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Bill Eadie The Long Evacuation

I was evacuated in 1939, when I was five years old, from Glasgow to a village in Aberdeenshire called Cuminestown. I was sent to live on a small farm which only had two cows, two horses and six store cattle. The couple who ran it appeared to me to be in their late sixties.

As I got older I helped with farm duties and I remember when a horse fell down in its’ stall and could not get up, men from other farms came to help but could not get it to its feet so it had to be shot which made a lasting impression on me.

My parents kept in touch with me through the war and sent me comics such as ‘Radio Fun’. My mother worked in a munitions factory in the canteen and swopped packets of tea for chocolate which she sent to me.

The farm was about one mile from my school and I walked there and back every day. The winters were severe at that time and if I managed to get to school through the snow I was awarded ‘The Medal ‘ for the day. Living on the farm meant that rationing did not really affect us and I don’t remember being hungry

Although we lived in the country we still had to have blackout curtains and one day, a few miles away, a bomb exploded and all the curtains fell down. The day the war finished I remember drawing a Union Jack in the sand.

For reasons I didn’t understand at the time I remained evacuated for another three years but my parents stayed in touch and regularly sent me presents.

When I was old enough I was allowed to go on a bus to the nearest town called Turriff to go to the cinema. Unfortunately the last bus always left before the end of the film. My work on the farm continued and at the time of the potato harvest I was allowed to take a holiday from school. I also went out to other farms to help for which I was paid. In the winter a Steam Traction engine would arrive together with a Threshing Machine which separated the corn from the ears.

Eventually I went on holiday to my home in Glasgow and bought a dog. I took back to the farm but I could not stop it chasing the chickens so it was shot in front of me! I had had enough.

I decided to return to Glasgow and live with my parents and two sisters. That was five of us in one room with a shared kitchen, toilet and bathroom with other families. The reason for my long evacuation became clear but at least in Glasgow I could see the end of all those films I had missed

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