Letter from Nellie May Preston to Albert G. Woodman, 4 May 1916 Letters 1916-1923 Nellie May Preston

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Letter from Nellie May Preston (b.1890) to her fiancé Albert G. Woodman (1891-1969) describing the impact of the Rising on the daily life of the family. The letter appears to be in two parts. The first five pages are clearly written by Nellie. It is the first letter she writes to Albert since the Rising. She details the disruption to daily life the destruction of businesses in Dublin, the curfew imposed on Dublin residents, and her fear of snipers in the city.Also enclosed with the letter is a detailed daily account of her family life during and after the Rising, from 26 April through 2 May.Albert and his four brothers fought for the British Army during the Great War. Albert served in France with the 'L' Signal Company, part of the Royal Corps of Engineers.

 Joyce Timms Private Collection https://letters1916.ie/item/5939 English Nellie May Preston 1916-05-04 Ivanhoe, 15 Lyndsay Road, Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland Arthur G. Woodman 'L' Signal Company, Army Post Office S. I., British Expeditionary Force, France Female Easter Rising Ireland 1916 Industry and Public Administration Faith Politics Country and City Life Personal Relations World War I (1914-1918) Personal Relations

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 Ivanhoe Lindsay Road. Thursday 4th My darling Bert Well my dear once again I can sit down & write you a letter. Thank God we are all still alive & well, although I need hardly tell you we've been through an awful time. Oh no Bert I never want to hear guns again. we've had quite sufficient since Easter Monday. We are all very well up in sniping & machine Guns etc. etc. On Easter Monday Kit and I were going off to Howth by the 10 to 3 & your Father, Mother, Uncle Joe Auntie Mag & Arthur were going down by the same train just as we were going up Liindsay Road a Priest stopped us and said for goodness sake not to go down town as there was terrible work going on down there and that the Sinn Feiners had taken the Post Office. Needless to say we didn't attempt to go down to Howth but just went up the canal for a walk. About 1 o'clock in the morning we were wakened by the most awful banging & this went on off and on for the week. I suppose Bert if I say too much this letter won't be let through so like the soldiers in France we'll have to Sing dumb. Suffice it to say that Sackville St from Taaffes down to O'Connell Bridge is in ruins our old show half of it is standing all right but the rest is in a hopeless state & we've got to start work again on Monday, in the good half, all the staff are quite all right thank goodness. You know my dear I came up to Ivanhoe for three days and I'm here still and it's just a fortnight now. Louise and her Mother only came back from Cork yesterday They had ten days there instead of one, but as I told Louise she was well out of it. I'm sure you were in an awful state Bert when you didn't get any letters. & were wondering what on earth had happened. I was pitying you & wishing I could let you have a word to say we were all right. Poor Uncle Joe's place is down and out, wouldn't you feel awfully sorry for him after all his years work gone for nothing. So Auntie May says if you have any have any stray halfpennies knocking around you can send them on, she also said she would write when things settle down a bit. Oh by the way Kiddums has the sore throat. I hope you have quite got rid of it by this. I do hope we'll get some letters very soon to let us know how you are Of course Chris hasn't turned up yet. I suppose they wouldn't let him cross, but it's very well that he didn't come for Easter. Well Bert dear when we all get together again you boys won't be the only ones that can tell tales about the war. The funny side of the business was to see all the men going for the grub and carrying sacks of flour, bundles of rhubarb & cauliflower We were nearly sick of the sight of rhubarb, I'm sure the men never did so much shopping in their lives Your Mother introduced me to Howard one day, so we had a long chat with him. I also was speaking to his wife & saw the baby. Well Bert there was a delivery of letters to day & I got your one written on Good Friday & I was very glad to hear that the throat was better, you certainly must have had it pretty bad. but you showed your good sense in not smoking as it would have irritated it terribly It was grand getting a letter again after not having had one for just a fortnight. Oh no my dear I wouldn't like to have to go through a week like we've just had not for all I'd get. What absolutely got on my nerves were the snipers as you didn't know where on earth they were firing from you can imagine that when Kit and I were sitting out in the garden we heard a bang & a whiz over our heads you should have seen me doing a gallop into the house. Another evening we were down in Uncle Joe's & were sitting out in the garden when a few whizzed by, we had the military up as far as the top of Lindsay Road Doyle's Corner & Cabra was a pretty hot place. A bullet came in the window of our little room off the kitchen at home. but there was nobody in the room at the time lucky enough. Oh I could tell you any amount only I can't think of everything I will send you on the papers & then you can judge for yourself all that's happened You would honestly feel inclined to cry if you saw the town & especially the G.P.O. which had been done up so beautifully. the four walls and pillars are really all that's standing Of course there were terrible fires in town & that's what did the most of the damage. On Easter Monday night Percy couldn't get home from Howth he had to stay in the Royal Hotel & June couldn't get back. from the mountains & of course I was up here so Mother & the Pater were in a terrible state they weren't so anxious about June as they thought she might have gone to Dartmouth Villas but they didn't know where Percy had got to & of course Mother kept imagining the worst. However, I'm thankful to say they both turned up on Tuesday, although Percy had to walk from Howth along with many another, as they didn't run any trams the whole time. Some of the nights I didn't get more than a few hours sleep as you know of old Bert I'm not a terribly brave person. Oh I absolutely can't tell you how thankful I am that it's all over. We can breathe freely again now. We've all got to be in at 7.30 & as there's no trams or noise of any kind the silence is sometimes inclined to get on your nerves. My dear when you come home we'll have so much to tell you about our war that we won't have time to listen to your French a/c we were getting off too safe altogether we simply had to have our share but we've had quite sufficient, I can tell you. I went in to to day nearly all the staff were there but of course we couldn't do anything, the men folk were trying to get the good half into some kind of order, the place was simply soaking in water after the Fire Brigade, a lot of stuff was looted & of course a lot damaged but I was surprised to see such a lot of stuff intact considering. From the G.P.O. down to the place beside us is completely in ruins. Oh I simply couldn't describe the look of the place to you Bert. I only stay in my office back here for the rest of the day. I suppose we will have to stay all day on Friday though. Did you hear anything about this trouble over in France Bert? You might by chance have heard it but I suppose the other Boys wouldn't hear anything at all. Now dearest I'm not going to write any more this time & I hope sincerely that this will reach you safely, as I'm sure you are anxiously looking out for a letter. Oh yes dear we have a great lot to be thankful for. No. 75598. Sapper A. G. Woodman 'L' Signal Company. Army Post Office S.I. British Expeditionary Force France 'L' Signal Company, Army Post Office S. I., British Expeditionary Force, France Letter from Nellie May Preston to Albert G. Woodman, 4 May 1916 Ivanhoe, 15 Lyndsay Road, Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland Letter from Nellie May Preston to Albert G. Woodman, 4 May 1916 Nellie May Preston Letter from Nellie May Preston to Albert G. Woodman, 4 May 1916