18. Fern House

Mrs Florence Watson was two years a widow when the war began, and lived in Fern Cottage with two of her five children, Millicent and Sylvia. Her husband, Thomas James Watson, had been a renowned watercolourist, and they had moved to Ombersley by 1901.
In January 1915, Florence & Sylvia passed a First Aid exam organised by Lady Sandys. In 1918, as a widow over 30 with a sizable property in her own name, Mrs Watson qualified to vote in the first election in which women could participate.
Mrs Watson subscribed £3 to the Memorial Hall Fund, equivalent to £90 today.