大象传媒

This story has been added to The People's War Website by CSV Volunteer, Ann Toomey, on behalf of the author Peter Birtles, who understands the terms and conditions of the website.

I was born in Burton on Trent in 1937. Lived with father, mother, sister and brothers. I was the youngest. Father was Food Procurement Officer responsible for food, clothing and ration books. Mother was disabled (died between VE and VJ Day 1944. Hence father was not enlisted. Everything was rationed - the Co op used to come round with horse and cart with limited supplies of bread and milk.

Father did firewatch duties up the top of the hill from where we lived. Our air raid shelter was the dining table in the corner of the room with matresses over the sides and cushions on top. When the sirens went my sister carried our mother down, then got the matresses and cushions put in place. Every house had black curtains of some sort and it was trouble if a bit of light showed through. Even the greenhouse glass was covered in something to stop the moon showing it up. If the sirens went off at night and the all clear was after 1 a.m. you didn't go to school until 10a.m. so you got your sleep. When I went to school I used to go through Outwoods Recreation Ground, down the avenue of trees so you felt safer if any planes were about.

Saturday was the day you queued for your rations at every grocer you were registered with We were registered with Hubbards in the indoor market in the town centre, if you had a garden you grew what you could to help your basic rations along. It was on one Saturday ration trip that we saw a Heinkel Bomber which had been shot down as a sort of morale booster.

Just down the road from where we lived was a brewery sports ground which had searchlights, a listening post, two small barrage ballooons an Ack Ack Gun (anti-aircraft gun) spread out around the edges of the field.

Also close by to us were orchards where we were allowed any windfalls if you were quick enough to be "first" there. Cocoa was a scarce commodity, but a Mrs. Mann who was a very respected lady (shining light in the WVS) used to supply it when she could get it.

During the War if you had iron railings along your boundary and iron gates, they were cut down and used for armaments. Even vehicles were confiscated for war use.

There was a bombing on Burton (first one) when 121 bombs were dropped on Wood Street and three houses disappeared. There were other occasions when bombs were dropped on Wellington Street, Wyggeston Street, Charlton Street and the Dairy on Calais Road. Then a Spitfire crashed in Stafford Street, claiming two lives.

By this time most of the factory work in the area was geared to the war effort, working flat out. Branston Factory, original home of Branston Pickle was turned into an ordanance depot for the war effort. For women who worked in the factories who had small children there were nurseries.

Burton had plenty of Prisoners of War, women were used on contruction of roads etc. The concrete road from Newborough top towards Manbury. This was done to close the road from the New Inn to Newborough for Tatenhill Airfield, which was a bomber base, like Fradley, Church Broughton, Hixon, Darley Moor, Ashbourne and Castle Donington (new East Midlands Airport). Some of these were Australian Air crewed. The Officers and RAF Ground and Air crews billets for Church Broughton was Foston Hall, which is now a Women's Prison.

Sudbury Prison as is now was built by the American Military Hospital ready for any American Military personnel injured.

During the War, German POW's in Burton were kept in the Maltings and wore blue outfits but were under heavy restrictions but the Italians, who were out, wore Brown with Yellow patches on their backs.

During the war Bagotts Woods were used for storing amunition. The guardrooms were there for many years.

The Old Plaster Mines at Fauld were used for bomb storage sometimes well over 20,000 tons of them. On the 28th November, 1944 it blew up. Approximately 4,000 tons exploded killing 70 people. The smoke and dust were like a giant mushroom was said to have reached eleven miles in to the air and it took rock, earth and bricks five minutes to fall back to earth. There was a farm, the farmer, his wife and farm hands just disappeared with no trace. There were a few dead animals. The village hall was completely wrecked, plus the Village Pub - the Cock - was very badly damaged. Both were eventually rebuilt, but all that's left of where the farm was is a massive crater - there are signs of trees growing in places. It was said to be the biggest ever explosion before Hiroshima in Japan, it was recorded in Geneva and Italy.

When it happend I was at school, all of a sudden the windows were breaking, the doors banging, plus the floor rippled (like corrugated tin sheet) we all dived under our desks as the shock waves continued, we were eventually led out to the shelters.

For days after we would see the soldiers on their way to Fauld to search for survivors or for any bodies. As the U.S. Soldiers passed us kids they threw sweets and candy to us.

The RAF had a Pilot Training Base close by Burton, one on the Aviation Lane, Henhurst Hill (now all houses) The other was at Burnaston, between Burton and Derby (now the site of Toyota Car Factory. After the War Derby Aviation (British Midland Airways) operated three Dakotas, one of them was Montgoermy's personal Dakota, which was named Darley Dale.

We had a cousin William Sherrat who was in the RAF Bomber Command, who was good to us kids when he was on leave. I remember the last time we saw him he said bye to us, bye to his Mam, went back to his base, went on a bombing raid, was shot down over Paris, crashed on a Gas Works and perished.

It wasn't all doom and gloom for us people who had never been out of Burton. We were amazed to see Burtons very first double deckers - to us they were alien. I suppose at the time, little did I know I would be driving the same ones 18 years later, from 1964 until the bus was scrapped.

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