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This story was gathered, written and submitted to the ´óÏó´«Ã½ peoples war by Joan Henderson. The story was input to the ´óÏó´«Ã½ peoples war by Brian Morgan. The author fully understands all the terms and conditions.

Some Memories from Goshaden P.O. Co Londonderry
Now known as 201 Ardmore Roan Londonderry
Joan Henderson

I remember our gas masks which had Mickey Mouse characters painted on them and the one that was for my younger brother which was like a baby bath with a transparent lid. We tried them on feeling quite afraid but not really understanding why they were needed.

The first time two very tall, or so they seemed to my sister and me, American Airforce Officers appeared from the camp at Beechill, Ardmore ,Londonderry, in full uniform we were totally amazed as we had never seen anything like them before and just stood and stared. They were holding out a large packet which we didn’t recognise and didn’t take until my father told us to . It was a very large bar of American chocolate which we ate with relish once we were over the shock.

I remember my mother mixing our ration of butter with a much larger quantity of margarine. This was kept in a cool place in a large bowl, eaten sparingly and scraped clean before any more could be mixed.

The only thing I can remember that really brought it home to us as children that there had been a war, is my mother, who was normally calm and collected, leaping all around the kitchen shouting, ‘The war is over, the war is over’. There were four very surprised children staring at her!

Memories from my brother, Ronald Irwin, formerly of Goshaden Post Office and now living in Scarborough, Toronto.

I remember air shelters and street barriers in Derry and Barrage balloons which we could see from Goshaden. I remember that when the nine o’clock news came on, we dropped whatever we were doing and being really quiet, as befitted this solemn occasion and hearing words about raids and other things which I didn’t understand.

I remember on at least one night of the Belfast bombings my parents were in the north-east bedroom looking for flashes. I don’t know if they saw any but I do know that they were worried. I heard an uncle who lived in Belfast talking about making his way to work over rubble and seeing bodies among the wreckage.
An aunt who lived in London used to chide us for not being more thankful for all that we had compared to the poor people who lived in London. I think this was because we lived in the country among farmers and the food they could provide, as opposed to living in a large city where food was really scarce.

One of my earliest jobs was cutting coupons out of ration books which were left in the shop partly as a convenience. It was like a ‘pool’ as some customers could not afford to purchase their full share of rations. There were coupons for clothes and other non-edibles as well as for food. This left more for those who could afford to buy. (Shop and Post Office owned and run by my Father)
It seems that money was more of a ‘rationer’ than the coupons for some people.
This process went on for a long time after the war as the recovery process was not as quick as expected. Possibly the debt of the Olympic Games didn’t help.

I remember the snared rabbits which were brought into the shop to be taken and sold in Derry. Rabbits were one of the Government - identified supplemental food sources which didn’t work out too well, as city dwellers found it difficult to eat furry little creatures!

Then there were the army route marches up the brae which ran alongside our home. We children were generally kept behind barriers till the tanks, lorries and jeeps passed but we were allowed out for the soldiers. We preferred the Americans to the English because they threw silver, including the occasional half- crown while the Brits were copper men except for the odd threepenny bit. I remember when a halfpenny, thrown on the ground by a British soldier, lay there until the march was over despite some other marchers pointing to it. Sometimes we would sneak up the brae well away from the house and stand in our bare feet as this seemed to bring greater awards!!

I remember being scared out of my wits during a train journey to Portrush when a woman started to talk about the Germans bombing trains just as we entered the tunnels at Downhill and Castlerock.

I very well remember an incident which happened at a VJ Day celebration at The Oaks, Cross Co Londonderry. Someone had wedged a large bell in the branches of a tree and my cousin James and I took turns to swing on the rope. We had just tired of it when the bell hit the ground with a tremendous thump as we were barely in the clear - otherwise I wouldn’t be here to tell my tale.

In school one day my class was asked to give an example of a monster or a heathen and a pupil answered ‘Germans’. The reply from the teacher was, ‘No, the Germans are supposed to be Christians like ourselves’. I wondered about that for some time.

At the American Camp at Beechill there was an entertainment and sports day - a day of plenty. There was a tune we kept hearing and part of it kept buzzing round in my head. I used to sing at my sister ‘Jo ko the cat crow---’. It was only years later that I realised that it was their national anthem.

During those years I didn’t fully understand what was going on but nevertheless could sense the worries and concerns of the adults and sometimes wondered what things would be like if there wasn’t a war.

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