大象传媒

This story has been written onto the 大象传媒 People's War site by CSV Storygatherer Robin.D.Bailey on behalf of the author John Harvey. They fully understand the terms and conditions of the site.

I was born at Trewoofe, St. Buryan on 1st October 1927 and approaching my teenage years when the Second World War broke out.

We returned to St. Buryan School after the summer holidays in September 1939, to find that the classroom windows had been taped to prevent flying glass from bomb blasts. Down in the playing field, trenches had been dug to be used when an air-raid alert was heard. The trenches were soon filled in and the farm lane (Boskennal) was looked upon as best protection.

The Headmaster made us practise by blowing a whistle; We would exit the classrooms and those who could run fastest, ran the furthest down the lane. Another blast on the whistle and we went back to the classrooms.

Outside of school time, the air-raid alerts were given by a Warden walking up and down the streets with a hand bell. One was heard to say upon hearing, 鈥淥h, I thought it was the Ice-Cream man.鈥� I was told, 鈥淵ou鈥檒l get ice-cream if the Germans come!鈥� and we were promptly ordered indoors.

At night everywhere was in darkness (the blackout). As we sat indoors listening to the wireless or reading, we could hear the drone of the aircraft. We were told that it was one of our own, but when the bombs dropped we knew different!

It was said that these same aircraft, on a moonlit night, used the shadow of the land; They flew down the English Channel, crossed over the Lands End Peninsula and up the Bristol Channel to drop bombs on the ports at Bristol, Cardiff and Swansea. Not all would go as far. In the stillness of the night, the drone of an aircraft could be heard and the scream of the descending bombs, the explosion and then the smell of cordite.

I went to Penzance to see an unexploded bomb that had been removed from a house. It had been rested on a trestle in the street. I viewed from a distance, some time later it exploded (the first of many time bombs). The Bomb Disposal Squad (part of the Royal Engineers) did this
dangerous job. They had a red flash on the forearm of their battledress.

On a Saturday night, a sixpenny hop was taking place when a stick of bombs were dropped on Bartinney Downs, the first in St. Buryan. The next Sunday, I and many others made our way there to see the craters.

It was potato digging time, in St. Buryan in 1940, this was called 鈥淒rawing Tatties.鈥� In the afternoon a German Bomber was circling over the Lands End Peninsula. We watched it from the village, as did the Doctor鈥檚 son. He told us it was 鈥渂ombs away.鈥� Below the aircraft there were bags of potatoes in the field. Some believe the bomber may have thought the full sacks were soldiers, for they were machine gunned as well. It may have been looking for the cable and wireless at Porthcurno, which was then a very important part of British Communications.

The potato and rabbit were a very important part our survival. Churchill鈥檚 greatest fear was the U-boat and Harold Macmillan said 鈥淭he farmer is the best shipbuilder.鈥� It was said that we were within days of starvation, so young ladies were drafted into the Women鈥檚 Land Army and young men were given exemption from the forces. Boys were given time off from school at planting and harvest times.

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