At the beginning of the war the British government recruited women to serve in Volunteer Aid Detachments (VAD). These women worked as assistant nurses, ambulance drivers and cooks. VAD hospitals were opened in most towns. In East Grinstead, Naughton House in London Road was turned into a VAD hospital. VADs could work locally but a large number of these women volunteered to work in the front-line in France.

Laurenna Simpkin

Sackville School, East Grinstead

(1) Rifleman Albert Greenaway, a 21 year soldier from 7 View Terrace, Dormandsland was slightly wounded in France in May, 1918. The matron of the hospital wrote a letter to his mother about what happened after he was admitted.

In the early hours of Sunday morning a wounded soldier was dying from loss of blood. Albert Greeaway gallantly offered to give his own blood to save his comrade, but in spite of every precaution, he developed blood poisoning, from which he died. By giving blood he nobly died a hero's death.

(2) Miss Dinah Heasman, who lived at Southwick House, London Road, East Grinstead, joined the VADs in 1914. Dinah volunteered to work in France and on 20th March 1915, wrote to her parents in East Grinstead.

The thing that upset me most were the groups of tiny crosses, each marking a grave and each with the soldier's cap and great coat on it. Oh it was so sad to see them and to think each meant so much to someone.