My name is Rita Irene Anderson. I enlisted as Rita Irene Killiby in the Australian Women’s Army Service (AWAS) [in 1942]. My girlfriends were enlisting, so I did too, and into the Army because that’s the one you could get into quickly. There was a waitlist to join the Navy and the Air Force. We were only there to replace the men. I was in for four and half years. I was in Army Salvage in Crown Street, Zetland, transferred to the Switchboard and later to the Q Store. The Q Store was where the men got their clothing and cigarettes, Club chocolate, Log Cabin tobacco and Tally-Ho papers and things like that.
The girls got up to no shenanigans, but the men did. The switchboard was one of those plug boards and I was in a room by myself most of the time. I enjoyed it.
I enlisted in Sydney, and we slept in Armco huts. There were 12 to a hut. There was one incident where the girl two beds over from me had a fit. But the girl between us jumped into my bed because she was scared and didn’t know what to do. That made two of us not knowing what to do! I think the girl who had the fit was discharged.
I lived at home in Sans Souci when I worked in Crown Street. I took the ‘penny ride’ to work always in uniform, and we got half fares. This was when I was 19.
I was transferred to the Q Store which was run by a Scottish Officer who had been in World War I. We called him ‘Old Jock’. He was very strict and expected obedience. There were barracks and camps further out of Sydney, Casula for example, and on pay day we had to take the pay around. I used to sit in the back of the bumpy Blitz truck with the chocolates and tobacco. The driver and the Warrant Officer Paymaster with the pay box or bag were in the front. The Warrant Officer was fond of a drink. Often, we’d stop along the Hume Highway at a pub for him to have a drink. On these occasions he took his [gun] belt off, gave it to me and the pay box or bag to sit on and said … ‘if anyone goes to attack you, grab the bag… shoot them!!!’. But no one attacked me or tried to steal the money. I often laugh about that incident.
Whilst in the Army or as a civilian I’ve never drunk alcohol or smoked. A bunch of us girls from the switchboard tried to smoke, but as none of us could do the drawback – that was the end of smoking for us. We practically lived at the movies; we got in half price because we were enlisted. The Church of England had a soup kitchen, and we’d get in and have a meal for a shilling.
The men were thorough gentlemen to us twelve girls in the unit. I married my darling George whilst in the Army. I remember being discharged in 1947, a year after I was married.
We did all the office work at the Q Store in Zetland.
The fellows from transport were willing to teach me to drive but I didn’t. I was sorry because I didn’t end up learning until I was thirty-one.
My husband used to play table tennis in the Army, and he was a cheat playing against me. I remember when he took me home to meet his parents. His father was sitting at the table, and I was standing there in uniform with my Army issue nylons on. He ran his hand up my leg. I picked up a bottle of tomato sauce from the table and poured it over him. He didn’t do it again.
My closest girlfriend joined too, she was in office administration, and I was in the switch. She became a nun after the war. Everybody made friends in the Army.
Armistice day was announced when I was in Zetland. Every unit jumped, ran, and hugged with happiness. As I’m a Catholic, I rushed to St Mary’s Cathedral. It was full of people kneeling, even on the footpath and we prayed with thanks. It was very exciting and wonderful. Everybody was throwing their hats in the air. You’ve got no idea. You wouldn’t know how wonderful it was to see it. Yes, it was just so wonderful.
This is the story of Rita Anderson as told to Carla Edwards.
