War Years
The Day War Broke Out
The day war broke out it was one week to my 8th birthday and I spent it with my family. We were evacuated to Banchory, Aberdeenshire. We had never seen green fields or cows and we had to walk one and a half miles to school. I was amazed but loved it. We stayed for six years and did not want to come back.
Food for Thought
Remember wartime ration books
The ingenuity of wartime cooks
Nothing allowed to go to waste
Porridge becoming a familiar taste
Tatties and neeps (stomaches-full)
Peas from the kailpot to chew at school
Remember tops of eggs being taken
For tea – it was no joke
Kids then seldom tasted yoke
Powdered egg in a tin
Less sugar and sweets (more saccharin)
Baked rice, raisins, curds an’ whey
Custard and rhubarb – desserts of the day Read more......
Transport Aircraft Observation
I was reading your summary about Vyachaslev Molotov and it reminded me that, while walking around Emmock woods one day early in the war, my father and I saw a large plane land at Tealing aerodrome (Handley Page Hereford?). My father at that time worked for WP Robertson who provided chauffeur-driven hire cars/taxis in the city. Read more......
Memorial Memories
I was born in Charles Street on October 2nd 1942 and moved to 43, Hill Street the following year. From our house, if we leaved out we could see the war memorial on top of the Law. I remember my Mum putting up this black sheet every night, so it was obviously war time. The best memory however was seeing the flame lit on the memorial, so I now presume it was VE day.
Memories of Dundee - Part Eleven
There was another potential danger that had to be considered and guarded against, poison gas! That was used on the battlefield in the First World War so the chances were that it could be used again, against civilians this time. Thus everyone had to be issued with a gas-mask. Read more......
Memories of Dundee - Part Ten
In some ways, the war had an immediate impact on our lives. The Blackout, which I mentioned previously, was imposed by law on every house, street and premises nationwide. All vehicle lights were curtailed, with black paper stuck on them, allowing only a half-crown sized circle of light to show. Torches became almost a necessity, but even they were restricted to a small circle of light showing. As a result, torch batteries, owing to demand, became somewhat scarce and if work got round that a certain shop had some there was a rush of customers at these premises, eager to buy. Read more......
Memories of Dundee - Part Nine
The coming of war brought many changes to our lives. However, I felt the very first impact of war, two day before it started. On the evening of 1st September 1939, the day Germany invaded Poland, a country whom we had pledged to help if they were attacked. I went to see a film about the Dionne Quintuplets, born to a French Canadian mother, who roused a lot of public interest at the time. When I came out of the cinema, I thought it was very dark, but I didn't realise that there were no street lights on. It wasn't until I got home that the truth was brought home to me. I assume this was the first ever blackout and I guess, a practice for that which would later become commonplace when war was declared two days later. I assume the Government was then resigned to the fact that war was inevitable. Read more......
Memories of Dundee - Part Six
The year 1939 was memorable for a number of reasons. First of all there was the Mrs Jordan sensation. Of course it didn’t mean very much to me at the time, but I can understand now how big a thing it must have been. Read more......
Loads of Entertainment
I was born in Peddie Street in 1938. I went to St. Joseph's then on to St. John's in Park Place. I worked in Johnston's Stores in Allan Street. After that I had a job in Thomson Shepherd's in Taylor's Lane.
From there I went into the Royal Engineers for three years. I spent some time in Germany then a year on Christmas Island before being demobbed in Ripon. Read more......
Occupied Groningen
It was September 1944, I was a student nurse in Apeldoorn and I had been at home on sick leave as I had TB. The cure was bedrest and good food. We lived in occupied Holland, Groningen, not far from the German border. My father worked there on the railway and he was told by the Underground that we had to leave our house and go underground. We put what belongings we could in an empty room belonging to a neighbour. The rest we just had to leave in our house. Father and Nico, my brother, dressed as workmen and cycled to Makkum, the village where my parents were born, and where we had a lot of relations. Nobody wanted me as I was ill and did not have a ration card. Read more......
