Pioneering journalist Beryl Carrington, who worked at the Herts
Advertiser in St Albans for nearly 70 years, died suddenly on 11 March.
Beryl,
aged 86, who had an unparalleled knowledge of St Albans where she had
lived all her life, died at her home in Church Crescent.
Her
death marks the end of a long connection between the Herts Advertiser
and the Carrington family, dating, back to 1896 when her father Harry
became chief reporter and comes shortly before the newspaper celebrates
its milestone 150th birthday which she was looking forward to.
Beryl joined the Herts Advertiser at the age of 16 and was one of the first women to be employed as a reporter.
At
first she and her female colleagues were limited to covering items for
the children’s page as well social events in the county, but all that
changed after World War II when the role of women in news expanded
greatly.
She worked under eight of the newspaper’s 12 editors, including her father who went on to become editor.
Both her brother and nephew also worked for the Herts Advertiser.
Beryl saw herself as a pioneer of women’s journalism and always encouraged later generations of women to take the same route.
She
was known for taking young journalists under her wing. She helped and
encouraged them as well as offering them lodgings at Church Crescent
which was always open house to all and where she held her famous
“wayzgoose” parties – named after a printing term.
In 1995 when she was nearly 77, she was made an MBE for services to journalism.
A great supporter of the Queen and the monarchy, she described the presentation was one of the greatest days of her life.
Beryl
also co-authored three books, including one about the history of the
Herts Red Cross. She had been a supporter of the organisation since
joining it as a teenage cadet .
During World War II she was
involved in the nursing of wounded soldiers who had been evacuated to
North Mymms, which had been turned into a convalescent home.
She was made a county vice-president for her service and latterly, she helped to organises Red Cross flag days in St Albans.
Madeleine Burton, Herts Advertiser
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