大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War Site by Gillian Mason of the County Heritage Team on behalf of Mrs Brenda Jeffries, daughter of Mr Robert Chase Baillie, and has been added to the site with her permission. She fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

WAR STORY 鈥� MR ROBERT CHASE BAILLIE

Born September 12th 1912. Father: Frank Baillie, Mother: Gertrude Chase Baillie.

Robert grew up in Middleton, near Leiston, with Frank and Gertrude and two older brothers, Frank and George. His older sister Hilda had been sent to an aunt who had sufficient income to accommodate one child. Robert鈥檚 family were very poor, father went to an auction to buy a barrow load full of shoes. The family had to wear what was nearest to their size and fill in the empty space with newspaper. Robert was allocated women鈥檚 shoes with the heels cut off which he had to wear.

Father Frank broke both ankles and had to be hospitalised for two years. Gertrude went to ask the Parish for funds; the Parish were able to allocate such funds to poor people. They replied that the family had an income supplied by Robert鈥檚 elder brothers, aged 12 and 13. They had 5 shillings a week (25p today) so that the grand income for all the family was 10 shillings a week (50p). They had to make do on that. The family were told they could manage. The family dog had to be shot as there was no money to feed it.

Robert remembers walking to the village pond for water, he filled buckets to take home where it was filtered through charcoal to enable them to drink it.

Aged 14 years, Robert cycled to Lowestoft to get a job on a fishing boat. He was told by the captain to 鈥済et a sharp knife boy, it could save your life鈥�. All boys who were appointed jobs on fish boats were given the job of cook and general help. Robert remembers when the men were hauling in the fishing nets, ropes were hauled in too and they had to be stored in the rope room in huge reels which had to be wound round by hand ready for the next shoal of fish. Once when he was in a rope room he had to stay in there for 2 days until the storm abated. The fleet could be away for 3 months at a time.

Robert worked the fishing fleet for a few years then because he was courting, he changed to a safer job, which was delivering milk churns to the railway station to be taken on by the railway. He married Violet in 1934 and they had a son.

As the years passed the War came in 1939. Robert enlisted in the Army and his daughter was born in 1940. After 3 weeks he didn鈥檛 like the foot slogging of the Army and he told the officers he used to be on ships and was allowed to go in the Navy. Here he was on trawlers which had been converted to minesweepers. The engines had been put on top. On these ships they had to sail into the minefield and send out electric charges to explode the mines.

Robert and his mates were then sent across the Atlantic to deliver German POWs to Canada. There was a horrific storm, the prisoners were sea sick but nothing could be done for them. The waves were 20-30 feet high. When in the troughs of the waves no sky could be seen. At the end of that journey Robert and his mates were sent to Chesapeake Bay on leave. The American families took them in and welcomed them, the men were taken on weekend trips, Robert remembers at one time seeing a skunk for the first time 鈥� he had never seen such a pretty furry little creatures. So he approached it and caught the full blast of its smell! He was told the only way to get rid of the smell was to bury his clothes in the earth for 2 days.

In the Navy Robert commenced training as an Engineer and eventually became Chief Engineer. From Chesapeake Bay Robert and his mates were told to take the railway over American to Seattle to view a new minesweeper. They could not comprehend the huge commercial Ford works area and other commercial industries. They were so big and had not seen anything like it before. They went through the vast prairies of sweeping grasses and went on for days. The journey lasted a week. At Seattle they boarded the new minesweeper and were taught all the different controls. It was very grand after the fishing boat/minesweeper of before. From Seattle they sailed down the pacific side of America visiting various places, one being San Francisco. This was a new experience of the town built on hillsides with deep valleys and high hills and trolley buses ran along these for public transport. Further on, they went through the Panama Canal, which Robert thought at the time was very bleak. In port on the Atlantic side of the Panama, the wrong oil had been put in the new ship鈥檚 engine. Robert and the crew had to stay behind the convey bound for Africa and clean out the engines and put in the correct oil, then sail on to Sierra Leone, through U-boat infested Atlantic waters. After docking and picking up cargo and replenishing stocks, they returned to England. Robert had been away 4 years. For the first time he saw his new daughter.

After the War Robert with two partners started up a transport firm in Beccles, which they named Westwoods. Gradually after many difficulties the business was a success.

Above story told by Robert Baillie鈥檚 daughter, Brenda Jeffries, dated 28 July 2005.

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