many Catholic friends and that there was no open hostility: Yes we had Catholic friends. The butcher ... were great friends of ours. Mrs Q was a very nice woman, and her daughter H taught us music.... There was no difference. ... And there were Catholic friends of Daddy's, someone who had been in the war, ... a soldier ... And there were the Ds ... were the Ds Roman Catholic? ... you know, they were such nice people we, we were such friends with them, it never really crossed my mind ... I wouldn't really like to say. It wasn't important.... Everyone knew you were Roman Catholic or Protestant, but we didn't hate each other at all. (Interview, 1996) Most notably, she developed quite a close friendship with one of the male lodgers in Canonbury Square, and the friendship continued after she discovered that he trained as a Roman Catholic priest (though he did not enter the priesthood). During this friendship she visited Brompton Oratory (with her sister), and purchased a book called 'Catholic answers to Protestant questions'. She was clearly keen to learn more about Catholicism. However, she also realized that there was no future in the romance: S. and I had some serious talks together. I don't think I am as fond of him as I was - dreadful as it is to relate. Anyway, there is also the religious question on which neither of us will compromise so I think this little romance is done for. I think I will have him only as a friend in future. (Diary, 10 Jan. 1940) For much of her time in London R attended a Church of Scotland church in South Kensington, describing it as 'a queer mixture of Church of Ireland and Presbyterian church' (Diary, 6th February, 1938) and when asked at interview whether as someone from Northern Ireland she had any identity with the island of Ireland she was quite emphatic: D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 207 No. Only in so far as I came from Northern Ireland. But I would never have thought of myself as being Irish, not really. I would have though of myself as having Scottish connections. You know I went to Scottish dancing at St. Columbo's in S. Ken. and I used to go around with a Scottish girl. I thought I was nearer to the Scottish than the Southern Irish. I always regarded the Southern Irish as foreigners.... Well, I thought I was British, I thought I was English. I considered myself English, I was British, I wasn't Irish. Not really. Coming from Northern Ireland I was British. (Interview, 1996) R's relationship with Irishness is thus complex and somewhat confused. At one level (and especially in the diary evidence) she seemed to identify with most things Irish, irrespective of whether they were Catholic or Protestant, North or South. However, both her religion and her politics enabled her to fit easily into British society, and she had strong views on class differences within Ireland which clearly interacted with her political and religious beliefs. It can be suggested that class was more important than religion or ethnicity in structuring R's identity. Her Irish identity seemed neither to dominate her life, nor to change appreciably during her first four years in London, suggesting that it represented an identity with which she herself was comfortable, and which was easily transferable from a middle class Protestant community in Londonderry to London. There is no evidence that she ever met any hostility in London associated with her Irishness and she seemed to be able to retain a degree of Northern Irish identity whilst also seeing herself (unsurprisingly) as solidly British and identifying with both the Scots and English. When asked at interview whether she experienced any unfriendliness or anti-Irish feeling in London she was again emphatic: No, never. I have never, ever found that anybody has ever been. Most of them have admired my accent actually. They have always said what a nice accent. Nobody's ever said what a dreadful Irish accent ... If anybody has ever said do you come from Ireland, I said yes I come from Northern Ireland. (Interview, 1996) Such responses are not unexpected in the context of the relationship between Britain and Northern Ireland. However, they do demonstrate a complex set of identities, structured by class and community as well as by religion and ethnicity; the ability to identify to some degree with both Ireland and England; and slight differences in emphasis in the diary evidence written in the 1930s and the interview responses in the 1990s. Whereas the diary records many comments relating to Ireland, D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 208 The Great Famine and Beyond in the interview R distances herself from Ireland and identifies more strongly with England: presumably the result of almost 60 years residence in England. Such relatively invisible, but still important, levels of cultural identity must have been experienced by many migrants from Northern Ireland to English cities. What is most notable is that R made little apparent attempt to meet with other girls from Northern Ireland who were living in London. Although when she is about to leave Londonderry she comments on other local girls who have gone to London, with the exception of her sister there is little mention of contact with other Northern Ireland girls once she is in London. Her social life was centred around those with whom she worked and lodged. R's sense of identity and community was thus very different from that ascribed to most Catholic Irish migrants to Britain.41 CONCLUSION In many ways R was in a privileged position compared to many migrants from Ireland to Britain in the 1930s, and in comparison with many other London residents. She had the support of a relatively affluent family, all arrangements for migration, work and initial accommodation in London were made for her, she had a good education and a secure if mundane job paying a reasonable wage (she earned £110s. (£1.50p.) per week when she started in 1938, rising to £2 10s. (£2.50p.) by July 1940). Her social and cultural background meant that she moved easily between the different worlds of Londonderry and London, and she had few economic, social or cultural constraints to her activities in London. However, the social and spatial world in which she moved was constrained by other factors including her gender, age, relatively sheltered upbringing, and limited horizons and ambitions. The world in which she lived was, for the most part, a secure and protected world with well-defined parameters. It is clear that her activities were carefully monitored whilst she was in the girls' hostel, initially her companions were entirely female, and all her later male friends were people with whom she shared lodgings and with whom she almost always associated in a large mixed group. Many other Protestant girls who migrated from Northern Ireland to London must have shared similar experiences. The relative insularity of the life led by R is illustrated by her attitude to the world events surrounding the looming disaster of war with Germany. Thus between July and September 1939 she wrote: D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 Identity and Sense of Place for a Protestant Northern Irish Woman 209 I don't know how the crisis is getting on but I believe there is one on about Danzig. I expect it will pass bye [sic] like the rest. I don't want my summer holidays spoiled. (Diary, 3 July) All we girls in the office discussed the current crisis. Some said that it was a bigger one than the last but I am afraid I am only thinking vaguely about this crisis. (22 Aug. 1939) The whole topic of conversation was war and what we would have to do and how exciting it would be but how uncomfortable too. At 4.20 L rang me up to tell me that we could not go swimming as owing to the National Emergency they had to work overtime. I felt jolly angry at the old crisis upsetting everything. (24 Aug. 1939) There were the usual discussions about whether there was going to be a war or not. I have given it up in despair. (26 Aug. 1939) We had a nasty surprise when we discovered that we were really and truly at war with Hitler. (3 Sept. 1939) For much of the run-up to the war she was only vaguely aware of national events, and only considered them important when they interfered with her normal routine. It is impossible to assess the typicality of the life recorded by R's diaries and subsequent interview, but it sheds light on the way in which a migrant such a R had to come to terms with not only a new environment but also the conflicting identities of Irishness and Britishness. Through the entries in her diary, the significance of people and places is revealed in the context of mundane and everyday activities which normally go unrecorded. The life of R was, for the most part, secure, well-ordered and restricted by parameters which were set by herself and her upbringing. She clearly enjoyed life most of the time, she very rarely expressed unhappiness, had few genuine crises and was rarely afraid. Her life took her through a well-structured sequence of places with which she was familiar, but what also emerges is the way in which places took on additional meaning depending on the people that were in them. Thus, most of her everyday activities were undertaken with friends, and it is impossible to disentangle associations with place from associations with people. Similar effects have been demonstrated in contemporary studies of individual senses of place,42 but rarely has this theme been explored in the past. Most studies of Irish identity and of Irish communities in Britain emphasize the distinctiveness and cohesiveness of such D ow nl oa de d by [ U ni ve rs ity o f L ee ds ] at 1 3: 28 1 2 N ov em be r 20 14 210 The Great Famine and Beyond communities, and associated issues of marginality and exclusion. Analysis of R's experience of moving from Londonderry to London emphasizes both the significance of mundane associations with people and place, factors important for most people irrespective of ethnicity or culture, and the subdued but contested nature of identity which could arise in such situations. 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