大象传媒

This story written by Marion Carrington was submitted to the People's War site by Christine Wadsworth of Wakefield Libraries and Information Services on behalf of her daughter, Audrey Reilly. Mrs Reilly fully understands the site's terms and conditions and has given her permission for the story to be added.

Mrs Marion Carrington originally wrote the story of her war years for her family. It was made available locally and copies sold in aid of St Helen's Church, in 1995. Marion Carrington died in 1999.

War broke out in 1939. Hitler was intent on conquering Europe. Our Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, went to Munich to talk to Hitler and try to come to some agreement to stave off war. Many people hoped the talks would be successful but I had my doubts. The Country was lulled into a false sense of security. However, war was announced on a Sunday morning in September 1939. Everyone was glued to the radio waiting for a statement from the Prime Minister.

I remember I was making jam and as war was announced a wasp had come through the window. I was so stunned with the news that I swiped the wasp so hard, I put the window through.

My first thoughts were for my husband and I wondered like a good many more mothers and wives about their husbands and sons 鈥� when they would be called up for military service. They were worrying days. I was told many times by my acquaintances and friends that my husband wouldn鈥檛 be called up for ages and by that time, the war would be over. How wrong they were.

We were given instructions on how to make our homes gas-proof and the windows shatter-proof. Carpets were taken up and all floorboards were sealed with brown sticky tape. The window panes were 鈥榣atticed鈥� with this tape as well to stop most of the glass from shattering. We also had to get 鈥榖lackout鈥� curtains for door and windows. No chinks of light must be seen from outside.

We were told to prepare a room and make it gas-proof. We were asked to hang a wet blanket over this door.

In the streets the lamps were put out. Car headlights were dimmed by sticking black paper over the headlight with a small hole in the centre. Torches used outside received the same treatment. All church bells were silenced for the duration of the war. Cinemas were closed because of the bombing as a large number of people in one building would result in a greater number of casualties. Everywhere there was an atmosphere of tension and alertness.

A 鈥楧ad鈥檚 Army鈥� was created as the Home Guard was formed. There were air raid wardens too. Everyone left at home was called to do their bit. Because Hemsworth was chiefly a mining community, most of the men were in reserved occupations.

The need for men to work in the pits was so great that eligible young men had the choice of either military service or mining. One young man, known now internationally, was Sir Jimmy Saville. He was a miner at South Kirkby Colliery. These men were called 鈥楤evin Boys鈥�.

That Sunday night on the day that war broke out, the air raid sirens went and we went into a bit of a panic as well. I think we must have decided that there would be a gas attack.

We soaked a blanket in water and hung it on the hooks we had carefully placed over the sitting room door as we had been instructed. Oh dear! What a dripping mess. There seemed to be water everywhere and to crown it all, the blanket was about six inches too short. Many people had tales to tell about the first air raid warning. After all the fuss, the warning turned out to be a false alarm.

Gas masks were issued to everyone. We had to go to the Parish Hall on Back Lane for ours. Babies were issued with a type of cradle with a pump fitted. Children under a certain age had 鈥楳ickey Mouse鈥� gas masks. We were instructed to carry our masks about with us at all times.

After that first air-raid warning, things seemed to settle down and we entered a state of 鈥楥old War鈥�.

Everyone was issued with ration books, clothing coupons and a book of points. Sugar, butter, lard, meat, tea and bacon were all rationed and we only had very small quantities per week. We had to 鈥榬egister鈥� at the grocer鈥檚 shop and we could only draw our rations where we were registered. Goods that were not rationed like syrup, tinned goods, dried fruit etc all disappeared under the counter. We bartered amongst ourselves and exchanged our rations such as swapping tea for sugar etc. Sweets and fruit also disappeared from the shops. We always knew when parcels were handed over the counter for favours rendered. Instead of apples, children chewed raw carrots. Eggs were also very scarce and we were issued with tins of dried egg which came in very useful for cooking and baking.

One day my little daughter came in breathless. 鈥淢ummy, Mummy, quick. There鈥檚 some bananas in a shop down the street鈥�. We hurried down only to find that an advertisement had been stuck on the window of the greengrocer. Of course we had tears. There was nothing I could do about it but it was so disappointing for the children. I said 鈥淣ever mind. I鈥檒l make you some Kali (sherbert powder) when we get home鈥�. I mixed health salts and glucose together and as she dipped her finger in the mixture, she smiled and the bananas were soon forgotten. After that I often made Kali from glucose I was able to buy at the clinic. I used to make little pokes from corners of bags to put this kali in for the kids in the street. I also made what my husband called 鈥榤uckment鈥�. It was a mixture of cocoa, glucose and powdered milk, mixed together with a drop of cold water. This was popular too!

There were lots of posters around urging us, in one way or another, to help with the war effort. One poster said 鈥楧ig for Victory鈥� which we did and we managed to grow most of our own vegetables. One day, as I was out shopping, I got to know that there were apples at the greengrocers. I went in and the young girl assistant served me but just as I was about to pay for them, the boss emerged from a back room and said very loudly. 鈥淚n future, no veg 鈥� no apples鈥� I pushed them back over the counter and told him in no uncertain terms to keep his apples. Afterwards, I was sorry because fruit was so scarce. I never went into that shop any more. Sometimes there were oranges in Middleton鈥檚 shop but we were very lucky if we ever got any. When sweet rationing was introduced at least we got our quota; it was much fairer.

Sometimes, there were special allocations delivered to the grocer. These allocations were goods such as tinned salmon, dried fruit, corned beef and golden syrup. It was miraculous the way news spread and queues formed before the goods were even unloaded.

Most grocers, however, looked after their registered customers and dealt out these goods fairly. One always came across a person who had been left out or who had been badly done by.

It wasn鈥檛 long before we were issued with books of points. Some of these special allocations could be bought with points. There was always the person who moaned loudly in the shop about not having any points. Sometimes they were given points by someone who felt sorry for them. When the donor went out, this person would then produce her own book of points. It happened over and over again. It was alright for some if you could tell a good sob story.

Clothing coupons were issued to everyone. These could be exchanged for clothes, shoes, blankets, curtains etc. These items were stamped with the utility mark. Even furniture was stamped in this way. It was thought rather inferior quality but it is far superior to some of the furniture produced today.

Wrapping paper, bags etc, were all in very short supply.We carried home potatoes and vegetables in our old shopping bags. Eggs, when available, were sold loose. Bags were used over and over again. Flour bags were re-used for hen food and corn etc. Housewives became very thrifty and hardly anything was thrown away as rubbish.

Travel was very trying and difficult too. There were always huge queues at the bus stops and people were very patient. Sometimes the queues were so long they got mixed up with other queues and quite often one could be standing in the wrong queue. The conductresses were very good natured and they just packed as many people on the buses as was literally possible. The buses seemed to have elastic sides. The United and Bingley鈥檚 Services were noted for not leaving anyone stranded.

During the winter months it was so dark the conductresses called out the names of the places we stopped. Invariably, nearly half the standing passengers had to get off to let people off, then they had to get on again. There were queue creepers to watch out for. They would edge their way very slyly to the front of the queue.

It was almost impossible to collect fares and lots of people had many a free ride, money and tickets were passed up and down and sometimes money was dropped on the floor. One old clippie used to shout 鈥� Has anyone paid twice?鈥�

There were lots of posters around saying, 鈥� Is your journey necessary?鈥�, 鈥楥areless talk costs lives鈥�, and 鈥榃alls have ears鈥�.

People with cars were restricted as petrol was rationed and so many doctors and people involved in public services had more petrol. I believe that forces petrol was coloured to avoid pilfering.

During these tense days, the radio, or wireless as we used to call it, played a very important part in our lives. Each morning on rising, the radio was switched on for news and weather.

Each morning at the same time, the Minister for Food, Lord Woolton, would talk. We would be asked repeatedly to avoid waste. The more we saved, the less lives would be lost at sea delivering the food in the convoys. We were asked to give up luxuries and so help to save shipping. In fact, I don鈥檛 remember ever having any luxuries. 鈥楩ood Facts鈥� were published regularly in newspapers and magazines. We were given recipes on how to use dried eggs, bake potato scones and make home made soup involving the use of scraps. We were asked to use fuel sparingly and were initiated into the 鈥楬aybox鈥� method of cooking.

There were little rhymes at the end of the 鈥楰itchen Front鈥� recipes, such as:

Aunty threw her rinds away,
To the lock up she was taken.
There she is and there she鈥榣l stay,
鈥楾ill she learns to save her bacon!

There was also lots of information included for wives. You can be sure we all tuned in each morning at 8.15am as we were all eager to make our meagre rations go as far as possible.

鈥楲ord Haw Haw鈥� used to broadcast from Germany. He tried to demoralize the British public but he hadn鈥檛 reckoned with the Brit. His real name was William Joyce and he was tried and hanged after the war in January 1946. Unfortunately, I cannot remember any of his broadcasts, but I do remember hearing his voice on the radio.

Air raid shelters were built in every village and town in England. Actually our area was quiet compared to the big cities such as London, Coventry, Sheffield, York, Manchester, Liverpool and others. These towns experienced terrible blitzes. It was a nightly, and sometimes daily occurrence for people to be trapped in their shelters. Most of these shelters were stocked with emergency food supplies. People waited for hours for the 鈥楢ll Clear鈥� to sound. Many people emerged from their shelters only to find their homes just a heap of rubble. Incendiary bombs were dropped to cause fires and the Home Guard were kept busy putting out fires, digging to release trapped victims, or just clearing up. The Home Guard were a great bunch of heroes. They had to find alternative accommodation in churches, church halls, chapels and sometimes schools for the homeless.

Fortunately for us we did not suffer these blitzes, we had no damage to property in our area; although we took shelter in the air raid shelters when we heard the sirens and we sat very quietly listening to the throb, throb, throb of enemy aircraft flying low overhead. We saw the searchlights lighting up the sky with their strong beams, searching for these bombers.

We got to know of the blitzes that devastated our towns when we saw the newsreels at our cinemas, or from friends and relatives. The towns were never named over the wireless for security reasons.

The proportion of men in reserved occupations in our area was quite large so family life was not too disrupted. Apart from rationing, queuing and the blackout, life went on and compared to other parts of our country, we hardly knew there was a war on.

However, women between the ages of 17 and 60 were conscripted to work on the buses, in shops, in the teaching profession and also in factories and munition works. These women did a magnificent job.

The war dragged on and finally the day dawned when my husband got his 鈥榗alling up鈥� papers. After preliminary tests, he was classed A2 and told to join his regiment at Bude, Cornwall. He couldn鈥檛 have been posted much further from home could he? Audrey and I were very sad when he went away. It was quite a struggle to make ends meet on army pay. Some friends of mine seemed quite well off 鈥� the husband working in the mine and his wife taking a job to release a man for the forces. I had to shop in the same market.

I could manage the weekly shopping but when it came to buying shoes or a ton of coal etc, I had to draw from our reserve fund. I was exempt from war work because Audrey was still at home but I decided to find a baby sitter for Audrey and go back to teaching.

Marion's story continues with - ' Marion Carrington's Story Part 2: My Return To Teaching'. See also the story, 'Our Evacuee'.

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