Thanks to Captain Chaos for this look back at the Hygienic laundry. The Hygienic Laundry (Abingdon) was set up in 1932 and closed in 1976.
This photograph shows the staff at the laundry circa 1945. I think the room is the one on the corner of Wilsham Road and Caldecott Road. The lady second from left, second row from front is my late Auntie Win. During the war another Auntie, Gladys (who also worked there), recalls how they would launder the bloodied sheets and uniforms from a near-by American Military hospital (possibly Cowley). In Win’s loft, I found a large wooden trunk that was used to carry their laundry, it was stamped U.S Army and had the names of a number of G.I.’s pinned to the side.
Gladys also recalls how during the war the staff would take it in turn to “Fire Watch” which basically meant two girls would spend the night sleeping on the office floor of the Laundry just in case anything happened to the building. She spoke of the night she was on watch and Abingdon was the target of enemy bombers. Search lights were blazing and the anti-aircraft guns firing. Shippon Church took a hit as did Evelyn road.
