From the Lambton County Museum website

As young men went off to fight in World War II, there was a need for farm labourers in Southern Ontario. The Ontario Provincial Government responded by creating the Ontario Farm Service Force in 1941 "to recruit workers from all levels of society" but aimed mainly at women. In this war effort initiative, the group with the most participation was the Farmerettes, young women - and primarily students - 16 years of age and older.

They assisted in all aspects of farm work, replacing the labour of men lost to military service. The Young Women’s Christian Association, or YWCA, ran agricultural work camps, as did some charitable agencies and provincial departments of public works. Rural women contributed extensively to farm work as they had before the war, but now they often did so without their husbands, sons, or labourers to assist.

They worked on fruit, vegetable, and truck farms (where produce goes to local markets), and it was this type of lonely, back-breaking labour that helped Canada supply its Allies with war-winning material and food. To show their importance, the brigade members were given badges to wear at all times.

Looking back, Farmerettes remember the hard work they did to support the war effort and the great camaraderie they all shared. Many women have said these were “the best of summers.” The program was so popular that it continued for seven years after the war until 1952.

Marion Aleta Dickinson was one of those local high school girls who applied to the programme. Born 19 November 1927, the youngest of four children of Carllus and Gladys (Marvin), she worked on the family's poultry farm, looking after many hundreds of chickens of all ages. When she had time, she would help out on neighbouring farms.

Marion married Thomas Nelson Hodgson 16 November 1946 at St. John’s Anglican Church in Port Hope. [Evening Guide, 19 Nov 1946]. They raised four boys and celebrated their 50th anniversary in 1996.[Evening Guide, 14 Nov 1996].

---

Peter and Barbara Bolton - Port Hope, Ontario
www.alivingpast.ca