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Tom Jeffreys was 19 when war was declared between Britain and Germany. A former miner and steelworker (although his father’s family were well-to-do butchers) he and his friends were intrigued by the sound of bells and singing on the night of the 3rd-4th August 1914.

Putting their horse and cart away, Tom and his friends made their way to Llanelli’s Drill Hall, where they glimpsed a soldier putting up a sign: Recruits Wanted. They didn’t hesitate. They went straight in and signed up.

After the war, Tom emigrated to America, settling in Baltimore, where he adapted to the American way of life, although without losing his Welsh accent!

This recording has been supplied courtesy of Tom’s grand-daughter, Rachel Jeffreys, who describes her grandfather as ‘an extraordinary talker, a voracious reader of non-fiction, a very hard worker who eventually raised himself to the post of superintendent of a steel mill in Baltimore, a respected leader of the St. David's Society of Baltimore and other groups, a stubborn curmudgeon at times, and I wish he could have lived forever.’

Location: Drill Hall, Murray Street, Llanelli, SA151BQ

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