大象传媒

September 12th 1940. Aged 17

I was working at Millbay Laundry and Dye Works at the time. I went to work the next day and was told by colleagues that Chapel Street and Emma Place had been hit by a bomb the night before. I walked over there in my lunch break and was horrified to see my Aunt's house in ruins. (No 8 Emma Place). Luckily she had been staying with us at the time. I met her on my way home that night and we just put our arms round each other and wept. The damage was extensive. 13 people were killed, 5 of them Royal Marines.

November 16th 1943 Aged 20

Just gone 5 am in the morning. I was in bed when the sirens went off. I lived in St Goerges Avenue, Peverell adjoining Camilla Tee. I heard the bombers overhead (we got to recognise the sound of the enemy engines) and pulled the thick bedspread over my head when the roof blew off and my window shattered into the room, covering everything with shards of glass. I never got one scratch. The rest of our house was in a dreadful mess. We were lucky, 8 people killed and a hundred houses destroyed or seriously damaged. We heard afterwards that a cluster of 4 bombs were dropped within 25 yards of each other. I was young and lived my life but I must admit now at 82, I hate to hear a low flying aircraft.

December 22nd 1943

I was called up and joined the WRENS and served in the (Supply) Naval Stores until 7th June 1946.

I was working at the Naval Base at Calstock when V.E. day was declared. I remember the Sailors and Marines had their 'Rum Ration' (Splice the Main Brace) but we Wrens were only offered lemonade!!

We walked to Callington that night to go to the celebration dance, called in for a drink when we got there, in a public house, but the landlord would not serve us until the King had finished his speech to the Nation!!

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