Mary Catherine Harrington

Professor Ware
English 4475
21 April 2015

British War Brides in America: Forming A Legacy

War brides are young women who married American G.Is (military men) during World
War II. As many as 70,000 brides came to the United States from more than 50 different
countries. A large number of these war brides came from England, and for a good reason; the
servicemen spent a majority of their time in England formulating and staging the invasions of
North Africa, Italy, and finally France. To the women in Britain, the American G.Is were a
breath of fresh air. And to the men, the romance was a distraction from the job they had come to
Europe to do. With two words- I do- American G.Is and young women with lilting accents
began to write life stories that would cross oceans, cities, cultures and regions (War Brides).
The brides were offered free passage by the U.S. army to start a new life on the other side of the
Atlantic, and thousands of women boarded ships with promises of hope, love and ambition to see
them through the journey. Shortly after arriving, war brides all over the United States began
experiencing cultural and ethnic shock. Some returned home the second they landed, but most
stayed, prompting the legislation to enact the 1945 War Brides Act in order to expedite their
citizenship. War bride organizations were formed to facilitate the brides in their new endeavors.
My grandmother, Nancy West Harrington, is a war bride and my focus of this fieldwork
assignment. Though she encountered cultural and ethnic changes in her transition to America,
she remained steadfast in her effort to preserve her heritage. Nancy has always understood that it

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is imperative to keep her British traditions alive and the war bride organizations she participated
in insured that her, along with all other war brides legacies would never be forgotten.
Nancy was born in a small village called Roxwell in the Chelmsford district in the
English country of Essex. She met my grandfather, Billy Harrington, during World War II, while
his American Air Force unit just happened to be stationed outside of her hometown. They
exchanged letters during wartime and Billy promised to marry Nancy and take her back home to
American with him. At the ripe age of 21, Nancy wed Billy, left her family and everything she
was accustomed to and crossed the Atlantic on a ship to come live in the very extraneous
Louisiana. Nancy arrived to the sultry South with a coat in hand, immediately realizing that she
was not in England anymore and that her life was about to become much different. It may appear
that because of the language and cultural similarities between Britain and America that the
British war brides assimilated to the United States with ease; but their immigration to America
was not completely seamless. Jenel Virden, the author of the book, Good-Bye, Picadilly: British
War Brides in America, comments that the brides were becoming young adults at an uncertain
time, which only added to their struggles. These war brides were warriors of the heart and were
willing to fight for it no matter the consequences; and there were consequences. Families were
torn apart and left with broken hearts as their daughters departed to an alien land with a foreign
man. Nancy recalls her father saying to her mother, Well, thats the last well see of her. He
had reason for this doubt: traveling was pricey and it was unrealistic for middle class families to
expect to be able to regularly see their departed. But then there was hope. The Transatlantic
Brides and Parents Association (TBPA) was created in order to provide charter flights for the war
brides and their families (http:www.tbpa.info). Nancys mother eagerly signed her up before the
organization was even officially created. Through the years, Nancy and thousands of other war

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brides throughout the country discovered that TBPA and the other war bride associations did
more for them then they could have ever imagined.
The two war bride organizations Nancy is associated with are the Transatlantic Brides
and Parents Association (TBPA) and the World War II War Brides Association. As previously
mentioned, the TBPA was founded in Great Britain by parents whose daughters had married
American or Canadian soldiers after WWII and had then relocated to the USA or Canada. Its
original purpose was to offer a more affordable way to charter flights between the families.
World War II War Brides Association was created for any war bride from any country and though
it does not charter flights, its objective is to provide people who had married Americans and
immigrated to the United States a way to get together and to socialize. Nancy described both of
the organizations focus predominantly being on getting English people together. These British
war brides faced many of the characteristic immigration tribulations such as isolation and
prejudice. They longed for support and understanding and the clubs helped fill that void in their
lives. Through meetings, conventions and newsletters, the organizations sustained the war brides
through their adjustment to the American society. Chapters around the nation have fostered
friendships, some of them lasting for more than 60 years.
Relationships between the members served as a way for the war brides to stay connected
to their homeland. Nancy recalls that it was most important to stay in touch in their younger
years, when America was still very unfamiliar to them. In order to maintain close networks and
friendships with their fellow war brides, they would stay in touch in between meetings and
conventions via mail. Sarah Kershaw, author of the New York Times article Band of Sisters,
explained: They helped each other find work and child care, leaned on one another when they
missed their families, and planned reunions and return trips to England. Many of the brides

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claim that the different clubs gave them the friendship and support they needed to remain in the
United States (Trucco).
Time takes a toll on even the most unfaltering bonds, and so the number of war brides
throughout the country has significantly dwindled. The losses only make those still livings ships
amongst each other all the more important. At 90 years old, Nancy remains in touch with fellow
war brides to do this day. She spoke specifically of a bride who lives in Florida that she regularly
converses with. Their initial connection has blossomed into a beautiful friendship and they write
one another to inquire about each others well-being, families, and they even send one another
their favorite British treats. In fact, Nancy pronounced, one day this week she sent me two
bars of Turkish Delight! The relationships between the war brides remain alive after all these
decades, confirming that the preservation of their English-ness will forever be imperative to
them.
War bride associations aided the women in maintaining their British identity. Vera Long
in her book, From Britain With Love: World War II Pilgrim Brides Sail to America, explains that
When the inevitable feelings of homesickness threatenedit helped many of these young
women to have a cup of tea and a natter (chat) with a fellow Britisher. Intentional preservation
of their British identity was needed in order to retain it because of the vast differences in
language and culture they faced in America. In the United States, words were pronounced
differently and their meanings were not all the same. Gatherings allowed the brides to truly be
themselves and aided them in finding their sense of home. Nancy chuckled at the remembrance
of the brides early confusions: We have so many different words for things, so when we first
came over, we called the trunk of a car, the boot. And there are so many different words like that.
And we would just joke about it amongst ourselves. Highlighting differences between

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themselves and the Americans consequently created stronger bonds between the war brides. Seen
as outsiders to so many, the war bride organizations gave the brides the sense of inclusion they
longed for.
One vital way the war brides upheld their British identities through the organizations was
by performing English traditions. I asked Nancy to comment on how their identities were
fortified through the traditions and she replied:
Thats just what it does. It helps us maintain a sense of our British identity.
Because we have our meetings, we drink tea, we have British biscuits, you know?
We have traditional British foods. We talk about British things. What it used to be
like. What is was like during the war. I mean, I had a bomb fall in my garden, how
about that?
Food ways are one of the traditions Nancy speaks of. The brides were able to keep their culinary
customs alive through English recipes posted in their annual newsletters and British styled
cookbooks made available to the members. English foods and tea were served at the meetings
and conventions, allowing the war brides to get a little taste of their homeland. Song and dance
were integral ways for the brides to express their British heritage. The gatherings included
reflection songs such as one entitled, From a Far Off Land. Nancy proudly asserted that: At
the conventions we used to do old English dances that are not familiar over here, like, she
laughs, Knees up Mother Brown. Thats a dance when you just dance putting your knees up.
There are songs, many many songs, she continues, Especially the war time songs. Nancy
explained that there was a singsong night on the Friday before the Saturday convention. We
would sing all the songs that people didnt sing anymore. I mean people here dont even know,
dont even know about them. But wed sing them just as loud as we could. I asked Nancy why

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she, along with all the other war brides, enjoyed the food ways, song and dance traditions at the
gatherings and without hesitation, she replied: Because its home. Its always home. This is not,
well.this is my home, but my home really is in England. I was shocked at the realization that
my grandmother still is homesick after all these years, but I get it. I get that she will never be
truly at home and that she is content with that. The war bride organizations are simply a way to
bring her closer to home.
Today, Nancy spends her time in her quaint home in Natchitoches, Louisiana. A framed map of
her hometown hangs in her living room. Memorabilia from all the royal weddings stand proud on
display in her dining room. Souvenirs of Big Ben and The London Bridge brought back to her from
her children and grandchildrens travels to England are scattered across her living room. All of these
mementos are a way for Nancy to convey, Im English and Im proud!
Nancy is one of the last surviving members of the original TBPA war brides, which, at its prime,
had thousands of members. Still, to the war brides, the associations remain a powerful link to their
history. Though many of her fellow war brides have passed and her involvement in the TBPA and
World War II War Bride Association has diminished, Nancy manages to keep her heritage alive
through her family. Nancy affirms, I wanted my British tradition to be alive in yall. I wanted yall to
experience it always. I always wanted all of you to go over there and everybodys been. Not
everybodys been as much as everybody else, but I did encourage you to go and, yes, I want you to
remember that you are a quarter British. As I sit here composing this paper, tea by my side, I can
attest that I certainty do bask in my British-ness. Our family takes great pride in our English heritage.
We have never gone a Christmas without the traditional Christmas crackers and Christmas pudding
and I know we never will. I am eternally grateful to both of the war bride associations for providing a

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way for my grandmother to sustain her culture enough to pass down the legacy to her future
generations.
Currently, the TBPA is proposing that anyone born in Britain that now lives in the United
States can obtain membership. Up until now, you had to be a war bride or a family member to
join, but with the shortage of original members, the organization is looking for a way to sustain
itself. I asked Nancy if she approved of this adaptation and she exclaimed, Well I think that
would be great! I mean its the only way to keep it going. I am sure that most war brides would
share Nancys outlook on continuing the organizations. TBPA and the World War II War Bride
Association saw its members through their moments of discomfort and of joy. Think of all it took
for these women to do what they did. They left their families and friends behind to travel to an
unfamiliar land and take on the equally unacquainted role of being a wife. Virden describes:
(The war brides) decided to migrate for love and marriage, not because they wanted to leave
Britain or stop being British (Good-bye, Piccadilly: British War Brides in America.)
The war brides understood each other in a way that no one else could. Nancy noted that
both of the organizations but particularly TBPA helped us keep our sense of home, always. I
would not be the person I am today without my grandmothers influence and the British culture
that went along with that. I ask that anyone related to a war bride give support to the
organizations that kept the brides legacies alive. Become a member. Pass it on to your loved
ones. Capture these stories and traditions while there is still time. War brides are not only a part
of many peoples family history, but they are a piece of Americas national history as well. May
each of their legacies forever remain as strong as their dedication was in preserving it.

Works Cited
"History." TBPA: A British Heritage Society. Web. 18 Apr. 2015. <http:www.tbpa.info>
Kershaw, Sarah. "Band of Sisters." The New York Times. The New York Times, 05 July 2008.
Web. 16 Apr. 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/nyregion/thecity/06brid.html?
oref=slogin>.
Long, Vera A. Cracknell. From Britain With Love: World War II Pilgrim Brides Sail to America.
New Market, VA: Denecroft Pub. 1999. Print.
Trucco, Terry. "300 War Brides Go Home, To Tea and Tears." The New York Times. The New
York Times, 28 Sept. 1986. Web. 18 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/29/us/300-war-brides-go-home-to-tea-andtears.html>.
Virden, Jenel. Good-bye, Piccadilly: British War Brides in America. Urbana: U of Illinois, 1996.
Print.
"War Brides." World War II Foundation. N.p., 2014. Web. 16 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.wwiifoundation.org/category/films/war-brides-2016/>.