大象传媒

War Memories (1939-1945) of Dorothy Privett.

(This story was written to present to a class of young primary school children.)

We had an air raid shelter in our garden made of bricks, like a shed. As soon as the Siren went off, which was a loud shrill sound, we hurried into the shelter for safety. Sometimes we had to stay there most of the night listening to the anti aircraft guns being fired and getting tired cold and hungry. When the siren sounded again for all clear we could go back into our house and climb back into bed for a couple of hours sleep, before getting up for school the next day as usual.

We had very little food as it was rationed in war time. Each person had a ration book with tokens in it, and you were only allowed small amounts of cheese, 2 ozs a week. The same with sugar and butter. Meat was very scarce and we were encouraged to grow our own vegetables. We never had any fruit at all, it was very nice to see a Banana. Our mother traded our sweet coupons for tea so we never had sweets for six years.

Gas masks

We carried our gas masks in a cardboard box with a piece of string to carry it over our shoulders. The gas masks were made of rubber, with a Perspex window for us to see through.

They were very hot inside and uncomfortable when wearing them.

We had to carry them everywhere with us in case the enemy, the Germans, decided to fly over and gas us.

We lived 50 yards away on the north east coast from a beautiful beach. We could not play there or go swimming in the sea as the beach was mined and cordoned off with barbed wire, all through the war, in case the Germans invaded us, coming over the sea from France, Denmark, and Norway. Our house in Tynemouth was situated on the North of the river Tyne.

Nearly every night German planes would fly over and look for targets to bomb. We had to have very good black outs in the houses so our light would not shine out and give us away to the German bombers. The German bombers targets were shipyards up the river where the ships were getting loaded, unloaded, and refuelled for their next voyages across the Atlantic, and also to north Russia, where German submarines and battleships were waiting to sink our ships with shells and torpedo鈥檚.

One night a German plane dropped a Land mine on a parachute which landed in the Moat of Tynemouth castle, 100 yards from our house. All our windows were blown out and soot came down the chimneys. My brother was sat up in his bed and I remember blood on his face from the broken glass. Our family had to go and live in the country for two weeks until it was safe for us to return (evacuees!) It was very frightening.

The next day after air raid, the boys would gather shrapnel from the exploding anti aircraft shells, and keep them as souvenirs.

Lots of men women and children died during the war.

It was so exciting when the war was over, we had a street party with dancing, and long tables with food and drinks. Every one was very happy.

My daddy was in the Home Guard with all the other dads. They looked after the families, whose husbands sons and daughters had to leave home to fight during the war.

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