In the past, The Gallery has had WWII Veterans living amongst us. But as is happening everywhere in Canada, the number of WWII Veterans is diminishing. There are however, current Residents who vividly remember the War as a child.
One of those is Sylvia Johnson who I recently sat down with to have a chat about her recollections.
Sylvia was about 6 when the War broke out. Besides carrying her books to school, she also had to carry a gas mask. Her family lived in Essex, about 68 km (42 miles) from London. The nearby Thames Estuary was a point of reference for the German bombers because it flowed into London from the West. One day while walking home from school she had an experience she described as unforgettable. She was part way home when a siren went off. She started to run and despite her legs moving, she wasn’t going anywhere. There had been a bomb dropped nearby and the suction from it wouldn’t allow her to progress.
Air raids happened several times a week. She said it almost became normal. Sylvia’s family had a shelter (pictured below) in their garden that the Government provided. Others who lived in more populous areas without a yard had to go the underground train stations for shelter. If the raid was in the middle of the night, she would take her clothes and blankets and go to the shelter. Sylvia vividly remembers an unmanned aircraft the Germans would utilize that made buzz sounds. They could clearly hear the terrifying buzzing sound and when it stopped it either meant the buzz bomb had dropped or it was shot down by the air defense. Sylvia said several houses nearby were bombed but her family managed to escape a direct hit.
Between September and November 1940, London had been bombed for 57 consecutive nights. The bombing campaign showed no signs of abating as Christmas Day approached. Many people spent Christmas Eve in an air-raid shelter.
Britain’s food supply was heavily dependent on foreign imports. In 1939 only around 30% of everything Brits ate was produced domestically - the rest was shipped in from producers and suppliers around the world. When the war broke out these supplies were drastically limited and the Government issued every family with a ration book.
Ration books worked on a coupon system, so people could only purchase their entitlement and no more. A typical person's weekly ration allowed them 1 egg, 2 ounces each of tea and butter, an ounce of cheese, eight ounces of sugar, four ounces of bacon and four ounces of margarine. Even candy was rationed. Sylvia said they worked very hard in their garden growing food for the family to make up for shortages. They literally had no money for anything above the basic means. Because of rations, Sylvia said each child received only one gift at Christmas and one day while helping her mother clean, she discovered the Christmas gift hiding place. I could clearly tell that Sylvia regretted seeing her gift in advance as there was no surprise on Christmas morning.
There were several times when Sylvia and her siblings had to be evacuated to different parts of the Country. She was the oldest of 4 and took on a motherly role growing up as her mother was not healthy most of the time. They would live with families unfamiliar to them. She said it was horrible being away from her parents and anxiously looked forward to returning each time.
Most families in Sylvia’s neighbourhood had husbands who had gone to fight the in the war. She dreaded the times when a young man in uniform who rode on a bike would arrive in the neighbourhood. Everyone knew he was there to deliver bad news to a family. Sylvia’s Dad was not able to serve because he was partially deaf, but he volunteered to help with the injured and would ensure that when the evening lights came on everyone in the neighbourhood had their curtains closed so that the Germans would not be able to navigate as easily.
I was curious if she could recall her feelings when they were told the war was over. Sylvia said she remembers everyone gathering on the street in front of the homes. They had a big bon fire and there was lots of singing and dancing. As a child she went everywhere on her roller skates (including grocery shopping for her mother).She wore them for the celebration.
Sylvia and her family came to Canada in 1975. She was reluctant at first to leave her family in England, but her job with Air Canada allowed her to visit often. Despite growing up during the war she told me “she has had the best life.”
A resilient, strong woman who had a 90th Birthday this past summer.
Thank you Sylvia, for sharing your stories with us. I can’t even begin to fathom what you and others in The Gallery endured during those horrifying times.
Gloria Sinclair
