´óÏó´«Ã½

This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Holly Fuller of Leicestershire Library Services on behalf of John Degrange and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the sites terms and conditions.

One of my memories of the war is that of Peter Green. Peter lived with his parents at the ‘Gas Works House’ and they had come from Coventry when his Dad became manager of the ‘Works’ in Leek, Staffordshire.

Peter left school and wanted to join the Navy. He had a ‘Meccano’ set, a number 7A and I bought it from him before he departed. That was the last I saw of Peter, he was supposed to be sixteen and he did join the Navy.

On his first voyage out with the Merchant Navy, Peter was torpedoed and drowned. His parents were bereft. That was all the information about the loss.

Nearly sixty years after, when the Newbold Verdon Library received the computers I learned how to use them in a limited way and heard of a website where names of persons lost during the war had been recorded.

I located Peter Kenyon Green, an apprentice on the S.S Testbank (Glasgow). Peter died 2 December 1943. His Grave reference was panel 106, Tower Hill Memorial.

So there you are, when you buy your Poppy think of Peter and boys like him of sixteen, who gave their lives for you.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.