Iris Simantel's Story
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Iris Simantel's Story |
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Here's a little bit about me and my beginnings.
Born July 5th 1938 in the East End Maternity Hospital, Poplar; spent
the first few months living with my grandparents on Blackwall Pier,
(East India Docks on the Thames), in the Blackwall Station House
where my Granddad was station master. Then spent the war years living
in Dagenham, (southeast London). During that time I was evacuated to
the mining village of Maerdy in the Rhondda Valley of South Wales. I
lived with the Cooper family who I still keep in touch with
regularly, - she is my "second Mum". After the war our family, (I
have three brothers), moved to a new housing estate, called Oxhey
Estate,(some know it as Carpenders Park), near Watford,
Hertfordshire. I married a G.I. in 1954, when I was just 16 years
old and came to the U.S. in 1955. He was from Chicago, and that's
where I lived until moving to Northwest Arkansas with my fourth
husband (yes, you read it right #4 - but we have been married now for
30 years). We moved here to Eureka Springs in 1985 when we bought a
Bed & Breakfast which we ran very successfully for 16 years. We sold
the business and retired four years ago. We built our dream,
(English style), house on beautiful Beaver Lake. Between us Bill and
I have seven children, 17 grandchildren and three great
grandchildren. I just turned 39 years old and I am writing my life
story. Cor blimey, - me nose just started to grow! Love to all,
Iris (Jones) Simantel
My Dad was sent to work at the Woolwhich Arsenal all through the war.
He was a sand blaster, - working on bomb and
shell casings. It almost killed him and did kill quite a
number of the men. The sand blasters were so powerful that if you
lost your grip it would whip around and cut you in half. Also, men
died from sheer exhaustion. I tell more about it in my book (yes
gang, I'm still working on it). He went to work on the Woolwich Ferry
every day, and I have been on it once or twice myself. I understand it
is still in use, and I found some wonderful old pictures of it on the
internet.
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