A sweet side to evacuation!

I was eight years old when the war began, and fourteen when it ended. During the war I was evacuated to Blackpool. I remember that my mother was in hospital on the day of our evacuation, so it fell to my father to get us ready. When we were ready Dad took us to the train station, and I’ll never forget, the platforms were packed with other children. We all had our names pinned to our jackets, gas masks and brown paper bags which were filled with food, we were to give the food to the people who met us at the other end. The only thing I distinctly remember from the food bag was a packet of cream crackers.

When we arrived at our destination, which was Blackpool, we were put into groups of two and walked around the streets; this was so the local people could pick out the children they wanted to take in. Quite early on a lady stepped forward and said she’d like the two little girls at the back. I was really pleased by this, because my sister and myself were the two little girls in question.

It turned out that we were to be living with a couple, their eighteen-year-old daughter and grandfather. We found it easy living here; the house was not as strict as we were used to.

When we arrived we were put straight in the bath, even though we had had one before we left home. I remember that whenever the air aid sirens went off we would go and sit under the stairs, there were benches down there and a huge bowl of sweets. I don’t remember ever feeling afraid during raids, we’d all sit around under the stairs eating sweets and telling jokes. Through my young eyes it was good fun! I used to sing a little song to make “Auntie” give me another sweet. It went something like…

“Oh lets have another one,
Before you leave me,
Oh, lets have another one”.

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