- Contributed by听
- Ipswich Museum
- People in story:听
- Mac Clarke
- Location of story:听
- Ipswich
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A3161729
- Contributed on:听
- 21 October 2004
One of the first sights we had of the war from Ipswich was the dog-fights during the Battle of Britain.
From 1941 to 1942 I was at St Joseph's, Oak Hill, Ipswich. It was run by the Christian Brothers, Jean-Baptiste Lasalle. From the school we had a good view of the Orwell Estuary: the Hill was cut into levels (our tennis courts were set out on them). One day we saw a 17 Dormier coming from the West seawards. Only 300 to four hundred feet up the tail-gunner was clearly visible.
To protect against air-raids there were lorries with trailers carrying oil burner funnels. They produced smoke that was supposed to provide cover from overhead aircraft.
We were living at Finchly Road when the mine dropped over Cemetery Road. It destroyed many houses.
On VE Day I was old enough to go to the celebration on the Corn Hill. It was completely packed. People were completely drunk, there was dancing, shouting, and American servicemen blowing up condoms into balloons.
Reproduced with premission by Ipswich Museum.
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