MARY ELIZABETH SLATER - Red Plaque

MARY ELIZABETH SLATER

24th January 1903
to
30th November 1983

At the start of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, Mary joined the International Brigade to help combat Franco's fascism, serving as a nurse in field hospitals. After repatriation she served as a nurse in the London blitz and then returned to nursing in Preston.

WHO WAS MARY ELIZABETH SLATER?

Mary Slater was born on 21 January 1903 into a working class family that lived at number 27 on Ephraim Street. The Street still exists today, and is connected to London Road, in the Fishwick area.

She commenced her working life as a weaver at 14 years of age and soon became an activist in her trade union and the Labour Party League of Youth. This culminated in her visiting the USSR during its early years, as part of a youth delegation in 1926. In the course of her visit she was introduced to Stalin and drank tea with Leon Trotsky. Later Mary became a nurse. She did her training between 1931 and 1934. When the Spanish Civil War broke out she immediately offered her services to the Republican government via the Spanish Medical Aid Committee. Mary arrived in Spain on 29th September 1936 and was deployed to the Aragon Front. Mary served from September 1936 to August 1938 and during that period she had only one period of home leave. She devoted this time to raising money for Spanish Medical Aid.

After the International Brigade demobilisation in 1938 she was included in a group of Brigaders touring the UK to raise money for Spanish Medical Aid. Following this UK tour she applied for her post back and was promptly charged £5 for leaving her post without serving a period of notice.

Mary carried on nursing throughout the London blitz, returning to Preston as a senior nurse/matron at the Ribblesdale Day Nursery. She transferred to Deepdale Hospital, which I am taking to be the Preston Royal Infirmary. She stayed there until she retired. At the time of making the red plaque, a suitable location for it had not yet been chosen. The unveiling of a plaque to Mary Slater in the city’s Peace Garden took place on Saturday 16th June 2018. That seems like a fitting location. From what I have found, I believe that the garden itself first opened on Saturday 8th August 1987.

The Imperial War Museums have some recordings of Mary being interviewed in 1976. The collection appears to contain 5 items and has a whole duration of 150 minutes. Unfortunately, the information I have found is just a catalogue record and you are not able to listen to the recordings online.

Mary Slater - the story of a photo, and a plaque...

By Lynette Cawthra (Working Class Movement Library Blog)

This page has subsequently been removed from the blog, but can be found on the 'Internet Archive'. If the are any copyright issues with regard to including it here as a resource, it will be removed.

The Library has received money from Salford University’s Advantage Fund to undertake a pilot digitisation project involving our unique Spanish Civil War materials – posters, photographs, letters etc. Students from the University are helping to digitise and interpret this material. Our Object of the Month for June 2018 in our hall is a photo from May 1937 which has just been digitised in superb quality. It shows nurses and a Spanish doctor on the Aragon Front. Lancashire nurse Mary Slater is front row 2nd left.

Saturday 16th June 2018 in Preston, Lancashire sees the unveiling of a plaque to Mary Slater in the city’s Peace Garden. The question may be asked - who was this person, to warrant such a plaque?

Mary Slater was born on 21 January 1903 in Ephraim Street, Preston into a working class family. She commenced her working life as a weaver at 14 years of age and soon became an activist in her trade union and the Labour Party League of Youth. This culminated in her being in a youth delegation to the young USSR in 1926. In the course of her visit she was introduced to Stalin and Trotsky.

1931 saw a career change for Mary and she became a nurse (training period 1931-1934). The 1930s saw the rise of fascism in Europe and when the Spanish Civil War broke out she immediately offered her services to the Republican government via the Spanish Medical Aid Committee.

Nurses and doctor, Aragon Front, 1937Mary arrived in Spain on 29 September 1936 and was deployed to the Aragon Front – her duties were many and varied, and included:

Training Spanish women on nursing techniques
Running clinics for local peasants
Nursing wounded soldiers
Preparing field hospitals

A perusal of her biography file at the Working Class Movement Library reveals that she was well travelled, being stationed in Granada and Benicasim. (The Advantage Fund project has digitised various travel documents relating to Mary, including safe conduct passes and a letter to her from the Foreign Office in 1940 requesting repayment of the cost of repatriating her from Spain). Benicasim was one of the main convalescent bases/hospitals for members of the International Brigades.

Mary served from September 1936 to August 1938 and during that period she had only one period of home leave - which she devoted to raising money for Spanish Medical Aid.

Mary carried on nursing throughout the London blitz, returning to Preston as a senior nurse/matron at one of the care centres.

Mary Elizabeth Slater was indeed a woman of immense skill, energy and anti-fascist views, and Preston and South Ribble Trade Union Council are proud to sponsor the plaque. The plaque will be unveiled at 12 noon on Saturday 16th at the Peace Garden at the junction of Friargate/Cheapside and the ring road (opposite Wetherspoons public house).

Terry Bayes, volunteer

25th June 2018, a PS from an event attendee:

Preston People's Festival kicked off at 12 noon, 16 June 2018 with an assembly bedecked in a variety of banners in the Preston Peace Garden to unveil a monumental plaque to an outstanding native of our city, namely, Mary Elizabeth Slater, who served with distinction along with 35 other English speaking nurses during the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939.

She was in the first support contingent of the Spanish Medical Aid, arriving two months after the commencement of hostilities, and was later transferred to the International Brigade Medical Services on the instructions of the Republican government. The event was co-ordinated by Brother Michael Megrell of Preston and South Ribble Trades Union Council.

Three speakers addressed the assembly. Sister Janet Newsham spoke on the role of women in society, past, present, and future prospects. Charles Jepson, of the North West International Brigade Memorial Trust, spoke on the general background of the war in Spain, and Terry Bayes gave a most interesting and informative talk on Mary Slater, both before and after her time in Spain. The unveiling of the plaque, which was draped in a replica of the Major Attlee Batallion banner, was done by Vera Stephens, a relative of Mary Slater, who is herself a supporter of left wing causes in the Preston area. Following the unveiling, the proceedings were brought to a close by a spirited rendition of the Internationale by all those attending. Thus we trade unionists can truly say that a little-known but cherished citizen of our city has now been commemorated with a permanent and fitting tribute, which we hope will continue to be used as a focus for future events.

Further reading and sources of information

Peace garden looking lovely - Lynn Fielding:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/prestonpastandpresent/permalink/3823026687929520/

Mary Slater remembered: Very excited, the plaque has arrived - Janet Newsham:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/prestonpastandpresent/permalink/2008369772728563/

Official completion of the Peace Garden - 19th September 2024

https://www.preston.gov.uk/article/9323/Official-completion-of-the-Peace-Garden

Mary Slater; the story of a photo, and a plaque - WCML:

https://web.archive.org/web/20221123103058/https://wcml.org.uk/blogs/Lynette-Cawthra/Mary-Slater--the-story-of-a-photo-and-a-plaque/

Mary Slater's red plaque - Preston Historical Society's Winter 2018 Newsletter:

https://www.prestonhistoricalsociety.org.uk/pdf/newsletter-winter-2018.pdf

Mary Elizabeth Slater Interview, 1976, Imperial War Museums: