British and World Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Pair: Private S. Dooley, Royal Marine Light Infantry

British War and Victory Medals (Ch.15817 Pte., R.M.L.I.)

1939-45 Star; Atlantic Star; War Medal 1939-45, these unnamed; National Shell Filling Factory No. 6, Chilwell, brass tokens (2), obverse stamped, ‘The V.C. Factory 1915-1918’, reverse numbered, ‘13707’ and ‘14502’, pierced; Prize Medal, silver, inscribed, ‘Ambulance 1st Prize July 26th 1894’, ‘E.C.V.F.B.’ and ‘Branchman Thomas Moore’, buckle on ribbon’; other medals and badges (8), two enamelled, very fine and better (16) £80-100

W.W.2 medals in card forwarding box to ‘Mrs J. Boyd, Sunningdene, Plant St., Cheadle, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs.’

The National Shell Filling Factory No.6, at Chilwell was created in 1915. By the end of the war it had fitted high explosive into some 19 million shells - approximately 50% of all shells fired. The workers, many of them women, were known as ‘Chilwell Canaries’ due to the tendency for the worker’s skin to turn yellow because of the chemicals employed. A substantial part of the factory was destroyed in an explosion on 1 July 1918 and 137 people were killed. Following the explosion it was suggested that the Factory might be awarded a ‘collective’ Victoria Cross. Although this came to nothing, the factory subsequently became known as the ‘V.C. Factory’.