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The ‘Elmbridge at War: The Blitz in our Borough’ exhibition at Esher Civic Centre in January 2020.
From 2020-21, the ‘Blitz in our Borough’ display at the Civic Centre, in Esher High Street, explored the experience of the Blitz for Elmbridge residents.
Which significant parts of the borough were Nazi targets? What happened in the immediate aftermath of a devastating raid? How did everyday life change for Elmbridge residents as a result of the Blitz?
All are important questions relating to Elmbridge’s experience of aerial bombardment, and ones which our online exhibition – tracking the Blitz from the first air raid siren to the final all-clear – seeks to explore.
To accompany the ‘Blitz in our Borough’ exhibition, we have created three sets of short object videos. These ‘hidden treasures’ of Elmbridge Museum include items which feature in the exhibition and ones which remain behind closed doors in our archive. Using the same format as the exhibition, we explore every inch of the chosen artefacts, inside and out, to paint a more detailed picture of some very special items.
Why not get to know our objects up close and personal by watching the videos in each section below? To find out more about the process behind creating the videos and gain a glimpse behind the scenes, read our blogpost.
A vast array of Civil Defence Wardens acted as an essential reassurance. Approximately 10 Air Raid Precaution Wardens were appointed per square mile in Elmbridge to supervise the blackout and civilian safety when the sirens sounded, while Fire Guards would keep watch for bombs.
In addition to this, Anderson shelters, introduced by Home Secretary Sir John Anderson in 1939, were usually dug outside. They were convenient for the many Elmbridge residents who had gardens. There were a few prominent public shelters in Elmbridge, such as the one situated underneath Molesey recreation ground.
As a result of its involvement in war industry, parts of Elmbridge became prominent targets, and schools of children were whisked from their classrooms in Molesey to the peaceful Devonshire countryside – away from the danger. The contrasting intensity of the Blitz across the borough is stark. Many areas to the south and west of Elmbridge escaped unscathed. Others further north and east received the tail end of London’s heavy shelling.
‘Danger Unexploded Bomb’ sign used by ARP Wardens in Elmbridge.
The attack on the Vickers-Armstrong factory was a watershed in both Elmbridge and the nation’s experience of the Blitz thus far. Just after 1pm on the 4th September 1940, the factory producing Wellington bombers was shelled by its German equivalents. 83 employees were killed and 400 injured – making it the most devastating raid since the war began. Nevertheless, a year later the resilient workforce had moved to Silvermere and were continuing to contribute to the national war effort.
During this time, ARP wardens put their lives at risk in order to supervise the air raids. Mr. A. C. Cornwell from Esher is one of the wardens who we know a lot about – and Elmbridge Museum is now home to many of his personal effects from the time. These include his identity card and notes on a bombing raid in his locality, which are both on display in the exhibition.
Find out more about one of the essential items in an air raid warden’s toolkit here.
Female workers at Allsop’s Garage, Weybridge, making landing gear for Vickers-Armstrong’s Wellington bomber planes.
While young and old toiled in the factories of war industry, vast numbers of local women also grew vegetables across Elmbridge’s extensive farmland. Bell Farm in Hersham – next to the Coronation Recreation Ground – was formerly known as ‘Secrets Farm’, and became home to row upon row of glass cloches, denoting its use by the Women’s Land Army (W.L.A).
Land work brought about all manner of unlikely alliances throughout the Borough. Prisoners of War from Thames Ditton’s Topsite Camp, Greenwood Road, were set to work at Rivernook Farm in Walton. They harvested food crops alongside members of the W.L.A, and generally led a happy coexistence within the community.
Prisoners of war and land army women harvesting tomatoes at Rivernook Farm, Walton, 1946
Vickers-Armstrong was perhaps the most prominent war factory in Elmbridge, but there was also substantial production taking place elsewhere. On the Fairmile Estate in Cobham, Airspeed Ltd. and Fairmile Marine produced air and navy equipment respectively. Allsops was another prominent yet often forgotten player in Elmbridge’s war effort, holding the contract to maintain the Vickers Company cars. Mr. Allsop, Chairman of Walton an Weybridge Urban District Council (W.W.U.D.C.), founded the business in 1925 as a garage. During the Second World War it became a private engineering company making landing gear for the Vickers factory Spitfires and Wellingtons. The company had a strong workforce of 500 (mostly female) employees.
Female workers at Allsop's Garage, Weybridge, making landing gear for Vickers-Armstrong's Wellington bomber planes.
Photograph of six Land Army girls at Secrets Farm (better known as Bell Farm), Hersham, c.1944-45.
Photograph of 5 women planting seeds at Secrets Farm (Bell Farm), Hersham, c.1944-45.
On the 11th May 1941, the worst of the Blitz had come to an end. Four years later, on the 8th May 1945, elated residents threw street parties across Elmbridge to mark Victory in Europe (V.E. Day). A month after that, on the 8th June, a lavish celebration was being held at the Oatlands Park Hotel, with toasts, a Cabaret, and hundreds of attendees. The place that had been a convalescent hospital for New Zealand troops in the First World War had become the official venue for victory celebrations in the Second.
Victory celebrations in Florence Road, Walton, 1945.
Across Britain, there was widespread jubilation and relief for those who had survived unscathed: the prospects of bombing and the threat to life were officially over. But there were many who were not celebrating – for the bereaved and those who still had family fighting the war in Asia, there was little to be happy about.
The close of the war could not bring back lost loved ones, nor could the end of shelling restore Elmbridge to its pre-war state. 75 years on from V.E Day, we can take the opportunity to remember all those who resiliently faced suffering and death in our Borough, and those who did not live to see the arrival of the V.E Day that they had bravely fought for.
Recording equipment.
During their interviews, the final ten participants’ recollections were vivid, emotional, funny, captivating, sobering – and above all, extremely varied.
They provide a personal insight into what it was like for some living through the Elmbridge Blitz, and the profound effect that it has had on life since.
Extracts from the oral history interviews are available in the Memories of War video above and the notebook below.
Why not try doing your own oral history recording with someone at home?
