大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by a volunteer from Oxford 大象传媒/CSV on behalf of Marjorie Jones and has been added to this site with her permission. Marjorie Jones fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

PEOPLE IN STORY: Marjorie Jones, born in 1926
LOCATION OF STORY: Chingford and Sussex
MAIN AREA OF INTEREST: Growing up in the war
TITLE: THANKS TO HITLER I MET MY HUSBAND

Marjorie was born in 1926 and spent her childhood in Chingford, north east London. In the early months of the war she was at school in Leytonstone, but by March 1940 the school was preparing to transfer out of London, taking over a newly built holiday camp at Itchingfield in Sussex. In April 1940 Marjorie and her school friends boarded the coach that was to take them to Sussex. Marjorie did not particularly want to go, nor did she especially want to be boarded out, but she was able to stay with her particular friend, and in any case the whole school was going, so she felt better about it. The building with its big dining hall was like an army camp and surrounded by woods. Marjorie particularly remembers the many wild flowers in spring. She also remembers going outside to watch the planes overhead having dog-fights in the sky. Her parents were able to come and visit her once a month on the coach provided for such visits.

None of Marjorie鈥檚 family were directly involved in the war. Her father stayed in Chingford but her mother went with her son [Margaret's brother] who had Down's Syndrome, to Bridport for about 18 months to stay with her sister-in-law.

Marjorie stayed in Sussex for about 18 months, then in 1942 it was time for her to leave school. She returned to London and started work in Oxford Street doing general office work. The Blitz was over by then and Marjorie got used to seeing blank patches where buildings had once been. She was there for three years and at the end of the war remembers being given the day off and walking around seeing what was going on.

A friend had cousins who were bombed out from Hackney and found a house to live in at Leytonstone - and one of them was her future husband. So it could be said that thanks to Adolf Hitler Marjorie met her husband!

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