- Contributed by听
- Joan Rolfe
- People in story:听
- Joan rolfe
- Location of story:听
- Crowbrough Sussex
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A6881718
- Contributed on:听
- 11 November 2005
My story starts just before the, starting to get prepared for war,queuing in the rain for our gas marsks, going around the streets collecting wast paper. I was in the girl guids.
My father was in the Merchant Navy his trips lasted eight weeks;he went back and forth to South America bringing back meat.
On the Friday befor war started my mother took me to my aunts,her neibour had two little girls whose granmother MrFestorazzi lived in the contry in Sussex.
ON Saturday thay took three little Girls one eight one ten and me twelve to tillbury
put us on a bus to Crowbrough to be met by the girls gran. The girls Pam & Jean had an aunt Mary & uncle Maurice thay came home weekends,on Sunday morning thay sent us out for a walk then the sirens went that was war.
I liked it there, we went to school with the local children, and then children came from London school.I staid quite happy , things were quiet at home so I wenthome just befor Chrismas, I was to be bridesmaid
to my cousin,I went back to school for only half days we had to run home if the warning went.
In about June My farthers ship docked in Liverpool so my mother took thier, just befor we went my aunt told us that
Maurice her neighbours brother was in the army stationed in Liverpool.
When we arrived there my father went to fiend him. We all went to the theatre together, when my mother father @Maurice went for a drink after the performance;I was not old enough to go in so I had to stand out side.That night there was an air raid, the first I had been in, the guns from the ships in the docks started to fire it was the first time I had herd anything like it befor. After a few days mom and I had to go back to London, my father's ship saild and Maurice saild for Africa,he wrote to me now and again during the war, he was wounded once not bad enough to come home. He came home in 1945.
We lived in Plaistow West Ham not far from the Docks. The sirens went one Saturday afternoon I went to theshelter next door,first we looked up and saw German bombers fill the sky then there was an enormous scream, A time bom had fallen not far away. That night Gran Mum and I went to my aunt's shelter, the bombers came againe in drove after drove, and it went on all night. In the morning we came out to fined windows broken and dust ever were. As we walked home we could see the docks all burning. That night the time bom that fell went off and a cousin of mine was bomded out.
So off I go again this time with my cousin Jean, we went to Potton in Bedfordshir, by this time it was the summer holidays, as I would be 14 on October the 9 I did not go to school any moor, my cousin was a year older she had bean working in London for a year.
We stayed with my Aunt's Uncle Ted and his daughter Doris; this was to be a longer stay.I got a job looking after a Doctor,s two year old daughter, her mother brough her from London so thatshe could help the local Doctor.Iworked for a few months then I got job as a machinist at Kaiser Bondor , I had to cycle five miles to work and five miles home. Then we herd on the rodio that my father's ship had been torpedoed and sunk ,The Highland Patriot the Royl Mail Line,I think two people were killed,Dad came home in a pair of overalls he lost everthing becuse he was working but he was safe.
After the War I marred Maurice in February 1946 next year is our Diamond Wedding.
Mr Mrs Festorazzi
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