´óÏó´«Ã½

This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Tommy Semple for Three Counties Action on behalf of Alan Cann and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

In September 1939 Arnold and Eric Cann took their families on a boating holiday to the River Deben near Woodbridge, Suffolk. A few days later, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ informed us that ‘We are at war with Germany’. Our town of Harwich, being a port, was full of maritime and military activity. Soon it was sealed off — no unauthorised person was allowed to enter or leave.

By early June 1940, all children were evacuated. I boarded a train at Harwich with all of the pupils of Esplanade School to journey to a small village in Gloucestershire called Stone. The last 5 miles were covered by bus. As I stepped down, Mrs Ball chose me as her evacuee. I settled happily with Mr Ball, a lorry driver at the local quarry, and their daughter Janet. During holidays Janet and I would join Mr Ball in his lorry. He was delivering tarmac to the RAF’s new airfield in the Cotswold Hills above Stroud. The village school had two rooms. In reasonable weather we had lessons in the playground or walked the 3 miles to Barclay Castle. During the first week of my stay a soldier relative arrived from Dunkirk. Mr Ball had served in World War I as a sergeant and was at the same rank in the LDV (Local Defence Volunteers) renamed Home Guard. I had a uniform hat with the two Gloucestershire badges and one small one at the back to commemorate Egypt where they formed squares to fight on all sides. I also had the LDV armband and attended rifle practice at the range with my own small rifle.

Meanwhile our home in Harwich was all but rubble when a sea-mine was dropped on Bernards Uniform factory. Bristol and Gloucester were regularly bombed and we saw the red glow at night. Several bombs were dropped in the fields in Stone but caused no damage. One day, Janet and I and two neighbour’s lads were playing in the field behind the house when a low flying German plane machine gunned us. No-one was harmed, but that was enough for my parents to call for me to go back to Harwich after 18 months in the West Country. A year later, whilst walking along West Street, the same thing happened. The bullets hit the Elephant and Castle pub, only 20 feet from Humphries bakery where I was bound.

As I have said, our house had been badly damaged by a mine parachuted from a German plane. However, my father decided to rebuild. The whole front of the house (a brick build) had to rise from the damp course. Several interior walls were replaced by brown paper attached to a wooden frame and oiled canvas replaced glass in windows. Even in a light breeze we had a very noisy property, even noisier when German planes were flying over and guns from our ships and army gun emplacements were in action. I daytime we would watch this action often involving the RAF chasing their planes. There was an indoor metal shelter like a table with a purpose built bed underneath which could protect us if the house fell again. We three were watching just such an incident when Mum dashed under the shelter. We found her with her head under, but legs and body sprawled on the carpet. Many a laugh was enjoyed at the thought of Mum sheltering from this stick of bombs which actually landed on the beach close by.
Throughout hostilities, Dad ran the Royal Naval Shipyard as well as being a Fire brigade man. Most evenings Dad would bring several of the crew for a bath as Motor Torpedo Boats did not enjoy this luxury. Mum served in the YMCA canteen on Harwich Quay and also added to our full house. In addition to men and women from every part of the British Isles we had people from Holland, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, and America and at the end of the war even two German POW’s.

Great street parties were enjoyed at the end of the war in Europe and followed again when Japan gave up. Food was rationed, but we were all so filled with joy and determination to make the best of what we had, that most of us came through even if battered and bruised.

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