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Extracts from "Haversham Estate And the Parish I Grew Up In" by David C. Brightman April 2000 EVACUEES Late in 1939 Mrs Pooley had a boy evacuee staying with them but he went back to Willesden in 1940. This evacuee program (due to the war) was managed by local Authorities and the Women’s Volunteer Service and in 4 days from 1st September 1939 1,334,360 children and some parents were removed from London to the country, their hosts were paid 10/6 a week for each child. The expected Air Raids did not come so two thirds of the children were back in London by Christmas 1939, later evacuees schemes went much the same way. My parents also had two evacuees, Ray and Valerie Groves from 6 Farmdale Road, Greenwich. We kept in touch with them for many years, and I visited them in 1954, when I was in H.M. Forces, both were well and remembered their first short visit to the countryside. RATIONING Now and again if we had pooled our few pennies we walked along to the village shop, built c.1869 and owned then by a Mrs. Burbidge, the building still has the Post Office box on the wall, but is now a private house. The shop had a smell, like all old shops, of sweets, carbolic soap, cheese and paraffin soaked bundles of fire starting wood, and Mansion polish. We used to buy a mixed bag of boiled sweets between us, but I can’t ever remember her asking for sweet ration coupons. Rationing of certain items, bacon, sugar and butter started in January 1940. In March 1940 meat was rationed and by July tea was 2oz per person a week. Soon after this cooking fats, sweets, cheese, jams, eggs (1 a week) then clothes were also controlled, fish was not but always in short supply. Milk became in short supply, due to farmers having to have smaller herds, and ploughing up fields for cereal crops, and worst of all, Cadburys stopped making [Dairy] Milk Chocolate. Mrs Kemp used to get us to buy Savings Stamps, I wonder what became of those. Rationing of many things went on until May 1949, sweets were rationed until February 1954 and it only finished officially for all items on 3rd June 1954! Towards the end of the war, we were told to take a large tin with a top on to school, this we did and a free tin full of Sweetened Drinking Chocolate was given to us, all the way from America. This was a very unknown and tasty stuff to us kids, and many a licked finger was dipped into that before some of it found its way home. There was also Sweetened Dried Milk, both were similar to what you get in the shops today. VOLUNTEERS On 27th Nov. 1936 volunteers were asked for to be Air Raid Wardens and again in March 1938 when my father, Sid Newman, Frank Wooley, Mr Hollyoakes and Peter Kemp volunteered. Mrs C. Kemp, Mrs Hilton and Mrs Cooke volunteered as Ambulance workers, Mr Albert Grace and Mr Horace Barber were Fire Brigade volunteers. Did they have inside information on the forthcoming 2nd World War to make these early arrangements so far in advance? Wolverton Express January 12th 1940 HAVERSHAM Sunday School Party. Evacuee children and pupils of the Sunday School enjoyed an afternoon party at the School, during the Christmas holidays. Refreshments on a generous scale were provided by the Rev. S. Hilton, and Mrs. Hilton, who were assisted in the serving by ladies including Mrs. Kemp, Head Mistress of the Day School, Miss Casson, the evacuee teacher, and Mrs. Cave. A programme of games made happy entertainment and the contribution of Miss Casson, as Santa Claus, amply provided with gifts for all present, gave great satisfaction. Red Cross Week. The village working party, responsible for the sending Christmas parcels to fifteen local men serving with H.M. Forces, is continuing weekly meetings, each Tuesday, at the Rectory. Their successful work has included also the making of woollen comforts in response to the Red Cross appeal and the organising of a house to house collection which shown excellent results. Children of the Day School have knitted squares for blankets and have also contributed from their savings for the purchase of books for men serving in the Navy. Seventeen volunteers of a popular sixpenny series have been sent to a naval receiving depot. Food for the Fowls. Children who remain to dinner at the School are making careful collection of unwanted crusts and crumbs and giving them to an infant who appreciates the daily gift of food for his fowls. BLACK OUT Wolverton Express 14th June 1940 HAVERSHAM BATHROOM LIGHT Mrs. Irene Lancaster, Wolverton Road, Haversham, was summoned for causing an unobstructed light to a building. Defendant did not appear, but sent a letter. P.C. Stewart, New Bradwell, stated that at 10.25 p.m. on 23rd September, whilst in Wolverton Road, Haversham, he saw a light coming from a bathroom at defendant’s house, a distance of about tow hundred yards fro where the witness stood. The window had frosted glass and a white curtain, there being no black-out of any description. Defendant’s explanation was her young cousin switched the light on, but she was not responsible. In a letter to the Court defendant said the light was due to an unfortunate incident. A young friend who was staying with her owing to her husband being away in the Forces, put the light on not knowing that the black-out had not been put up. A fine of £2 was imposed. Wolverton Express 14th June 1940 NEWPORT PAGNELL PETTY SESSIONS HOUSE LIGHTING OFFENCE FROM HAVERSHAM Charles William Herbert of Haversham appeared at Newport Pagnell Petty Sessions on Wednesday on summones of having an unobscured light after the blackout at his dwelling house, to which he pleaded guilty, and for using indecent language, which he denied. Oscar Souster, a special constable said he saw a light showing from a downstairs window which was only covered with a thin curtain. The light went out when he knocked the door and the window was afterwards covered. He put in a specimen of the language alleged to have spoke to him regarding the offence. When shown the specimen Herbert turned to his wife, who was in the well of the Court, and said “You come and have a look at this.” Giving evidence, Mrs. Herbert denied that her husband used the language. Im. Defendant was fined 10s. for using indecent language, and, in fining him £1 for the other offence. Sir Walter Carlile, Bt. (chairman) commented that it was a serious offence. Seven days were allowed defendant in which to pay. Wolverton Express 28th June 1940 BLETCHLEY COUNTY COURT On Tuesday, before His Honour Judge Donald Hurst, and the Registrar (Mr. F. W. Bull). “A MOONLIGHT FLIT” Haversham Estates Ltd., 20 Bridge Street, Leighton Buzzard, claimed £13 arrears of rent, from A. Feldman (m), 18 Stamford Hill, London, N.16. Mr. E. T. Ray (Messrs. Walton & Ray), Bletchley and Stony Stratford), for the plaintiffs said this was a case in which the plaintiff came from London a day or two before the war, and took these premises. He paid three months’ rent in advance, and signed an agreement for a yearly tenancy which could be determined on six months’ notice. As the anticipated bombing attacks did not materialized, just before Christmas the defendant decided to go and he did what is known as “a moonlight flit”, with the consequences that the plaintiff had difficulty in tracing him. The defendant was till the technical tenant, and held the keys. Giles O. Randall, managing director of the plaintiff company, said the defendant paid him three months’ rent, which would carry him to the end of November: they were now suing for rent December to February. Defendant gave no notice of vacating the premises, and still had the keys. He left the house, which was in a deplorable condition. Defendant informed him that he was doing a business turnover of £50,000 a year in haberdashery, and appeared to live in a flourishing condition, keeping maids and a car. Judgement was given for £13 and ecats, in two monthly instalment Wolverton Express 1st November 1940 HAVERSHAM'S SPITFIRE FUND The villages of Haversham have sent the sum of £8 towards the Spitfire Fund, by means of the following contributions; Sale of old iron, competition per Mrs. Smith, £5 3s. 4d.; lavender bags per Mrs. O. Savings; 2s. 2d.; lavender bags per Miss N. Skeets, 3s. 5d.; donations, £1 5. 11d. Wolverton Express 13th December 1940 Home Guard A collection was made recently in Haversham and Little Linford in order to equip the headquaters of the Haversham Platoon, Home Guard. A sum of nearly £8 was realised and the members of the platoon are grateful to all who contributed. Extracts from "Haversham Estate And the Parish I Grew Up In" by David C. Brightman April 2000 SPECIAL CONSTABLES
THE WAR EFFORT We used to go out in school parties round the local fields picking wild rosehips, to make, would you believe it rosehip syrup, which we were told was full of vitamin C. What that did we didn’t know! I suppose if all country schools did this there must have been quite a lot collected, but who collects them today! We only ever seemed to have Cod Liver Oil for 50% of our illnesses and Milk of Magnesia for the other 50%, if you have never tried Cod Liver Oil, I suggest you do, it has a most wonderful lingering taste. For toothache we had something called Friars Balsam and for stings a pink concoction called Calamine Lotion smeared on the affected part, if it was stinging nettles, we used wet Dock leaf which worked every time and very rapidly. Oh yes, I nearly forgot, Syrup of Figs was another cure all concoction, and of course, Andrews Liver Salts but that at least had some fizz to it, and didn’t taste too bad in small amounts. During the War we had Concentrated Orange Juice, and sometimes homemade Liquorice water and Lemonade powder and later, Sherbet eaten with wet Liquorice Stick or finger, I remember my first banana in 1946 and mum had to show me how to peel it. A regular daily job was to go collecting green food for the 20 or so tame rabbits dad kept at the top of the garden at 94, these were kept in various size hutches, mainly adapted from surplus ex-railway cupboards and dog-lockers. During the War years, the fur skins were collected by an official Government agent, who told us they were made into gloves, any surplus eggs were collected by the Leighton Buzzard Egg Co. in their distinctive brown vans. Black market and all that, but mum always pickled some in isinglass, whatever that was. Funny thing is, I can’t ever remember having fried egg sandwiches, only hard boiled or poached. These eggs had a most peculiar taste but were usually swapped at school for a jam sandwich, or at worst a bloater paste sandwich, or the other short lived phenomenon, snoek, do you remember it, that was the nearest thing to cat food you could eat! TANKS, PLANES & AMMUNITION Until a few years ago on the path, opposite the entrance to the river walk car park or picnic area, were tank tracks embedded in the path tarmac. These were most likely made when a convoy of mixed vehicles came down the road from Hanslope just after D-Day in June 1944. I can remember this because one tank went up the bank, where the street light is at the corner of the village, demolishing the gate that used to be there, and across Mr Randall’s crop in the field where the football pitch is situated, and out by the E.M.E.B. transformer building, and down Manor Drive onto Wolverton Road. Dad was most upset because most of his 50 or 60 hens went off lay. I was told of an encampment on Fred Massey’s farm in the village where quite a bit of damage to the crops when they left for the Invasion in 1944. Mrs Massey’s parents were Mr and Mrs Mead, whose ancestors I am told by a relative, at one time worked the destroyed Meads Mill by the Viaduct. I remember standing with mum and dad outside our house watching Dakota aircraft towing gliders, all with the distinctive black and white recognition stripes on the wings and fuselage. They seemed to be going over for ages; this must have been to do with the D-Day Invasion in June 1944 or the Arnhem Bridge fiasco, or about that time. Some German bombers flew up to Coventry and the Midlands following the railway line, later we used to find along the railway embankment, aluminium foil strips about half an inch wide and a foot long, we called them ‘flitter’ these we were told later, were used to jam or confuse radar stations, but I thought the English were the only ones using this on raids over Germany, if so why did we find it at Haversham? I was very young then, but I distinctly remember finding this foil, or was it after the war, and making it into paper chains for Christmas tree decorations. Just around the corner towards Hanslope, on the roadside grass verge, which was much wider then, were 7 or 8 low Nissen Huts, these only had brown canvas flaps at either end, and inside were hundreds of boxes of land mines and mortar shells, the fuse for which were in the end hut, (we found an open box), these were not under guard or, if they were, we kids never saw any guards. We used to play in these huts, and use the boxes, which were about 18” x 9”, as building blocks and used to hide away from rival gangs inside, mainly kids from the village. Matches were not easily available in those days, and certainly not to children, thank God for that, I hate to think what might have become of Haversham and us kids. There were more of these ammunition dumps on the left just past Crossroads Farm, though I can’t remember them, but have been told by two local people they were there by the hedge in the field now used for turf cutting. CARS IN WARTIME During the War I can only remember seeing 2 cars in Haversham, but there were 13 others available for War duty if required. One car was Mrs Kemp’s and the other was Sammy and Kath Lott’s from The Crescent, they had a small taxi and garage business on the corner of the Stratford Road and Jersey Road in Wolverton, later to become Page’s garage. In about 1948 their car was an American Buick Saloon, a real big’un. The taxi fare from our house to the station was about two shillings. The Lotts moved to Lowestoft for some reason and eventually had a daughter. The other cars available for War service belonged to Messrs Souster, Webb, Crook, Canvin, Tustain, Randall, Saville, Duncombe, Harris, Wagstaff, Knapp and Applebey, Mr Joe Brightman had a motorbike! There may have been more cars, but they were probably laid up during the war, and petrol was in short supply or still rationed and expensive at 1/11 or 20 new pence a gallon in 1945! Petrol rationing started 16th September 1939 and was coloured red for commercial vehicles so you dare not use it in your car, even if you were allowed to use your vehicle. Bert Bowler had an Austin 7 about 1951 dad used to sometimes go with Bert to the Galleon pub at Old Wolverton. Dad’s first car was a 1936 Standard 8, he bought that from Jack Battrick of Wolverton about 1959. Dad was really more a motorbike man. The Wolverton doctor also had a car during the war, I believe this was a Wolseley 16. WARTIME PLANE CRASH I have been told by two Haversham residents of a plane crash in the field at the bottom of the allotments. During the War Wolverton works had a plane spotters post permanently manned on top of the works canteen, opposite the old Royal Engineer pub. One Tuesday night sometime about 1940, an aircraft circled over Wolverton and Haversham a number of times with its landing lights on, it was either lost or in distress and looking for somewhere to land, or crash land as it turned out. Remember, everything was blacked-out in those days, and probably nobody knew if it was one of ours or a Jerry looking for something to bomb, and the Viaducts, as we found out later were on the Luftwaffe’s list, as were the rest of the Works, which by this time was making various parts of military equipment, and would have been a legitimate target, but the Works luckily remained unscathed as far as I know. The aircraft eventually came in from the North West and crashed about 200 yards from the sewage ditch and on the line of the present wire fence running down to the river. The area was immediately sealed off by the local military and police personnel, the aircraft was later identified as an Airspeed Oxford a twin engine plane used for training purposes. The fuselage, wings and tail plane were swiftly removed, but the engines were buried 8 to 10 feet in the soft soil, whether these were ever removed I don’t know, but for many, many years afterwards, this was the only place in that field where stinging nettles grew. One of the first civilians, Mr Stan Butler who lives in Haversham, allowed onto the crash site, found a leather satchel which contained the names of three men from Coventry, this was handed over to the authorities, he also found a small major part of a body, which was left for someone else to pick up. My father, at the time a Special Constable had the job of guarding the wreckage until the military took over the unenviable task of removing the bodies and wreckage. What mission this aircraft was on we will probably never know, but one day I might approach the Air Ministry with a view to finding out a bit more about the crew, and if the engines were ever recovered, if you remember, in Feb 1987 two Allison aircraft engines were uncovered on Bradwell Common, behind and to the left of the Abbey National office complex, opposite the new Hockey Stadium these belonged to a P38 Lighting, according to the Imperial War Museum at Duxford, one of these engines is now on loan to Bletchley Park Museum.
Extracts by - Peter North GERMAN SPY? Harry Lane and Arthur Saunders were two men who had served in the first world war and were too old for this one, they were well known poachers, if anyone wanted a rabbit they would supply it, meat was rationed and they could easily sell everyone they could catch, early one morning when they were ferreting at the top end of the old lane, they found hidden in the bottom of the hedge a parachute and a spade, this caused a problem knowing they should not be there, should they report it or ignore it, they decided they had better report it, they went to Mr Souster at Hill Farm whose land they were on and told him what they had found, he telephoned the police and within about an hour soldiers were everywhere, searching every spinney and wood every farm building. It was a very cold and wet day they were wet through and their boots and trousers covered in mud, those searching the buildings were glad to get in the dry for a short time, this went on for two or three days they found nothing. A few days before the parachute was found two men of the Home Guard were on patrol just after midnight they saw a man come down the lane cross the road and go towards the mill, they challenged him to stop but he kept going, they came back to the village and told Tom Savings who was their sergeant, he said I Suppose it was someone poaching and left it at that, It was thought afterwards he could have been the man who came down in the parachute. When we asked after the war if anyone was ever caught we were told a German had shot himself in an air raid shelter in Oxford they thought he was the man. W.W.I - 1914
In 1914 Army Officers visited all the farms and commandeered all the best horses, the ones they chose had to be taken to the Market Square in Stony Stratford to be collected by the army. The photograph shows Mr Edward North of Haversham in the centre of the picture in trilby hat with his hand on one of his horses, after the army had taken all the best horses they had to be replaced. Only the old and broken down horses were left, these were sold for more money than the army had paid for all the best horses. |
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