Diamonds in brown paper - buffer girls film

[Mags 12]

My Dad worked at Viners for many years and I think he was the manager on the floor that made the knife handles.

I know he made real ivory handles for knives and forks before they invented Zylo? which looked just like ivory.He also made small penknives with lots of blades

He was always talking about the Buffer Girls and the tricks they played on the male workforce.

During the war he remained at Viners making munitions.

His name was Sydney Mallinson,does anyones Mum or Dad remember him?

[George 10]

they is a paper back book about this film if you can't get the dvd,from sheffield city libaries at£3.95p.By GILL BOOTH

ref number is:ISBN 0 86321 091 0.

[fisherboy 10]

My Mum was a Buffer Girl she died in 1954 she was only 41. You could'nt meet better women, if anyone was in trouble they would be there to help in anyway they could.along with brown paper they also had finger rags to protect there finger on the buffing wheels. A better gang of women never lived.

[willybite 10]

My mother was a buffer girl.

She worked with Annie Allibone and all the other buffers in the Holloware buffing dpt at Viners.some of the other ladies and gents who worked with her was Rosie Burrill.Doris.?

Ada Goring.Dirk,Derek.Norah Bown.Stan French,I still have photos of some of them when they went on their annual outings.Can anyone else jog my memory and remind me of the names of the others.

I used to work in a different dept and when I went round to their dept you could hear them all singing or having a laugh at something,What a great bunch of women and men.Just remembered another name Chrissie?

 

hya just reading your letter and it struck me have you or me got a name at odds i remember my mum mention the name what i thought was rosie berill now reading your name burrill it could have been the same person my mums name was edith ,(ede) white nee howarth, her sisters name was ann burgess.i think my cousin worked there for a while she was elaine burgess. another name was betty ? i think she worked in the cutlery case dept she married a buffer who worked there he was ron hudson.ps another was ken hayley.

Edited July 17, 2009 by willybite

[nosy nellie 10]

You could be right,my mother always said Rosie Beryl like the first name Beryl is pronounced but I thought it was her Sheffield accent I don't really know how it was spelt.

I don't remember your mothers name but different names keep coming back to me.

My mother passed away last year her name was Nellie most of her friends knew her as Ford her maiden name but her married name was Doyle-Price she was a hollowwear buffer at viners.

She was a big friend of Rosies and she could tell a few stories about her friends and the nights out they used to have.

[Camelot 10]

My mum was a buffer girl. She started at Viners when she was 14 where my gran was the Mrs Buffer. Her name was Selina Simmonett and my mum was Elsie. Mum was interviewed for the book Diamonds in Brown Paper along with Mary Turton and one or two others. She also worked at Mappin and Webb with Mary Turton, Mary Elvin and Ida Thompson to name but a few. Me and my sister used to love going down to the buffing shop to see mum they were great women and made such a fuss if either of us called in.

[friend 10]

I worked at British Silver WARE Queens road in the late 60s just after i left school ,buffers frighten me to death,i was errand lass and always had to go to them first,sorry but i cannot remember any names,

[nosy nellie 10]

hya just reading your letter and it struck me have you or me got a name at odds i remember my mum mention the name what i thought was rosie berill now reading your name burrill it could have been the same person my mums name was edith ,(ede) white nee howarth, her sisters name was ann burgess.i think my cousin worked there for a while she was elaine burgess. another name was betty ? i think she worked in the cutlery case dept she married a buffer who worked there he was ron hudson.ps another was ken hayley.

 

Hello willybite.

My mother worked with Ron Hudson at Viners and she still got christmas cards from him and Betty up to last year when she died.I can't recall The name Ken Hayley.

[nosy nellie 10]

My mum was a buffer girl. She started at Viners when she was 14 where my gran was the Mrs Buffer. Her name was Selina Simmonett and my mum was Elsie. Mum was interviewed for the book Diamonds in Brown Paper along with Mary Turton and one or two others. She also worked at Mappin and Webb with Mary Turton, Mary Elvin and Ida Thompson to name but a few. Me and my sister used to love going down to the buffing shop to see mum they were great women and made such a fuss if either of us called in.

Did your mother and your Gran live in Watery Lane? if so she lived in the same yard as my Gran and I know all the family,I used to live over the wall in the next yard (until we moved to Hillsborough), and it was next to your mums house when she was younger first married.Do you have a brother as well as a sister or are you the brother?

If you look at the,( One Up And One Down) post last year I wrote about a newspaper clipping I have got mentioning your Mother and your Grandmothers houses in Watery Lane.

Edited September 26, 2009 by nosy nellie
update

[willybite 10]

Hello willybite.

My mother worked with Ron Hudson at Viners and she still got christmas cards from him and Betty up to last year when she died.I can't recall The name Ken Hayley.

.

hiya nelly i lived next door ron and betty for nearly forty years unfortunately ron died at the end of last year betty stll lives in the same house,saw her yesterday matter of fact,their daughter kay gets married again a week on sunday.as for ken he lived at either coal aston or dronfield

Edited September 18, 2009 by willybite

[nosy nellie 10]

Hello willybite I did not know Betty and Ron but my mother often talked about all the other buffers at Viners and trips they had.My mother died Last year age 86 and after being left Viners must be about forty years ago she still recieved Christmas cards from some of the buffers from Viners.