A GREAT, great grandmother who had a top-secret job during the second world war has celebrated her 100th birthday.

Mary Sherwood, who is a resident at Brampton Lodge Care Home in Appleton, was born in Buxton on April 29, 1924.

She spent most of her formative years in Fairfield in Derbyshire and after leaving school, her first job was in a wallpaper shop.

But Mary didn’t enjoy the job and was determined to move on, so she attended night school to learn shorthand and typing.

This led to her landing a new role at the cash desk at Collinson’s Café in Derbyshire which is where she met her future husband Victor who worked in the bakery.

But the second world war immediately broke out. The pair’s courtship continued though as they watched fire from Collinson’s Café roof.

Victor then had to leave to fight in war.

Warrington Guardian:

During this time as the war progressed, Mary joined the civil service as a typist at The Empire Hotel in Buxton as many of these venues were being taken over for war work.

The nature of her work here was so secret that nobody knew what it was that she was actually doing and she often wasn’t allowed out of the building for several days at a time.

Mary had to sleep in temporary dormitories set up in the hotel cellars.

Her work required the production of punch cards and now it can be assumed that these were sent to Bletchley Park.

Mary and Victor were able to marry during one of his leaves during the war and the pair went on to have two children.

Lynn was born in 1945 and David was born in 1947.

Mary then left the civil service and while her children were growing up, she took on a range of part time jobs including a cinema usherette and a sweet shop assistant.

When the children were older, Mary then became secretary to the sales manager of the Buxton Lime Works.

Mary, who is a mother, a great grandmother, and a great, great grandmother, later moved to a bungalow in Appleton where she lived until she was well in to her 90s.

But due to her requiring more support, she became a resident of Brampton Lodge.

To celebrate Mary’s 100th birthday, the care home hosted a special day for her which included a visit from the Mayor of Warrington Steve Wright.