Joan Hession and Susan Fuchslin

00:04 My name is Susan fusilan. I'm 52 years old. Today's date is May 2nd 2008. I'm in Sacramento, California here with my mother and I'm going to be talking to her.

00:17 My name is John hession. I'm 80 years old. Today's date is May 2nd, 2008 and where in the Sacramento and I am the mother of Susan.

00:30 Okay, I'm going to talk to talk to you today about about your life when you were growing up in England. It's a. I was there I know nothing about and I'd be very interested to get as much of your experience as possible. So the start of the beginning and can you tell me where and when you were born? I was born on the 12th of June 1927 in Birmingham, which is the city of my family on both sides. My mother my father. I was born in it. I was born in the house if my parents shed with a sister and brother-in-law.

01:05 And the reason for that was that there was still a housing shortage and people with short of money as a result of the slump after the first World War.

01:14 The house in fact belong to my grandparents.

01:19 But it was a shared hermetic moment in time and your grandparents were living there with you know, they had a separate house.

01:27 They had it as you know, I have lots of uncles Etc. So everybody lived in one particular area and my grandparents are in the number of houses at the time in that area in which the various Sons and Daughters lived as and when they got married which day is the Labor Ready very fortunate because of the time you don't they went we cool Maarten houses.

01:54 But they were very nice houses. I need it mean that the families had many sons and daughters had a house when they first got married, even though they probably have to share it. That's my parents did and they were close by as well. And how long did you stay there? I think I don't remember.

02:10 But still, you know my older cousin she was a little girl with the time. She's 4 years older than I am and she remembers me as a little baby being bossed and she assures me that she can meet with Kyle during those babies with so I think I was probably about 18 months old when we moved.

02:30 I'm not Houston. Where did you move to not very far away the original house because you know the area the original house. I was born in with Nick Cannon Hill Park and we moved a short distance to another house on by my grandparents in George Strait. Hayes.

02:50 And that's where I stayed until I was about six.

02:54 And then you moved out into the sometimes country suburbs you redevelop dammit, but the house in George Strait was quite interesting.

03:03 Because a guy and it was announcing Uncle who lives under us a lift up the Avenue at the sides and they were very nearby at your Marjorie live down the next street. So they went it was very much the family Enclave, which was good.

03:18 How did it feel when you moved away from that should have family environment my mother-in-law's what please do you know? I went they went made me for my health reasons because I've had this Dreadful bronchitis when I was a child living in what is almost in the city.

03:34 My mother and father were delighted about it my grandparents cuz I really don't like going to the Moon because nobody has lived it be on the city boundary before.

03:44 And it was good because we were the first people who had modern.

03:49 In the sense of built after the first world war the has been moved to his newly built when we went to Stoughton Yuan Mei Garden Centra, so like building outing and how far outside the city was it about three miles beyond the outer city of Birmingham Beyond where the corporation buses run to transport. And what was the new suburb of like what what soda facilities were there?

04:19 It's been built along the main road that which went out just got sit on that. You can shut off the main road had always existed and I had been a small.

04:28 Village there is an old church Etc. And then they built on what had been Farm Fields development in a load to be no different roads off one another.

04:45 I always feel to shopping center.

04:48 When they built into it and do something up, so you had a shopping center. I don't decide you were set up.

04:55 We don't lose a library.

04:58 And we had to park which we go to which was known as a recreational area. But not in the sense of the size of you girls have recreational areas have been here, but he was a completely self-contained community.

05:12 And the mothers oh my shop local am and you didn't go anywhere else because people didn't women certainly didn't have cars. And what was your father's job at that time. I thought it was a representative.

05:31 For a firm that made big combination greats go triplets get rights.

05:38 And that was a time when coal was used to great deal. So he was a representative for them. It was a joke. He had eventually off he came from the first world war and he's the company grew.

05:51 The area that he covered was the west of England including Royals.

05:57 And he was away every week from Monday morning until Friday night and then on Saturday morning because people go to 5 and 1/2 day week on Saturday morning. He used to go across to the main Factory which was a Tipton, which is in fact in the Black Country.

06:14 Their dad used to get home really. It's about HuffPost born on a Saturday afternoon.

06:20 And then he was off again on Monday morning short weekend, but a holiday weekend every weekend was a holiday weekend.

06:28 My mother was a very practical woman and she looked after everything. She did the God and she did have it when Dad came home. It was holiday time great fun cuz he did too much more.

06:41 Easily and you know life is meant to be fun. And every weekend was like a heart attack just right release even though you had in that only a day and a half if it was a relaxing day in the family time. We used to do quite a lot of entertaining. He loved having people family and friends and things like that. So it was a good time.

07:02 And

07:04 So, how long did you stay in Shirley? And in relation to the start of the war we used to living there when the gas started?

07:11 We stayed that really quite a long time.

07:15 We was a when it won't start it.

07:18 Which was in 1939 and we'd be nashman bath 1974.

07:26 And that's when things really started to change.

07:29 And I know you you had said that to some people were evacuated with a schools were evacuated did that affect you because we lived outside the boundary of the city of the national evacuations Grove City Schools. My school was outside and that's what my school wasn't we were I mean as though being outside the boundary made it safe it didn't but they had to make some geographical boundaries. Those schools outside cities were not evacuated but I don't see how you would Evacuate the whole school. I mean, where would they go to and well there must have been plans made which I don't know anything about but the school as I said, I still went to Warrick

08:15 And the whole is that grandma's going cluding the stuff went to Warrick and share the facilities of Warwick school. So you had class is it started earlier in the morning till lunchtime, which might be the host school and then they evacuated School use the same premises in the same facilities in the afternoon and you were just evacuated on distributed amongst the population. They known beforehand who got spare rooms.

08:47 And you when you sent off from your home, this is what I find. So amazing now, I can't imagine parents letting that children.

08:55 Go away to an unknown destination to stay with unknown people that I find quite.

09:03 Incomprehensible and there wasn't much choice. I think the thing was that to protect the young the children. The next generation was uppermost in everybody's mind because you actually also went away and stayed with a non to stay with cousins and I went with my aunt to my cousin's to stay with relatives of her only because

09:28 Marjorie with her young children how many school children were officially evacuated and husband under school age? And I went because I have to be taken care of and we went to Vendome on C.

09:44 And because the blitzes didn't start as soon as what they expected nothing happened for the first year the window air Rage or anything in the first year.

09:53 So if you will happen if you weren't officially with your school, you couldn't come back because your school had been evacuated the stuff and everything. So you couldn't come back with people who win privately is. I did a lot of people came back beforehand. I already stayed there a short time so you came back and then the air right started and they started the following in the next door to me. Yes, but I've never been away from home before without my mommy and my daddy and I didn't block you.

10:22 What was it like when you came back in the air right started and there was you know, all the other things involved with the war. The gas miles is the blackout. What was that? Like have you ever seen a gas mask? I have seen a guy smiles gas. Usually an antique shops weird things. You went everywhere. I think they were so they will start of juice was so concerned the would-be gas attacks. It was the first thing you were issued with and you say pictures now hold these little schoolchildren round weigh stations. Everybody had the gas mask in a contour box, which is about 8 inches by 4 by 4.

11:01 Type you had your name on it and wherever you went. You took your gas mask with you and you had that and then you would go to school in the morning you practice putting these Dreadful things out they were made of rubber and they fix it over your head and your eyes poked out, you know, if you had an effect on the

11:23 But they were just taking nature to you and then eventually the cardboard boxes used to get Knocked Up and then we had tins to put a cow's masks and under my sink at the moment is a toll tag with string in it and it is an old customer but you never needed to actually wear them because fortunately the week we had we had air raid shelters on the plane. So theorize came during the day it was okay cuz you missed calls and everybody troop down to the air raid shelter.

11:56 And what about to talked to me earlier about the blackout situation and until the windows have to be covered with black.

12:08 Material material. Yes, absolutely an old on the corners have to be done underwear air raid wardens for every street to make sure that if you had an attack, I mean they were trained people supposed to eat etcetera. But if you had a chink of light they came and knocked on the door.

12:28 I'm just said you wish I knew for a run to summon you if you didn't if anybody rides were to cut into cross the doors if anybody came after you soak and went to do because he was Total Blackout. So there's no street lights at a toll lumination. The idea was to make everywhere. They couldn't block everything out because something is reflected light.

12:53 And their rights they tended to bomb a particular area for a gift for a concentrated length of time. So it might be weeks when we didn't have any information does Belle mean with such an industrial area. It has a lot of their rights cuz you know, I finally business was burned out the fire attack, but then compared with guns and we got off quite like me.

13:22 The only thing that happened to us school wish we had a lot of small explosive bombs which landed on the playing fields which was hard luck because it's about the only thing that I really enjoy this.

13:33 We didn't have anything in my house, but did you know results of the relatives were also because I had lived in this concentrated area around most Nimble so Hast a lot of them were the houses were damaged, but nobody was hurt.

13:48 And they were unable to remove that furniture from the damaged houses.

13:56 Until you put it in the store or something, So there was nobody in your immediate family that lost everything. You know, we were fortunate in that was lucky very lucky and them how did the rationing affect you as a as a young teenager? I don't think it did because I didn't have to make some Russians go round. That was my mother's job weiner with no weights doing switch videos. And yes, and yes, it would know. It was very little fruit.

14:26 Because a lot of the importation food was on Essentials.

14:32 Biggest things to get the essential food in which the food convoys

14:37 So when you think incidental was that it was restriction, I think without his never conscious of

14:45 Deprivation. Oh, no and we were never hungry.

14:50 Hundred percent resting because

14:53 You substitute you tell those things mean family is it?

14:57 I-30 Sweet Tooth for instance suffered very much, but then you use golden syrup.

15:03 The golden should have been things that you made to save on the sugar bread and scrape because there was practically non-existent. So

15:17 No, it was substitution and then people grew as much as I could in the gardens. I mean the deacons thing for victory would love to smoke and drink to take the picture with one of them.

15:32 And we had an amazing food Minister whose name was.

15:37 World or nothing and he would put propaganda. I'm in the magic propaganda that was fed to the population. If it was a plenty of potatoes going for in since you to be inundated on the radio is recipes using potatoes.

15:51 So it was surprising Randy. I think I'll pay pool.

15:55 Manage to reacted maybe they became more creative as a result of the strange done. You didn't have people putting on too much weight. That was for sure.

16:04 So now after you left in Chile, you moved out to Hopwood with your grandfather. Can you tell me about that why you did that? And and what your grandfather was like we moved out that because my grandfather who lived in the main Family House in this area, which had been so badly damaged and he had been a widower since the new year of 1939 and he was very much the patriarch of the family because she had three sons and daughters and he was very much the patriarchy

16:41 And for some reason or other it was decided that he needed to re-establish A Home of his own in the game. And my mother was the eldest daughter.

16:53 And I think she felt responsible. So we moved from a nice house if we hadn't had adoption anywhere, we don't be so happy as it is 3535 Emily group to this house is helpful. Which was further acts like them anymore or that raft.

17:10 And we had this larger house. So it was enough for my grandfather to have his own sitting room with his own Furniture in the bedroom.

17:19 Was very nice how to do being built at 51930 lights 37 at least 38 Hope from those days. It was very very Martin and spacious with a large garden.

17:32 Was it was he was he living and I realize he was in the house, but did he have his own to the area or was he with you for meals and really participate in everything revolves around him to a great extent. You can't understand really how patriarchal he wants because he had always and I do mean always had a boiled egg for his breakfast until the Walking we had to keep hens and chickens doesn't my grandfather could have a boiled egg for his breakfast.

18:04 It's what you boiled if it were two eggs, then somebody else had one but if know if my grandfather had one was a very strange situation, you'll do both billiard table with him a pool table with your phone it which was quite sure. I'm not the full size from the kinds of knowledge one.

18:20 Not came as well and he was on the Slate bed. So she was a good time. So we had to have a very large dining table which we have to lift up every time Grandpa wanted to have a game of Billiards with anybody this. This right heavy table. So I learned to play Billiards when I was younger, but very much is revolved around for my grandfather wanted

18:45 My mother wasn't having good health that that time. She created the most beautiful. God is very creative in making god, that's literally making Gardens. He was a large piece of land quite wise but also very long. Will it be in the field?

19:04 And she had help from some Italian prisoners of War.

19:10 Because the Italian prisoners of war that which I can't were often put to work on farms because they had been agricultural workers in Italy most of them and the Italians were not soldiers. They were the Germans. I mean they were very reluctant.

19:25 So the farm, this was just up the road from where we lived in North Port High billeted on them for workers Italian prisoners of War.

19:35 Who worked on the farms the weekends during the week? Sorry, and then the weekends they were free and my mother got to know them and they came and worked for her.

19:45 And they made a most beautiful God. They did the heavy digging popsike. We had two lovely pool things, but they were regular popular seem to collect people. She fed them. She gave the money they were good fun because they were much happier doing that. I thought I think they thought they were really very lucky lucky. So did they come with their God or God with the Asam would have two or three Italians based on Blue? No gods were no soldiers over them and the Italians didn't want to run away and was very happy to be that kind of threw the family and the farm family they lived in

20:25 And the loss of my Coach purse number places, they married to English girls and stayed on her off to it's not a bad life as a prisoner-of-war really. So now this some house you said that there was something The Barrage balloon site opposites in the raft women were working there. Yes secrid women's Royal Air Force was the women's army with the acts the 80s what they asked us a army women in the Air Force with a rough and the girls in the Navy with a Ren's women's Royal Naval services.

21:04 They wore Air Force uniform, but they will Scott's most of the time and then they gave them snacks off to that. But originally they were wearing skirts and black stockings and shoes.

21:16 And they were billeted. It was a big sale for this huge Bowers balloon and they lived on site with the men as well.

21:26 And they had been there.

21:29 I presume to point a long time before we got there and the girls would do a stint there for probably a year 07 and they be moved to somewhere else.

21:38 But they would girls who think cool. Because girls would also called out.

21:43 The services

21:45 Or we reserved occupation. So you didn't have any option. I mean you have to go into what you were doing. And how did it come about that. They ended up coming to your house to wash the hair and time for themselves Bank of wash houses on the site, which word ablution blocks at with the word that was used ablution block. I supposed to the Air Force men had their own and the girls had theirs as well, but they were literally so two sinks and Taps and things like that. And my mother was a very outgoing person must have talked to the Monday and I said what I really wanted was somewhere nice to wash their hair. So we had a ball throw jump

22:26 I used to come over by a rangement if it's always by arrangements and they come and they had to use to buy bathroom. And of course waffle turn propane ice many soap compared to what they had and they did that you took as long as they liked and they had to you know, Britney pump pump themselves and that became a regular thing. It was always somebody in that bathroom Fortune to wish we had a good boss from but they didn't come in early in the morning or when we were not going to need it. This is during the day and my father found a part into tiny because he used to say what it was something like semi-naked go go around somewhere off.

23:05 But that's was worth while they were stopped on afterwards. I'm sure they appreciated it. If they did they thought it was a bit of time from home. I think that's what all these girls and these young men missed was being suddenly taken away from their own environment and sent you a new part of the country, but people didn't travel previous. They haven't used it in your own as long as life. And that was it.

23:30 But I think this is what they really missed was being literally uplift taken from their own area.

23:37 And then in addition to the women, you also hosted you'll family hosted the injured servicemen.

23:44 That's true.

23:46 They were young men who had been damaged in your neurological and then you have to do positive recovery treatment should go out for good works fresh air and exercise different environment. So they went on these long walks and then it became an official thing. They came to us and had the tea or lunch or something. We was a turning point for them.

24:15 And that was good that used to bring their own Russians with them.

24:20 That we did watch what not to touch anything. They didn't see if we had leftovers what which was good because usually something pretty substantial but lots of tea and usually sugar as well, but that was good because a guy in the Ozarks is in the hospital wanted them to have a family atmosphere. We became part of the official program of them and they stay and they sitting at home to handle that sit in the garage.

24:45 And they just go with it.

24:48 Felts relax relax and then we had one or two. Who'd got a wife.

24:56 And mother would say what if we were never allowed to have the men to stay with a while I'm with we could have two wives to stay only one at a time.

25:05 And there was one particular couple because I think my mother took her to teach you the Lion King 2 and his wife used to come by for a kitten stay with us, then she'd see more of her husband, but it was good for that enables interesting. Would you sit around the table and have a male and they were interesting people because I had such different backgrounds a muscle that is quite a bit of company to the family and end for you is an only child. It did open. The alarm because we've always been interested in but he was tough as a good a good thing to do would for us and Them

25:47 And then looking back on your childhood. What would you say are your best memories?

25:54 Is any one thing that sticks out or is it or

25:58 No, nothing much. I think I was fortunate.

26:03 The last Fortune to be known to Charlton. I don't think I was I would much prefer to have had some siblings.

26:10 But it was a comfortable child told you I was taking great care of and I think on the whole might Early Childhood I think of is being very fun and comfortable couple TD, since I got out in my teenagers I didn't like Teenage is

26:26 And that was when the difficulties don't you to a rise of being living outside Birmingham and things like that?

26:34 I didn't my cousins were was very important to me. So they took the place of brothers and sisters and I've always been very close to them. I've never had a great circle of friends. I've always been one of these people who tended to have a best friend.

26:51 It was your best friend. Would you say when you were in your teenage years?

26:56 I can't remember School ones. I remember college ones. She was an interesting girl. I met her when I went to college and she was a Quaker and I were involved with the Cadbury Factory in Boonville.

27:09 And that opens up a whole bunch of people and things that I hadn't she belong to the Cadbury.

27:16 My father worked the Caprice, but they have Factory in Boonville.

27:21 And the Quakers are very socially minded and Betty welfare minded and they had used clubs and things like that and I used to go with my friend to her name was Oliver Twist.

27:32 Consume Fisher ISO

27:35 Then eventually I went when she got married. I went to a quaker wedding which was quite an experience because

27:42 The man she married Wilson to Quaker.

27:45 You make me go to the meeting point you wait for the spirit to move. You know who it's is no structure to the surface.

27:53 And I can remember is now it was really quite some difficult because you sold your soul for one.

28:02 But I lost contact with her. I don't know why I lost contact with her but something we just did and we've been friends for many many years. So you were friends even after you left College. Yes, because we went. Oh, I know it won't happen because the job together.

28:19 I'm done with the electricity pole. We both got the same job, but she didn't like it and she didn't fit in and that's how we must have lost track with each other because I stayed on and she didn't.

28:32 Not responsive to depart.

28:35 So you were domestic science college and what how long for and what did what did that involve what we studying while you were there? That's what the real disadvantage of doing getting full-time.

28:47 Because it was so many restrictions and there was so many things that one would have done its domestic sounds College before the war. May we did Coast Cuisine but we didn't do any o tube out with no chance of doing really high-class luxurious food, but I learned to cook which other was done because my mother hurts

29:10 Frequently hot baths of illness and such a so, I think I have been cooking all my life. I think.

29:17 I knew it all sorts of things that you did there in the broad sense of anything to do with domestic economy. I test new name is now it's not cool to Mystic Santigold home economics.

29:30 It had limitations because of the rationing.

29:34 Which is a pity.

29:36 But he was very brewed with a dietetics with it's a very rigid dressmaking Island to smoke a little smoke dress, which I kept thinking one of the little girl should be able to wear it. I did her minutes ago, but you was a big little girl to Miley pretty dress which I've still got in a box that I smoke to Let It Go has never been for nothing. Just meant to be put on a 5 lb, baby.

30:05 But that's what's interesting and that's was in kusel street. Now if you think of Broad Street in Birmingham

30:14 It's now open redeveloped, but it was a big Victorian.

30:19 I'm building with staircases and we would talk to whip egg whites you wanted to with no electrical electrical equipment hectic whisks. Everything is done by hand.

30:33 Everything was done by hand. So I was told you on with a flat iron.

30:39 I was told to whisk eggs by using a knife in the place that we went back to basics and that was good and I always used it since then you and you were lucky enough to get jobs using your skills with different parts of it's a practical side and also the dietetics that we had done was very useful when I went to work in the hospital and I use the electrical part of it because I got a job with the electric industry.

31:09 I just like to move on and just ask you a couple of questions about how you met my dad. I know you knew him when you were very little children, you know, you've met him at least when you fight little thing. You just tell me what family connection there. He's on on TV was my mother was quite friend of my mother's this particular Aunt hadn't any children Patrick was her nephew so frequent if we went to see my mother's friend, her nephew would be there and we have got this pickle photograph. It's a snapshot of dad and I when we were six then we must have been destined 65 holding these two puppy dogs.

31:50 Unfortunately, I didn't see him in the interim. But if we grown up together known each other all the time, we would send 11 and 12. We probably wouldn't have been interested.

32:00 The onto fact got marriage years later and my parents went to the wedding and I couldn't go.

32:09 Cuz I was working when you didn't have days off work because to go to a wedding.

32:13 And they met

32:16 This poor young man who was in army uniform at the wedding who said that he was Pat Hessian. They came back off to it since it all we've met somebody I used to know years ago for petition and I said, oh yes, they said yes, he was in the Army and he was home free songs wedding.

32:35 And the next day he telephoned me.

32:38 And I was absolutely flabbergasted and I didn't know whether to meet him or not. Anyway, we did and we met on that Sunday afternoon. He got 48 oz leave and we met and somehow I know that we clicked. They said I did I think I feel for him.

32:55 Text message he went back to catch a break which was in Yorkshire. Then he came down a 48 oz leave the next weekend when we met a game.

33:05 And he was in the Army for another year of to wake mate, but he used to have 48 oz leave.

33:12 And he wasn't with Tara because I was conscious as you remember and he come home and he's all me uniform and immediately change into civilians and somehow he had nice clothes in those days, but you must have been hard on his mother and father because he used to come spend on his weekend leave with me.

33:30 Yes, I'd visit probably didn't appreciate that so much, but I don't think his parents didn't know and he didn't take me to meet his parents for a long long time. The people he took me to meet and I have to have that approval. We don't eat our son Michael Ralph.

33:44 We went up to Manchester one weekend.

33:47 And I really feel that I was being paraded in front of them. And if they didn't approve of me, I was out before something wait, they did it prove and they were very close to us.

33:57 And how long was it between the time that you mention him in the time you got married?

34:03 Nearly four years three I wanted weed wanted to get engaged on my 21st birthday because he didn't email did not go to jail with no reason why we should but my parents wouldn't hear of it. We had to wait another six months before we got engaged in those days. You had an engagement by which time you saved up in things or maybe had two policies that way one for your 21st and one for your engagement. That was just Christmas when we got engaged because he used to come home and that was it, you know.

34:42 Got to make most of the time available. Yeah.

34:46 And just briefly to wind up you have any favorite stories from you marriage?

34:53 Too many

34:55 No, it was a good time. Okay. Thank you very much. Is that a daring experiences with us? You have more knowledge of your background my background anyway.