Reserved Occupations

The Desert Rat and the Whale

George was a desert rat and was at Dunkirk... He was posted out to the Middle Est three months after...

Life in Exeter: Working for the District Valuers Office

After a particularly heavy bombing, I clearly recall walking through the streets of Exeter, and afterwards...

Reserve Occupation: A Docker in Ipswich

He was a docker in the local docks but some of the time he was a steel erector, Ipswich was very lucky...

North Atlantic Convoys

He served on a deep-sea trawler and went with the convoy to St John's in Newfoundland. Thomas was...

First Dogfight of the War

My grandfather was in a reserved occupation - he worked for Scottish Oils in their laboratories, and he was...

My Grandad in the 2nd world war

Because he was working for royles royce making engines for spitfires, he was not able to join the army as...

Your article has been categorised

Mossie said that before we left Bukom, he had heard – from where I don't know because useful news...

WORKING AT HEMSWORTH COLLIERY AS A BEVIN BOY 1945

The stables, where the ponies were housed, were at the pit bottom and as my job was that of a pony driver,...

Memories of Pit Props and Ponies

The miners broke coal down from the coal face while I was behind filling 10 cwt tubs by shovel and even by...

1943 -1945; Bevin Boy's Coalmines

I will never forget the day my mum gave me the letter telling me I had been directed to work in the...

How I became a Bevin Boy

It has now been acknowledged that the Bevin Boys are entitle to three service medals, namely, the National...

Bevin Boy 1945

Too many miners, had been called up, resulting in a grave shortage of coal. I tried to get some form of...

A Bevin Boy's Story

During my time as a Bevin Boy I was never known by my Christian name of Phil - I was called "Win"...

FINDING OUT ABOUT THE END OF THE WAR WITH JAPAN

During World War II I was an apprentice at the Grove Colliery of the Brownhills Collieries Ltd, owned by...

Bevin Boy Life

I was then sent to Hickleton Main Colliery in Yorkshire. My first experiences were taking empty wagons down...

Killed down the pit

Hugh Johnstone of Dalmellington remembers a local boy - Stewart Blane - who started as a surfaceworker at...

Bevin Boy 1945 page 2

For the rest of Ernest Stonestreet's story please see the entry called Bevin Boy 1945. After the war,...