- Contributed by听
- ambervalley
- People in story:听
- Cyril, Violet, Patricia, Peter and Pauline Hanbury
- Location of story:听
- Alfreton Derbyshire
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A2766260
- Contributed on:听
- 21 June 2004
I was born Patricia Hanbury in Alfreton in 1932 and known to everyone as Pat. I had a brother, Peter, and a sister Pauline, both younger than me. We lived at 52 Preston Avenue, Alfreton, with our parents Cyril and Violet Hanbury.
On the night of 10 April 1941, when I was nine years old, our house was bombed. Living in the Midlands, bombing was unheard of except in the newspapers and on the radio, but we had five incendiary bombs dropped on our semi-detached house - three in the house and two in the garden.
Dad, who was a bus driver working for Trent Buses, was on duty with the Home Guard elsewhere in the town.
I was woken up when someone (an ARP Warden) snatched the pillow from under my head to soak with water to put out the fire in my parents' bedroom. Hearing all the commotion going on, sirens and searchlights and the smell of fires, I wandered out onto the street in my bare feet and blue pyjamas. Someone living two doors away from us took me indoors and put me under the table with the dog.
Sometime later, when the 'all clear' siren had gone, they took me home where I found my mother and father. He was in his khaki greatcoat, holding a large black torch. They were standing in the living room, looking in despair at the water running down the walls, all over my mother's sewing machine, which was her pride and joy. We all cried but my brother and sister were OK.
Some days later, my dad dug up one of the incendiaries in the front garden. He cleaned it out and used it as an ornament on our mantelshelf for years, as a souvenir of the night the German bombers on their way home after bombing Sheffield Ironworks let go their last bombs over Pinxton coke ovens - but missed by a couple of miles.
They landed on our 'poets' corner' avenues Byron Ave, Milton Ave, Addison Drive and Shakespeare Drive, where a Mr Whetton died after going to cover a bomb with a sandbag. It went off as he approached and he died in hospital a week later.
漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.
Story with photo