Billeted Soldiers

This story was submitted to the People’s War site by CSV/BBC Radio Nottingham on behalf of Dennis Wyatt with his permission. The Author fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

My name is Dennis Wyatt, the date is June 1942, Saturday. I lived at 37, Princess Avenue, Warsop and I was 10 years old. In the house were my Mother Elsie and my sister Sylvia. That morning a knock came on the front door, when we opened it a Police Sergeant and an Army Sergeant stood there. The Policeman asked, “How many people are there in the house?” My Mother said that there were three of us and named us. He then asked how many bedrooms and Mother said three so he said “you can put your boy in one room and you and your daughter go in the other then you can have two soldiers in the big bedroom”

At that the Army Sergeant went into a lorry in the street and came back with two soldiers!

I remember it well because there had been no man in our house, as my Dad died aged 38 in 1939. After that we had soldiers billeted with us until a few weeks before D Day.

I can’t remember the exact number of soldiers but there were quite a few. One in particular was Frank Anscome — he stayed with us all the time. He was originally in the 17th 21st Lancers but was then Batman to a Captain in a Tank Regiment. He became like part of our family. He was killed within four days of D Day and was buried in Bayeux France 1944.

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