大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War site by volunteer from The Chepstow Society on behalf of Arthur Turner and has been added to the site with his permission. Arthur nTurner fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

Agriculture

I did work on the fields. I didn鈥檛 have to go and work on the fields, but I was very friendly with Philip Price, of High Beech. I spent a lot of time up there with him, and well I used to go and milk cows, deliver milk and that was where I said I had a licence and I used to drive a little Ford Van. His Father was worked for the War Ag at one time, and they had to plough a certain amount of ground you know and grow things. But I can鈥檛 remember any details.

Army Camps

Yes Colonel Webb, he went straight away I think, I鈥檓 almost certain that he was called up in the August. And I think there was Don Pritchard who got killed during the war, he was another of them who went with Don Seager. I can鈥檛 remember the other names, you know they started to bring the Reserves up didn鈥檛 they? He was a member of the Rugby Club, and they all joined the Territorials, and they went away to Camp, and I don鈥檛 think they came back again. They went away for the Annual Camp, as you know they used to go, and I think that was it.

I can remember a Raid in Chepstow area one Saturday morning. When an aircraft came over and fired at Beachley Camp, and there was somebody killed over there, going into a shelter. Banks worked on a Saturday morning in those days of course, and I鈥檇 been down to the National, what was the National Provincial in those days. I was just coming back and I heard this gun firing. We used to hear gun firing regularly because there were targets in the Severn. They used to practice firing on those with Cannons and Machine Guns, so we didn鈥檛 think too much about it then; until there was a bit of a response from somewhere or other. Then it went you see it wasn鈥檛, it all happened over in a few minutes you know, and we didn鈥檛 hear until later that somebody had been been killed going into a shelter over there.

I can鈥檛 remember really where many of the anti aircraft sites were, except there were some up at Devauden and that way, and Shirenewton way. I only know that because Peter Leach he was working for the House of Quality which is where opposite Watkins鈥� the Tobacconist. The House of Quality they used to have a van that went round, 鈥榗os there wasn鈥檛 all that much electricity about in the villages, and collect radio accumulators. They used to charge them up, and they used to do a weekly service you see. He used to go round to these various sites where these gun sites were, and pick up the accumulators from the soldiers. I mean he probably didn鈥檛 go where the guns were, but where the billets were. And I went out with him once or twice just for the ride sort of thing. This was at the beginning of the war, and that鈥檚 how I know that they were sort of scattered around there, but I couldn鈥檛 tell you the precise locations of them.

Army

I can remember Troops coming here at the beginning of the war, and I can remember them coming after Dunkirk. I don鈥檛 know what regiments they were, they were a very motley lot I can tell you, they looked a beaten crowd when they came back. They came back on a train, there used to be a station the bottom of Garden City Racecourse Station, and they came in there and they walked from there to the Racecourse. They had to walk, there was no other transport. I think they were actually in the buildings in the Grandstands and places like that. And then after that (Dunkirk) we had the Indians, they were mainly transport people with mules and they were based at the Racecourse as well.

I believe they were stationed at the Racecourse, and I think some of them were on the old Mount Pleasant. Equipment was marshalled all over the place, in 40 must have been 43. I came on leave and coming back from Newport, the dual carriageway along there from Caerwent. There were tanks packed side by side, facing the one side of the road, side nearest Dinham. They were parked like that all over the place you know when they were marshalling them to go across for D Day. They gathered them up you see, I mean they could only bring so many over on ships at a time and they had to accumulate them. And of course by that time the German Air Force had just about been stopped as far as bombing was concerned. And our defences were a lot more secure by that time. I think there were quite a lot in the Forest of Dean, they stacked them wherever they could and camouflaged them.

Yes I can remember when they when they brought the aeroplanes into the Racecourse. That was about 1940 they landed them on the Racecourse. They knocked a hole through the wall, between Oak Grove and St Arvans, and then they parked them under the trees. There were a variety of things there, 鈥榗os we went out with the ATC to look round it at one time. And I can remember there was a Hamden there Whitley鈥檚, I don鈥檛 think there was a Wellington, there was a Defiant, there were about twenty or thirty there parked up under the trees. They had other ones there but I just can鈥檛 remember the names of them. That was the only place where they could land, and of course there was good length there, but of course it was only just grass, and they would obviously only be able to use it when it was dry enough. I can鈥檛 remember seeing them come, I don鈥檛 know when they actually arrived. But as I say, we went out there to see them, one Saturday afternoon if I remember, you know it was an arranged trip for the ATC.

Army

When I was eighteen, Steve Bowkett was at the Police Station his Father was the Police Inspector. And he and I were were members of the of the ATC, and we鈥檇 arranged to go down and volunteer on our eighteenth birthday, which we did. We went down to Newport, and then we went to volunteer, and then we were sort of sent to Penarth actually. We were there for a couple of days to be tested. 鈥楥os you volunteered for the Air Crew you see, that was a voluntary thing, otherwise you were called up and you were put whatever service that they were looking for. And we had these medical tests, down there and various aptitude tests, and we were accepted and then we were told to come back. I think they examined your teeth and everything while you were there, and if you needed any fillings, you had to get those done before you went in. Then they called you up, and you got about a weeks notice or something like to say that you were to report on such and such a date at wherever it was. We went to London to Lords Cricket Ground, that was the Air Crew Recruiting Centre. We were there about a fortnight I think, and then we were dispersed to various initial training rings. I went to Aberystwyth.

Home Life

I can remember rationing and I can鈥檛 remember us being particularly short of food early on in the war, not before 42. It wasn鈥檛 easy of course but I mean we had quite a big garden, it went right down to the back garden of the Queens Head. You know, it was quite a long garden, and Father grew most of the vegetables and things like that in the garden. But I know that if one of us came on leave Mr Whitcombe, he was Manager of the Farmers shop which was opposite the Police Station in those days. He would save Mother a hock or part of a hock you know, so that helped out a bit I think. What you could get was tripe, and as I say coming back on those buses it was as cold as charity, you were frozen by the time you got to Chepstow. And Mother used to make tripe and onions, and a dish full of that used to go down well I can tell you when you are frozen stiff.

Home Life

We had Evacuees at the beginning of the war. In fact my Uncle who was a Waters, he was the Billeting Officer, Victor Waters. The first lot of Evacuees we got were from Birmingham, and they were little toddlers, we had a little girl called Betty Baker, and she was five I think at the time. We were both home my Brother and I, and and Margaret was home, and we didn鈥檛 really have room for one, but they they came and asked Mother if they would take this little girl. She was bit reluctant because as I say we didn鈥檛 really have room. But there was a bit of pleading went on I think and she said if she would sleep with Margaret, that she would be able to come. And this what she did until Eric my brother went and then of course then there was an extra bedroom. She stayed there from 1939 to I think it was probably it might have been in 44 she went back. Her parents came down once or twice that I can remember at a weekend to to see her. I can remember her she was a cute little kid, and well we used to treat her as one of the family. Of course whenever there was anything Christmas or anything like that, she was treated as another Sister you know. I know they saved her they saved money for her, bought stamps and eventually bought certificates, and eventually when she went home of course she she took them took them with her. People were very good because they knew Margaret was older, and of course there was it wasn鈥檛 all that easy to buy things in those days. People would drop in sort of clothes you know, that would fit Betty because she was only small. She was always fortunate in that way. I think I didn鈥檛 see her, she had gone when I came back, but they said she took a nice bundle, caseful of clothes home with her when she went so it must have sort of kept going. But oh she was she was well known to the Police was Betty, if anybody dropped anything Chepstow you could reckon Betty鈥檇 find it, and take it straight to the Police Station. Yes, if somebody dropped a penny she鈥檇 find it and take it to the Police Station. And one thing that always struck us that was that if she got a cold, she was constantly with a glass at the tap, filling her glass to drink of water. And she didn鈥檛 ail very much, and we always thought that she must have washed it through the system, you know, with she drank so much water! I think she was quite happy here, I think one time she thought she might stay for the rest of her life. Well anyway, they she went back, and I think she came down once afterwards, she was married then I think, and she came just to see Mother. She was married then I think, and she came just to see Mother. But that must have been either in the late fifties because it was after Father had died, and Mother had moved down with Margaret and so she鈥檇 left the vicinity.

Local Events

We used to sell National Savings Stamps there in the Bank, and National Savings Certificates and Defence Bonds. War Bonds I think were in the First War, but there there were Defence Bonds then. We鈥檇 send the money off, remitted to the Bank of England. When they had these War Weapons Weeks and Spitfire Weeks and all those sort of thing, we used to have send the return in, how much we鈥檇 sold each week you see. People came in and bought them in quite large amounts. They would bring in a Spitfire Week you see, and every Town would be given a target or set the target for themselves, I don鈥檛 know quite how that worked. Then they usually had a big indicator board set up in the Town to show what progress was being made, and it was surprising what they did raise? I think there was one in Beaufort Square somewhere, an indicator.

Personal Events

Eric put his age on a year, and I think he actually joined up at the end of 1940, they weren鈥檛 too fussy when they wanted you, that was my Brother. I don鈥檛 know where he was stationed at the time, but I know he had to come down and collect this Beau Fighter Plane up at Bristol. They were forming a Squadron to go out to North Africa, so that must have been 42, he was with 89 Squadron. Some of the lads had said to him 鈥渨hen you come over, you know, beat up the Red & White鈥�. So I wasn鈥檛 here at the time, but I believe he did. They used to have two big Gantries down at the yard, and Cecil Tilley could probably confirm this, he said to Eric 鈥渨hen you come over fly between the gantries鈥�. Then fortunately the gantries were up in the air, so he did. Well I know he did because my Father was down the yard at that time. He came down and he had to bank to get between the two gantries. And somebody said to Father 鈥渨ho is that silly B up there鈥�, and Father said 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know鈥�!

Bill Townsend, he lived in Hardwick Avenue, came over as well you see with a Lanc. they were the big bombers. He flew up the garden path, I wasn鈥檛 here at the time either when that happened, but all the ladies from the Avenue were waving. They knew who it was of course, including his Mother and his Sister.

I was in the ATC when it formed at Larkfield, and I was the first Cadet Warrant Officer actually in the Squadron, and Mr Robinson, he became Flight Lieutenant in there. And there was a chap called Brown who assisted, and we used to go there twice a week you see. I when I look back on it it鈥檚 amazing, because what we sort of managed to fill in to a week. People say there鈥檚 nothing to do, but I went to to ATC on a Tuesday I think, and it might have been another day as well, but it was certainly on a Tuesday. I did Fire Watching on a Wednesday and ARP on a Friday, and I went to Newport Tech two nights a week studying for my Bank exams.

Home Life

My basic memory was that every time you came home the first thing that they said 鈥渄o you know that so and so been killed鈥�? and it was rather a sad time. I can remember travelling home once and I鈥檇 just got off the bus. The bus used to stop on Mount Pleasant in those days, and I met someone and she said 鈥渙h do you know that Peter Leach has been killed鈥� and I mean he鈥檇 only just gone out to North Africa, I didn鈥檛 know at all. And even before that I can remember going back to work one day and just going out after having my lunch at home, just going out through the gate when somebody said 鈥渉ave you heard your Pal, Clifford Kidd has been killed鈥�.

Ballinger was younger than me, but remember we went to school together. I鈥檝e got a picture of Charlie Mayo, Bill Ballinger and myself, taken in Newport when we happened to be on leave together. I went to Canada, and when I came back he was dead he had been killed. David Holloway who I sat next to in the Church Choir, he went out to Canada and came back and he was killed almost immediately.

Schools

Major Webb was the Headmaster or he was Colonel Webb? Then Mr Robinson took over as Acting Headmaster when Major Webb was called up to the Forces, because he was in the Territorial鈥檚 I believe, or on the Reserve.

They (Larkfield) had black outs which were not terribly effective, and we painted with black paint over some blinds and they were the black outs. Which were all right you know for keeping people from looking in, not terribly good for keeping light from going out.

Contribution continues on ID 4124611

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.