大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥� War by a volunteer from The Chepstow Society on behalf of Eileen Couch and has been added to the site with her permission. Eileen Couch fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

Army Camps

there were Troops by then, the Racecourse was full of Troops, now what did we have the first lot of Troops there. You had the Scotch Regiment, and the Gloucester鈥檚 in the Racecourse. Then they did up the huts in Bulwark and they brought Troops into there. I can鈥檛 remember who they were, I think they were the Welsh Regiment, I can鈥檛 remember. But they were done up and there was Troops in there. The huts in Sudbury were done up, and there were Troops there. And then Piercefield House that was the RAF were in there. Because they used to run, they had a Hurricane Station on the Racecourse look, they used to run Hurricanes off the Racecourse, there were no races then. Then the stables in the bottom where the horses went, during the races. They were turned into Barracks, for as I say, there was a Scotch Regiment there.

After D Day, Bulwark was then a Military Soldiers Unit for so long look, and then they turned it into a Prisoner of War Camp, Germans they were. As far as I was concerned they were human beings the same as I was. It wasn鈥檛 their fault there was a war, they were just unfortunate. I mean, we used to talk to them, Dad used to talk to them. I mean the Camp gate was just at the bottom of where we lived look. Eventually when they used to let them come out, he used to bring him home. He used to come home for Sunday dinner look. before that he would give him cigarettes through the fence look. But as I say, they were there, I think they left about 1947/48 they repatriated them back to Germany. In fact he sends a Christmas Card every day (year) every Christmas he sends a Christmas Card. In fact he came, it must have been about five years ago now, he came over to England and he came to see us here. Willie sent Dad after he went back to Germany, a key, its a bottle opener actually, but its a key in enamel. He sent that, and then when Dad died, he sent he sent money to one of the florists to send flowers, Willie said, I wont forget your Father鈥檚 kindness to me.

And then other only the other bomb that dropped in Chepstow was on a Saturday morning, same thing, plane getting away look, and he must have dropped it in the river, or close to Beachley look. And it was the machine guns, it was the bloke with the plane came back and machine gunned it look. And this lad was running from one to the other, and he got killed with the machine gun bullets, yes a lad, a Beachley Lad.

Army

He was in RAF Fred was and Herbert look. They were, let me think. Harold was ninety three, and I think they were all more or less around the same age. I mean Fred Griffiths died last year didn鈥檛 he, he was ninety odd wasn鈥檛 he? they would all have been round thirty you know, thirty odd during the war. I think Herbert Fred and Harold Morris all went around about 1941 I think, I can鈥檛 remember rightly. I know as I say, Herbert and Fred were accepted, and Harold wasn鈥檛 accepted because he was deaf in one year. So they wouldn鈥檛 accept him, and he was very upset about that.

Home life
I used to make do and mend, and Mother was very good at that, because she was a very good seamstress. I mean I鈥檝e seen her turn my Grandmothers coat into a coat for me, and a coat for my sister. You didn鈥檛 bother with dance clothes, there weren鈥檛 such things as dance dresses, you went in what you stood up in. I suppose those girls you know that had had fancy dresses before the war, they would wear them until they couldn鈥檛 wear them any longer.
The Americans they weren鈥檛 here very long, and we got friendly with a couple of them. And when this one lad went back, he said 鈥渨hen I get home I鈥檒l send you a present鈥�. To which I thanked him very much not expecting to get any present anyway. Anyway, one day the Postman knocked on the door, and he said I want eight pound fifty(ten shillings)off you. I said 鈥渨hat for?鈥� he said 鈥淚鈥檝e got a present, a parcel from America for you, but you鈥檝e got to pay the duty on it鈥�. Anyway, when we opened this parcel I think there were three pair of nylons in there, a box of chocolates, and nice silk jumper for Mum, I don鈥檛 know what he sent for Dad, but he鈥檇 sent everything for the family, you know. And we had to pay eight pounds duty, because we didn鈥檛 know there was some duties to pay on it. Mind it was fantastic to have the nylons.

I mean we never went hungry during the war. Although it was rationed we never went hungry, because Father used to go out with his ferrets and a gun you know. So we used to have rabbits and pheasants and that sort of thing. I mean we never knew what it was to go hungry. He planted the garden and we had an allotment, which is Burnt Barn Road today. there was a lot people with allotments there, and we had a big one on the top.

Mother was very good at inventing, we鈥檇 have fish cakes made out of salmon paste Oh yes, we used to have lovely salmon fish cakes, but it was only salmon paste and potatoes. And then of course as I say, Father would go out and bring back rabbit, and we鈥檇 have rabbit stew and roast rabbit, and rabbit pie and all the rest of it. It was all rabbit you know. We used to have plates of bread pudding and faggots, she was very good at making faggots.
And then I can remember the night they bombed Bristol. We sat on the oak tree, you could read the newspaper sat on the oak tree, so light from Bristol. you could hear it, you could see it from miles, you could see the flames, and days after that, it smoked and burnt. But the night they actually bombed it, there used to be two seats on the oak tree, you could sit there, and you could read the paper, it was that light!
They used to fly over Bulwark when they were going North. If they were going to Birmingham, or going to the north, they would always come this way. I mean you could lie in bed and hear them going over you know. You could always tell the drone of the Germans plane, and then you can remember the drone of them coming back again.

They would listen to the news, and then you would go to a family that had got someone serving abroad you know, and they would listen to it, and know what was going on. But mostly it was the news, and light entertainment, Vera Lynn and things like that, and Tommy Handley and those sort of people you know. I mean in the old days, it wasn鈥檛 like it was today, there was no sex and nonsense, in the old days it was straightforward pure fun.

Hospitals

Anyway, 1943, yes 1943 I came back to Chepstow, permanently. So then again, you couldn鈥檛 please yourself where you worked. So I was sent to the Isolation Hospital, as a nurse, what I knew about nursing you could have put one a postage stamp, it didn鈥檛 make any difference. I mean, my first jobs as a nurse consisted of cleaning brasses, I cleaned enough brass door knobs in my life to last me a lifetime. Any way eventually as I say in 1943 I went there and started. And it wasn鈥檛 very busy, there were only three of us, there was the Matron, the Sister and myself. Only three of us there, and the cook, one cook for the lot, and the cleaner. The Cook never came in contact, neither did the cleaner look, because she would not go into the wards, they were not allowed into the wards. I mean the nursing staff had to do the cleaning. I earned nineteen shillings a week 鈥榗os I was working shifts, but I got my keep, mind, I didn鈥檛 have to buy food.

Anyway, 1943 we had an epidemic of Scarlet Fever and Diphtheria, and the Hospital was full, all the wards were full. I was never inoculated against Diphtheria or Scarlet Fever because I couldn鈥檛 catch it, I was immune to both of them. You had to keep them for six weeks, you see. They couldn鈥檛 come out for six weeks. We鈥檇 got one two three, we had four wards, and they were all full. There was a big long one that went up the lane, that was the Scarlet Fever ward. Then the little one just inside the door, that was the Diphtheria ward. Then there was another one a little bit farther, and that was a Diphtheria ward, and the end one was a Diphtheria Ward. What it boiled down to actually there were about fourteen beds in the ward look. That was the long ward, and then the others had one two I think there was five in the one, and five in the other. There were in all about thirty odd people. I worked right through it look, morning noon and night, there were no hours. When we were full up, and we couldn鈥檛 take anymore, they all had to go into Newport, so I mean goodness knows how many people had it, but that鈥檚 all that we could take.

So that went on through 1943, it was quite bad actually, although we only had one death, a little boy. Kenny Pennies was the little lad that died, and I went to fetch him in. I didn鈥檛 drive the ambulance, I had to go with it, accompany the little lad yes. Anyway I fetched Kenny in, and he was quite ill while I fetched him in. He lived next door to us look, I knew him. Anyway as we walked in through the door, the Matron takes one look at him, and she said he won鈥檛 go out here, from here on his legs. So I thought I鈥檒l prove you wrong, you know I sort of nursed Kenny and looked after Kenny. Anyway it was my afternoon off, and I鈥檇 gone home for the afternoon, and walked back up in the evening. And to walk in and I was told as I walked in through the door 鈥淜enny died this afternoon.鈥� Nearly broke my heart.

At the Isolation Hospital, Doctor O鈥橰eilly was the Medical Officer, and he come into the hospital and he said 鈥渢here is a whole family of Diphtheria up Devauden, and I want the whole family brought in鈥�. So I get in this old ambulance, I mean it was a right old rattle box. Anyway, I go to Devauden, and you can smell Diphtheria, oh yes you can smell Diphtheria, you can smell it as soon as you walk in. Anyway I walked into this house you see, and the Mother said 鈥測ou鈥檝e got to take the whole family鈥� and there were eight of them, and they ranged from six months to about ten years! Anyway I bring this these people, I said they haven鈥檛 got Diphtheria. Dr Reilly said they got Diphtheria, and you got to take them in. So I said 鈥� he鈥檚 the Boss, but I said they haven鈥檛 got Diphtheria鈥�. I take all these kids in and they had the whole ward to their self, all of eight of them. Anyway, they hadn鈥檛 got Diphtheria they had Mumps. I couldn鈥檛 catch Diphtheria, and I couldn鈥檛 catch Scarlet Fever, but I caught Mumps. I was really ill, I think spent about six weeks on the sick, and I decided that was it, I wasn鈥檛 going back anymore, and by then it was 1944.

Town

There used to be a canteen, just for Soldiers or Service Men. If you can picture the Methodist Church, then next to that church there was what used to be, the front of it was the offices then for The Red & White, and the back of there was a big hall; and that was turned into a canteen for service men. They could go in and have a cup of tea. It was all voluntary run. We were allowed so much food, you see. Bread we could buy, margarine you could buy. I mean, eggs you could get being in the country, I mean I could eggs and that. I mean you could get odds and ends, you could get cheese and things like that, we used to make cheese sandwiches. Any way this canteen was the run for the Forces. And a cup of tea was a penny, and a sandwich was tuppence. And it would be open from two o鈥檆lock in the afternoon 鈥榯il ten o鈥檆lock at night. We were all volunteers. our team used to run it on Tuesday, and there was Herbert Griffiths, Uncle Bert, that was Herbert Griffiths鈥� Uncle, um Herbert Griffiths, Irenee (Mrs Morris, House of Quality) and I. I鈥檓 just trying to think there was four of us, oh and Herbert Griffiths鈥� Aunty Blodwin. Tuesday night was our night to run it, and we would run it on Tuesday night. None of us used to get paid for anything. What they the Soldiers paid, the pennies that they paid look, bought the stuff that they had. I mean you you weren鈥檛 talking about a few Troops, you were talking Battalions in those days you see, and as I say these people would come in for a cup of tea. And then one thing that sticks in my mind one Tuesday, our Tuesday was Pancake Tuesday. And I said, 鈥渓ets make pancakes鈥�. Oh they said, 鈥測ou can鈥檛 make pancakes鈥�, I said yes I can. Anyway, I made pancakes, hundreds of pancakes, I think I cooked pancakes for six hours! Pancakes, pancakes, pancakes. I could even toss pancakes in those days! Anyway it turned out a great success, the pancakes.

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