大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War Site by Three Counties Action, on behalf of Beryl Taylor, and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

I was allowed to be evacuated along with my aunt from her school which was called Stanley Central for girls London as I had lost my Mother when I was 2 Yrs old and my grandmother brought me up. My Aunt Lily was 13 and I was only 6 Yrs old, we had to report to her school ready to go everyday until our turn came. This was a strange but exciting time for us as we had never been away from home. We went by coach and broke the journey to Luton at Pixies Hill School in Chaulden Hemel Hempstead where we were given drinks. Had our hair checked for lice and hands were checked for scabies so that we did not take this on to the other people鈥檚 homes. They gave us a small package of chocolate and sandwiches and back to Luton on a coach.
By then it was getting dark and we were all lined up in the street. The men and women came out choosing who they wanted to suit their families. Mr and Mrs Webb came along and chose my aunt to keep their daughter Stella company same age as my aunt but didn鈥檛 want me. So then came my tears, I was out there until 9o/c at night being so young people weren鈥檛 interested in me.
Anyway eventually they persuaded Mr and Mrs Webb to take me also. Few days later they woke us up early Sunday morning 鈥済et up quickly and dress鈥� the war has just begun they said. I was praised for being quick and a 鈥済ood girl鈥�.
Mr Webb and all the men had A.R.P. helmets on, Air Raid Protection helmets and were all walking the street. The next door neighbours son called us all in and played his drums to us. Mrs Webb used to make treacle toffee Friday evenings and lay me over the table for a bath down while Mr Webb used to go outside and make home wine.
We went to school every day and Sunday school, me being young I used to get 2p for Sunday school collection and being naughty for sweets I used to spend half of it on a mars bar, without them knowing. Our treats were once a month when my granny came to see us from London and take us to Dunstable Woolworth鈥檚 and buy us sweets and a little toy. I used to pester her to take me back to London. Eventually one day she did, both of us. What a change in London when we got back, there was black curtains up the windows to stop the German aircraft seeing all the lights, sticky tape on all the windows to stop them shattering the glass when the bombs dropped and guns went off. It was so scary at night, but we had an underground shelter Anderson they were called. We all went down into it every evening after dinner with torches and candles and sandwiches and flasks of tea, most important a bucket to relieve us if needed.
Couldn鈥檛 come out to do it because the shrapnel from exploding shells was falling.

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