War Savings plaque in Town Hall
I remember the Navy used to take their boats to Yarmouth on a courtesy call. It was good. You could go out and visit the ships, – there was one called ‘Yarmouth’. During the war if you paid to go the ship, you were paid back in savings stamps. All sorts of things you could go on, but you were paid back in savings stamps. Pauline Harwood nee Hatch b 1930
War Savings plaque for RAF
We had a Morrison shelter in the living room. I liked it, it was good fun to make a den and play in.
My mother was in the WRVS and we had a spare room so we took in evacuees – a mother and daughter about my age, from Plymouth. The father was in the Navy, on convoys, and used to call in when his ship docked in Portsmouth. Sadly, he didn’t return from the final convoy. When the mother and daughter went back to Plymouth, blankets and my mother’s prized cottage china tea set disappeared with them. Betty Coates Evans nee Lock b 1938
The day war broke out I was up the river sailing in my boat. It didn’t sink in that it would be anything like it turned out to be. That was 1939, I had to register in March 1940 then I was called up in June 1940.
My brother George and Newt, both were reserved occupationists because they were builders you see. George went into the Navy much later, because he was Reserved. Newt was building a lot of these air raid shelters and George was working for Bucketts – most of his time was spent working up the Needles Battery. They did a lot of work up there. Phil Kelsey b 1920
Builders 1930s Photo Di Broomfield
My grandfather used to come on a coal barge to the Gasworks and used to bring his daughter, my mother…. who met my father, Harry Holloway, who lived in Yarmouth, and so they were married. Harry was in the Navy in the Med for 2 years and I was named ‘Palma’ after the Palma in Majorca. Palma Ault nee Holloway b 1927
Bridge opening for coal boat