The Aycliffe Royal Ordnance Factory - Aycliffe Angels
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Why were they called 'The Aycliffe Angels'?
What did the Factory manufacture?
Plans and Photos of the Factory (1940s)
TIMELINE of the Factory & Workers
People killed in accidents at Aycliffe
Workers Houses and Accommodation
350 Houses on Secret Estate in Darlington
Winston Churchill visits the Aycliffe Factory (1942)
Mrs Dillon - Senior ROF worker who received a medal
Photo Gallery 1 - (Admin Staff)
Photo Gallery 2 - (Production Staff)
Photo Gallery 3 - (Individual Angels)
Photo Gallery 4 - (ROF site in 1945)
Photo Gallery 5 - (Other Photos/Staff)
Photo Gallery 6 - (ROF Fire Brigade)
Documents and Certificates etc...
What the factory looks like today
What the factory looks like today (more photos)
Honour at last, thanks to The Northern Echo
Recent News about The Aycliffe Angels
Contact Information for Aycliffe Angels - Homefront Heroes
Links for History of The Aycliffe Angels
Guestbook
Mail Form
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Racehorse trainer responds to appeal - Northern Echo June 2004
 | Racehorse trainer Denys Smith pictured left, in recent times and Miss Ruth Vickery, M.B.E. pictured right, at Aycliffe ROF in the 1940s.
Legendary racehorse trainer Denys Smith has added his wartime memories to a book paying tribute to the women who worked at a North-East munitions factory.
North East researcher, Andrew Hutton, is re-discovering the history of the Aycliffe Angels and the Aycliffe Royal Ordnance Factory.
An appeal for information in The Northern Echo has unearthed reams of material.
Among those who got in touch was Mr Smith, from Bishop Auckland, who trained 1968 Grand National winner Red Alligator.
He was 16 years old when his parents' farm, between Heighington and Aycliffe Village, was commissioned for the war effort. It was used as administration space while the munitions factory was being built in 1939.
He remembers the women travelling to the factory from all parts of County Durham.
Mr Hutton was also been contacted by Miss Ruth Vickery, MBE. Sadly, Ruth Vickery has now passed away.
She was the labour manager, effectively the head of personnel, at the factory for the duration of the war.
She volunteered a wealth of material, including contemporary notebooks detailing the day-to-day workings of the factory, photographs and other archive material.
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May 2004 - VE Day Anniversary in Newton Aycliffe
 | Margaret McLeavey and Mabel Ellison, former Aycliffe Angels, pictured at the VE Day Anniversary. Photograph courtesy of The Northern Echo (Sarah Nicholson).
Wartime memories were evoked during a nostalgic event to celebrate the anniversary of VE Day.
The Newton Aycliffe Scout Supporters Association (Nassa) organised a weekend of free attractions to mark the official surrender of Germany at the end of WWII.
Former Aycliffe Angels, women who worked at the County Durham munitions factory during the war , were among the visitors to the Newton Aycliffe Scout Hut, off Bluebell Way.
Local singers performed some 1940s classics, accompanied by dancers recreating the moves of the time, a big screen showed old Pathe News footage and there were newspaper cuttings and memorabilia on the walls.
Aycliffe Angel Margaret McLeavey, 78, who attended with her 14-year-old granddaughter Karyn Mason, said: "I couldn't have wished for a nicer afternoon. The dancers were beautiful and the old songs brought back a lot of memories. I'm very proud of being an Aycliffe Angel and I hope to come back again next year." |
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