- Contributed by听
- ageconcernbradford
- People in story:听
- Georgina Key
- Location of story:听
- Bradford, West Yorkshire and Nelson, Lancashire
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A2904059
- Contributed on:听
- 09 August 2004
This story was submitted to the People`s War site by Alan Magson of Age Concern Bradford and District on behalf of Georgina Key and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site`s terms and conditions.
I was six years old when the war started and eleven when it ended.
I recall being in the Co-op (now Sunwin House), in Bradford. Being small I was terrified and totally swamped by crowds of people pushing and shoving to buy items of clothing, Underwear etc, from the counters. I now realise that was the start of clothes rationing.
I remember being in the "Anderson" shelter in our back garden at Tyersal. I cried for my Dad and my mum said " He is safer than you" , as he would be able to go into the concrete bunker where he worked at English Electric.
I remember being evacuated to, of all places, Nelson in Lancashire, carrying my gasmask in a cardboard box.
I remember gawping, open-mouthed, at the sight of the end of a house blown off by a bomb to reveal the sight of all the stair treads being revealed.
I remember gardens being dug up. The slogan at the time was "Dig for Victory".
I remember that there no things like bananas or oranges available, and how we all had to exist on minimal food rations.
I remember no street lighting at night and my Auntie Amy leading the way by torchlight. All road signs, road numbers etc, were taken down and all vehicles had to have shields around their headlamps.
The thing I vividly recall is when my headmistress at Hanson School,Bradford, when I was eleven, announcing at assembly that we were going to sing the hymn "For those on Peril on the sea". The thought of persons struggling for their life in the sea terrified me. Little did I realise at that time that I was actually singing that hymn for my future husband! He was 12 years older than me and served in the Royal Navy before and during World War II. He landed at Ver-sur-Mer in Normandy on 'D' Day, 6th June 1944, as part of the Royal Naval Commando unit, and as part of this unit went ashore before the main expeditionary force blowing up obstacles etc.
We had nearly 51 years of mostly happy married life, until his sad death on 5th January 2004
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