- Contributed by听
- clevelandcsv
- People in story:听
- Reginald Hill
- Location of story:听
- Peterborough
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A4182266
- Contributed on:听
- 12 June 2005
left to right, Harry Haynes, Reg Hill (my Grandfather), Graham Taylor and Cecil Taylor. Working at Taylor's where my Grandfather was a lorry driver. 1940.
My Grandfather Reg Hill was a seventeen year old lorry driver when war broke out. He recounted this story to my Aunt in 2002.
When war broke out everything was blacked out. We had masks on the headlights so we were only able to see about ten yards. So with poor lights and no signposts life as a lorry driver wasn't easy, although I don't remember any of Taylor's [the company my Grandad worked for] lorries being involved in an accident. I remember taking a load from Peterborough to Darleston near Birmingham. I had driven to London a few times but had never been to Birmngham, so had no idea where Darleston was. The biggest problem was that all the signposts had been taken down, in case the Germans landed. People had also been told not to give directions when asked in case they were speaking to Germans! I think I started asking for directions before I got to Leicester and mostly got the same answer, "Sorry don't know mate!" I did get there eventually and as it had taken me so long I spent the night in the nightwatchman's hut, with his alsatian dog asleep at my side.
My Grandad joined the Home Guard at the age of seventeen. After driving all day he arrived home at midnight and overslept for his 4-6am patrol. When he reported to his C O, Captain Ferrier-Kerr he was reprimanded and told that he would be reported. He attended a court-martial at the Home Guard headquarters which was an old stable at the rear of the Royal Oak [a pub in my Grandad's village, Castor]. He appeared before three Officers and was found guilty of being negligent in his duties and was discharged. His final instructions were that he was to hand in all his clothing, equiptment and arms. This consisted at the time of an armband and rifle. This was April 1941.
In April 1942, my Grandfather was called up into the army where he was a Driver Mechanic in the Royal Artillery. His regiment moved around the country protecting vital installations. Two weeks after Dunkirk he sailed to France, he served in France and Belgium before he was demobbed in April 1947.
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