大象传媒

Joan Palmer

Gas masks at the ready!

I can remember how we all had to do something to help the war effort . At the time around 1939-40 I was nineteen and was called upon with several other young people around the village to work in the respirator factory. The factory was just down the road from Tisbury at Pythouse tennis club which had been taken over by the Army. Each day we were collected and taken to the factory and we worked alongside soldiers who told us what we had to do.

The respirators or gas masks , as we called them, had to be tested and if faulty repaired. I remember that each mask had a long mouthpiece and rubber headgear and thank goodness we never had to use them.

In Tisbury at this time there was a searchlight battery deployed at the old Union Hill Workhouse above Tisbury. I first met George, one of soldiers stationed there, on this hill and he later become my husband. The soldiers were billeted in the Old Union which was infested with rats so heavy boots were essential to keep the soldiers from being bitten. After a few months they were moved to Fonthill Rectory and staged there until the unit was moved to Market Lavington about three quarters of an hour away.

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