大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War site by B. Jelf of Congleton Museum on behalf of Kenneth Davies and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

I was eight at the start of the War, and was evacuated three times. I remember the Blitz.

My first memory of the War is of the sirens sounding on the first day of the War.

I was first evacuated to Blackpool with my brother. My sister was sent elsewhere. We went from the school in Moston at Lily Lane which was used as an evacuation centre. We were put on a bus and taken to the railway station. We took the train to Blackpool and when we got there, we all waited in a yard for someone to come and choose us.

A young couple from Blackpool called Robinson, with no children of their own, took us in and we stayed at North Shore. Mother came to collect us.

We were evacuated a second time, again to Blackpool, and went to a family called Shenton, who did have children. I remember going to school there and getting into bad ways -- me and my mates distracted shopkeepers so that we could pinch a few cigarettes, which we would smoke around the corner. I've never smoked since!

We had no proper shoes and that winter was very cold. We did have galoshes with overshoes, which did the job, but I do remember my mother getting very upset about our lack of shoes. Mother came to collect us again and we went home to a different house, in Fallowfield, where my father was caretaker at Holy Innocents School. There had been bombs in the area but this house was spared.

In the Manchester Blitz we used the cellar of a school as an airraid shelter but this was half an hour's walk away so there were bombs around us and shrapnel shattering as we ran along!

We were bombed out of this last house and went to another in Cawder Road, also in Fallowfield. We also used a Morrison shelter indoors (like a re-inforced table that we hid under) and we had an Anderson shelter outside but never used it as it was too wet. There were planes overhead which I think were probably aiming for the railway.

My third evacuation was to St. Annes, to a convalescent home for children, for about a year towards the end of the War. It was a big house on the front, so we enjoyed playing on the dunes every day. I don't remember privations particularly I just remember we wanted to make sure we got our sweet rations!

My father was in the Pioneer Corps and I remember he came home on one occasion with his army. He had poor sight, so he couldn't go in the regular forces. He did go to hospital and was interested in scams -- he took tyres back to Holland wrapped around his body as there was a shortage!

My father wasn't the same man after the War, and the separation caused friction in the marriage. After the War, he went back to work for the Holy Innocents School as caretaker and verger.

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