Saw this in the paper today. Tomorrow's the 70th anniversary of the first day of the London Blitz. SE London suffered the casualties that day - the Royal Arsenal and Plumstead.
This is fascinating stuff - the 7th September was just the first of 57 consecutive nights of bombing, although it was the first and last time that London suffered a concerted daylight raid - the price that the Luftwaffe had to pay for that was too high. The worst day of the Blitz as far as the old Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich was concerned was the night of 19th/20th March 1941 with over 100 incidents recorded. I've transcribed the whole of this log (along with several other boroughs) and am just about to start on the Woolwich ones in the next week or so. If anyone is interested in doing guided walks of various parts of London affected by the Blitz, please visit www.blitzwalkers.co.uk and come and join one of our walks.
Wow, one of the first reports was at 27,Crutchley road, Downham
Fortunately my nan lived at the other end of Crutchley Rd or I might not have been here!
Just makes you wonder, how they lived through it. You have to respect that generation. My mum lived through all the war in Dartford and brought up a child, whilst her husband was fighting in Burma, she didn't see him until his son was 4 years old, she even got machine gunned by a german figther whilst see was working down Vickers in Powder Mill Lane. Funny but true tail from my Mum, she lived in St Albuns Road, Dartford. A bomb went down her friends chimney, it didn't explode, and the baby was taken from the house and put to sleep with my Brother Garry. Nothing funny or unusual there, but it did lead to a few beers and disbeliefs as we now can claim that our brother slept with Keith Richards, just think might not have been any Rolling Stones. Goes down well after a few pints.
My Grandparent's house in Annandale Road was bombed later on in the war. Luckily, my grandmother, my dad and my uncle were in the air-raid shelter at the time. My Granddad was in the Navy at the time.
Jesus I know a lot of those roads. I didn't realise Catford was bombed as much as it was, any ideas why as I doubt the German's would have missed their targets that often.
FOD - there was actually a school attacked. Just Google Sandhurst School Catford. Don't think that it was necessarily a case of missed targets. My Mum told me that kids coming out of Lucas Vale in Deptford got strafed by a fighter one day. Hard to imagine what things must have been like.
This really is a fascinating list. I also wonder if it explains the 'missing' houses at the bottom of Victoria Way.
Growing up there, I was always intrigued why the first house on the opposite side of the road was No. 10. Various single-storey buildings occupied the site where Nos 2 to 8 would have been.
[cite]Posted By: Dave Rudd[/cite]This really is a fascinating list. I also wonder if it explains the 'missing' houses at the bottom of Victoria Way.
Growing up there, I was always intrigued why the first house on the opposite side of the road was No. 10. Various single-storey buildings occupied the site where Nos 2 to 8 would have been.
Were they destroyed, I wonder, by bomb 753?
There is a list of bomb targets and damage, compiled at the time...... all in chronological order, regarding 7 Sept 1940.
I read through the list (accessed via Jorge Costa's link, first post on this thread). I'm sure Victoria Way was specified.
[cite]Posted By: CharltonKerry[/cite]A bomb went down her friends chimney, it didn't explode, and the baby was taken from the house and put to sleep with my Brother Garry. Nothing funny or unusual there, but it did lead to a few beers and disbeliefs as we now can claim that our brother slept with Keith Richards, just think might not have been any Rolling Stones. Goes down well after a few pints.
Great story!
Any ideas why Catford of all places was targetted? Was it to take out whatever preceded the South Circular?
[cite]Posted By: Dave Rudd[/cite]This really is a fascinating list. I also wonder if it explains the 'missing' houses at the bottom of Victoria Way.
Growing up there, I was always intrigued why the first house on the opposite side of the road was No. 10. Various single-storey buildings occupied the site where Nos 2 to 8 would have been.
Were they destroyed, I wonder, by bomb 753?
There is a list of bomb targets and damage, compiled at the time...... all in chronological order, regarding 7 Sept 1940.
I read through the list (accessed via Jorge Costa's link, first post on this thread). I'm sure Victoria Way was specified.
Yes, got that, Oggy. That's what I meant by the 'list' and my reference to 753 on that list - Victoria Way and 266 Woolwich Road.
My mother's house (she was 8 years old at the time) in Victoria Dock Road, Tidal Basin (on the opposite bank of the river to Charlton, just behind Victoria Dock itself) was completely destroyed on the 2nd day of bombing, 8th September.
My grandmother and her 3 little girls were in the air raid shelter as the bombing started at 5pm, but my grandfather wasn't home from work in time. Then suddenly the shelter door was flung open, and he came stumbling in, slammed the door behind him as there was a whistle, thud, bang and choking dust as the their house was blasted by an explosive bomb.
It was a terraced house and normally he'd take his bike through the hall, through the scullery and into the shed in the back yard. That day, he came through the front door, dropped the bike in the hallway and ran for the shelter.
If he'd tried to put his bike away or even hesitated - it would have cost him his life.
My homeless family then spent the next 3 nights at South Hallsville school along with many other bombed out families., before they found a room in a house in North London. The night they left, the school received a direct hit and 300 people were killed.
Two lucky escapes .....otherwise I wouldn't be here now!
[cite]Posted By: Dave Rudd[/cite]Yes, got that, Oggy. That's what I meant by the 'list' and my reference to 753 on that list - Victoria Way and 266 Woolwich Road.
Have you been at the cider?
I read the whole list through at midnight last night, and just now was trying to recall what I'd read.
So maybe a bit hazy.
This is Cornwall, Dave. We don't make cider down here.
The only cider you can get down here is the usual Strongbow and Magners sh*t - or alcopops chemical cider that the kids get wasted on. Like you get in London.
You have to go back up the line the other side of Exeter and Somerset, for scrumpy country.
Much nearer to Bristol/Taunton......100 miles away from here, halfway to London.
looked absolutly gorgeous i have always loved that plane and it is the first time i have ever seen her fly really made me think about what my family went through back then
going to polish the family medals tonight and take a moment to consider.
The ironic thing about the London Blitz, is that Hitler said he did not want to go to war with Britain, remember we had the biggest Naval forces in the world, followed by the French. The first bombs fell on London by accident when a German bomber who's mission was to attack the RAF airfields got lost, dropped his bombs unknowingly over London. In reprisal Churchill sent a squadron of Stirling bombers (The Lancaster was not flying then) and bombed Berlin. Inceldently prior to this Goring stated "The Ruhr will not be subjected to a single bomb. If an enemy bomber reaches the Ruhr, my name is not Hermann Göring: you can call me Meier!" ("I want to be called Meier if ..." is a German idiom to express that something is impossible. Meier is the second most common surname in Germany.) He also said he would eat his hat. When Göring visited the devastated cities, civilians called out "Hello, Mr. Meier. How's your hat?" Proof if ever it was needed of the German sense of humour!!
Where I live, nr Meopham, was known as 'bomber alley' or 'doodle bug alley', because it is on the flight path to london, Trossley woods has scores of bomb craters from the war and still built into the side of the hill is an anti aircrft battery station where they would have had guns and observers. Night bombing was notoriously inaccurate in the forties thats why Bomber Harris carpet bombed the hell out of Germany in the latter parts of the war.
My Grand-dad worked in the Woolwich Arsenal throughout then war and on his day off was a firewatcher on Plum Lane, he reckoned it was more terrifying than the WWI trenches...
On the first Blitz Saturday he'd just got home from work when the first raid started and one of the ammunition sheds got a direct hit, he lived about a mile away in Swetenham Place and was in the shelter with my Nan, he said the ground shook like an earthquake...
About an hour later a copper turned up on his bike and said he had to go back to work for fire duties, he really thought it was going to be the last day of his life as he and the copper peddled like mad down Maxey Road back to the flames and devastation...
[cite]Posted By: Eddie Firmani[/cite]FOD - there was actually a school attacked. Just Google Sandhurst School Catford. Don't think that it was necessarily a case of missed targets.
That's the primary school I attended!
Half the building is the old pre-ww2 structure and where the bomb hit, is new bricking etc (obviously) it's quite weird looking at a school, knowing it is infact 2 buildings stuck together!
Comments
Fortunately my nan lived at the other end of Crutchley Rd or I might not have been here!
Funny but true tail from my Mum, she lived in St Albuns Road, Dartford. A bomb went down her friends chimney, it didn't explode, and the baby was taken from the house and put to sleep with my Brother Garry. Nothing funny or unusual there, but it did lead to a few beers and disbeliefs as we now can claim that our brother slept with Keith Richards, just think might not have been any Rolling Stones. Goes down well after a few pints.
My Grandparent's house in Annandale Road was bombed later on in the war. Luckily, my grandmother, my dad and my uncle were in the air-raid shelter at the time. My Granddad was in the Navy at the time.
Hard to imagine what things must have been like.
Growing up there, I was always intrigued why the first house on the opposite side of the road was No. 10. Various single-storey buildings occupied the site where Nos 2 to 8 would have been.
Were they destroyed, I wonder, by bomb 753?
There is a list of bomb targets and damage, compiled at the time...... all in chronological order, regarding 7 Sept 1940.
I read through the list (accessed via Jorge Costa's link, first post on this thread). I'm sure Victoria Way was specified.
there will be a fly past at 12.30 today.
An amazing list to read.
Any ideas why Catford of all places was targetted? Was it to take out whatever preceded the South Circular?
Yes, got that, Oggy. That's what I meant by the 'list' and my reference to 753 on that list - Victoria Way and 266 Woolwich Road.
Have you been at the cider?
My grandmother and her 3 little girls were in the air raid shelter as the bombing started at 5pm, but my grandfather wasn't home from work in time. Then suddenly the shelter door was flung open, and he came stumbling in, slammed the door behind him as there was a whistle, thud, bang and choking dust as the their house was blasted by an explosive bomb.
It was a terraced house and normally he'd take his bike through the hall, through the scullery and into the shed in the back yard. That day, he came through the front door, dropped the bike in the hallway and ran for the shelter.
If he'd tried to put his bike away or even hesitated - it would have cost him his life.
My homeless family then spent the next 3 nights at South Hallsville school along with many other bombed out families., before they found a room in a house in North London. The night they left, the school received a direct hit and 300 people were killed.
Two lucky escapes .....otherwise I wouldn't be here now!
I read the whole list through at midnight last night, and just now was trying to recall what I'd read.
So maybe a bit hazy.
This is Cornwall, Dave. We don't make cider down here.
The only cider you can get down here is the usual Strongbow and Magners sh*t - or alcopops chemical cider that the kids get wasted on. Like you get in London.
You have to go back up the line the other side of Exeter and Somerset, for scrumpy country.
Much nearer to Bristol/Taunton......100 miles away from here, halfway to London.
Probably not going to happen if it carries on pouring like this. Shame though. Love seeing these fly past.
Dont know where the other 2 went but the Lancaster bomber flew over my work at 1239
going to polish the family medals tonight and take a moment to consider.
we shall never forget
("I want to be called Meier if ..." is a German idiom to express that something is impossible. Meier is the second most common surname in Germany.) He also said he would eat his hat. When Göring visited the devastated cities, civilians called out "Hello, Mr. Meier. How's your hat?" Proof if ever it was needed of the German sense of humour!!
Where I live, nr Meopham, was known as 'bomber alley' or 'doodle bug alley', because it is on the flight path to london, Trossley woods has scores of bomb craters from the war and still built into the side of the hill is an anti aircrft battery station where they would have had guns and observers. Night bombing was notoriously inaccurate in the forties thats why Bomber Harris carpet bombed the hell out of Germany in the latter parts of the war.
On the first Blitz Saturday he'd just got home from work when the first raid started and one of the ammunition sheds got a direct hit, he lived about a mile away in Swetenham Place and was in the shelter with my Nan, he said the ground shook like an earthquake...
About an hour later a copper turned up on his bike and said he had to go back to work for fire duties, he really thought it was going to be the last day of his life as he and the copper peddled like mad down Maxey Road back to the flames and devastation...
I would really like that Lookout lets see what it generates intrest wise
B has anyone told you that you are when it comes to organising things
THE BEST THERE IS
THE BEST THERE WAS
AND THE BEST THERE EVER WILL BE
:-)
flattery will get you nowhere. lets wait for this poster to come back and see what he has to say on stuff. and then ill have a go.
That's the primary school I attended!
Half the building is the old pre-ww2 structure and where the bomb hit, is new bricking etc (obviously) it's quite weird looking at a school, knowing it is infact 2 buildings stuck together!