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Mrs Bridgie Black was three years old when the war began in 1939. Unlike many children around this time, she was not evacuated to the country. However she experienced some very hard times during the war, including times of bombing and explosions.

Bridgie lived in Byker, in Newcastle, with her mother,and her brothers and sisters. Her father was fighting in the army for the entire stretch of the war. During this time, Bridgie missed her father terribly and letters from him took a very long time to arrive. There was never a time where Bridgie鈥檚 mother struggled to keep the family going as the older siblings helped out around the home.

Evacuations did take place around the Durham area; many of Bridgie鈥檚 friends were evacuated to the country. However, she saw many of them return home soon after evacuation as many of them felt very homesick and did not like the families they were placed with. Many of the evacuees were very happy with their families and stayed with them until the end of the war, some of which were Bridgie鈥檚 friends.

During the war, there were many air raid attacks around where Bridgie lived. The air raids were awful. The sirens to warn them were unmistakable. When they were heard, everyone panicked but the air raid wardens, dressed in tin hats, patrolled around the area to make sure everyone was safely in the shelters. The shelters were damp, many people preferred to stay in their own shelters in their back gardens or downstairs cupboards. There were iron beds in the shelters which were very rarely used for sleeping. It was nerve racking and very scary, people got very little sleep.
Relief after the all clear was given. Bridgie and the rest of the street could come out of the shelters and see what damage, if any, had been done to their street. Bridgie was always filled with anxiety when she first came out of the shelter, afraid in case her street had been demolished.
If the raids were after 12:00 the children would miss school that next day.

Bridgie鈥檚 most memorable experience was one specific air raid one night. When the air raid sirens came on, sometimes Bridgie鈥檚 brothers and sisters would stay in their auntie鈥檚 bed, but one night her auntie decided to go downstairs with Bridgie鈥檚 brothers and sisters, and go underneath the table. That night, there was a bomb dropped onto her house, and the bomb landed in the middle of the bed. Luckily no one was injured, but it was a terrifying experience.

Also during an air raid, Spillers Flower Factory, near the Quayside, was hit by a bomb. It blew ashbins from the bottom of the stairs to the top, and the side of one of the houses on a nearby street was blown up. Luckily Bridgie was safe in the air raid shelter that night.

After the war Bridgie鈥檚 street had a big celebration. The ration books were abolished and Bridgie could have her long missed ice cream and sweets at last. Her father also returned safely from the war, along with many other soldiers from that street.

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