About the writer: Doug Clews lived in Chandler’s Ford between 1938 and 1966. Now living in Perth, Western Australia, Doug shares his fascinating childhood memories of Chandler’s Ford with us.
At age 5 at the outbreak of WW2, I did not have anything to compare life and standards of living with, so the War, as I remember it, did not seem to be such a hardship for us, as it was for many, many, thousands of other people in England.
So many of them lost loved ones, their homes, their possessions, and in many cases, their dignity.
Every man, woman and child was issued with a Gas Mask, a Ration Book. and an Identity Card (our numbers from memory were EDGK 80/1 Dad – 80/2 Mum, and 80/3 me).
School boy using War Ration Book image by Marion Doss via Flickr.
The Ration Book
Food and Clothing were all rationed – every item of food and clothing requiring “coupons” from the ration book, as well as the monetary payment of course.
When the coupons were used up, that was it, until the next lot became valid the following week.
You had to save up your coupons for the bigger items, as they required more coupons than the weekly allowance.
Virtually every household had an “allotment”, being an area of land, normally owned by the local council, which was divided up into small ‘parcels’ or ‘allotments’, where vegetables were grown by the allotment holders for their own use. My Dad actually was lucky enough to ‘score’ 2 allotments, one in Castle Lane behind the houses in Bournemouth Road (still allotments I believe), the other on vacant ground in Leigh Road next to the Castle Stores and Tea Rooms, as it was then.
A massive great country-wide billboard advertising campaign reminded people to “Dig for Victory”.
Dig for Victory
WWII casualties in Chandler’s Ford
The apparent lack of hardship, was due primarily, I guess, to luck and, to a large extent, our geographical location, enabling us to live a relatively normal life in Chandler’s Ford.
The village had a population of just over 3,000 people at that time, and although only 5 miles north of Southampton, which was virtually flattened during the Blitz (57 nights in 1940/1941), we escaped, throughout the war, with only a few ‘stray’ bombs, one ‘Doodle-bug’ (V1 – flying bomb – the first V-1 was launched against London on 13 June 1944) and a couple of ‘Bread Baskets’ (A Molotov breadbasket, attached to a parachute, so called because it contained both high explosive and incendiary bombs).
These incidents resulted, from memory, in 3 deaths, all in one family, namely the Smiths (of Scammel & Smith, Estate Agents) in Winchester Road between Hiltingbury Road and Hocombe Road, caused by a stick of five bombs dropped in the fields opposite their house (approximately where Thornden School now is), the blast from the bombs doing all the damage.
The flying bomb
The flying bomb, presumably, was aimed at London, but as was the case with so many, it didn’t make it all the way and landed in Pine Road, opposite the end of Beech Road, slicing the side off a house. Records show that 80 Flying Bombs fell in Hampshire, 880 in Sussex, 295 in Surrey, 1444 in Kent, all falling short of their London target.
A further 705 overshot their London target, falling as far a field as County Durham.
Structural damage was caused to about half a dozen homes from the bombs. Much more structural damage was caused by the various anti-aircraft guns around the area.
Large cracks in walls and ceilings were common, our own home, in Meadow Grove, from the Ack-Ack guns off Bournemouth Road at what was Velmore Camp, the Nissen Huts becoming temporary housing for Eastleigh Borough Council House applicants after the war.
One of many memories of the Blitz
I still remember, quite vividly, sitting in our lounge room in front of the fire one evening during the Blitz, when a “woosh” of a bomb was felt, and heard, as it passed overhead.
We thought, at the time, quite independently, that our number was up. We were also convinced it had taken the chimney pots off our house … it hadn’t, but it had fallen in the next street, Shaftesbury Avenue and, very luckily, did not explode, although the house adjoining the bomb-site was virtually demolished.
Knowingly, only one other bomb fell in the village, again only a couple of streets away from us, in Chalvington Road, causing, as luck would have it, only severe structural damage to one house opposite Keble Road.
In the early part of the Blitz, we had 3 evacuees from schools in Portsmouth and Gosport living with us for quite a while. They were Desmond Brown (who went to join his family in Singapore just before it fell to the Japanese – his father was in the services, the Navy I think), Dennis Tattersall, and, later, Valerie Stanley.
Valerie I remember best. She was in the lounge with my mother and I when the bomb was thought to have taken the chimney pots off. Also, she gave me a pet rabbit for one of my birthdays (7th or 8th from memory I guess). I have no idea, whatsoever, what became of any of them after they left our care, although I did endeavour to trace them in 2008 through a website called ‘Gosport Information’.
I later got a couple of e-mails from a lady called Amanda Allen, who claimed her mother, Rosemary, was Valerie Stanley’s younger sister and, if it was, in fact, the same Valerie Stanley, she was 2nd time married, having lived in Zambia and, in 2008, on the Isle of Man, but that was as far as I got until March 2010, when I ‘stumbled’, quite literally, on an entry on the Internet which led me to Derry Brown, who turned out to be a grandson of Desmond Brown … a small world !
To be continued …
Extracts from The Doug Clews Story, or As I remember it, 81 years on.
What’s your memory of the war? Were you in Chandler’s Ford during the war? Please leave a comment and share your story with us.
About Doug Clews
Doug Clews with Llama
Born at 31, Hanley Road, Shirley, Southampton, in March 1934.
We lived in Suffolk Avenue Shirley, moving to Winchester Road, Southampton, then Passfield Avenue Eastleigh, before finally taking up residence at 17, Meadow Grove, Chandler’s Ford in 1938, where I remained until moving to 46, Oakmount Road in 1958, after marrying in 1954, and then finally to 8, Brownhill Road (the right half of what is now Eric Robinson, Solicitors), before emigrating to Perth, Western Australia, in 1966.
Having completed a 6 year apprenticeship in Electrical Engineering at Pirelli’s in Eastleigh, I spent 2 years at Hereford for my National Service in the Royal Artillery … On completion of this, I returned to Pirelli’s and quickly realised that a factory was not the life for me, so I embarked on a sales career with Birds Eye Frozen Foods, at their Southampton Depot.
I joined the Australian Company, Gordon Edgell (Birds Eye Australia) on arriving in Perth (now part of Simplot), rising to the Western Australia Manager for their Food Services Division … (Catering).I left Edgells after the company underwent a series of structural changes, and moved in to the Home Improvement and Security Industry.
I retired in 2000 from the position of Administration Manager, and, currently, I continue to lead a busy, but more leisurely life.
My family moved to Meadow Grove, Chandler's Ford around 1937, where I
spent my childhood, teen years and early twenties. I was educated at
King's Road School Chandler's Ford, Nethercliffe Preparatory School in
Winchester and Peter Symonds' School, also in Winchester. I served an Electrical Engineering Apprenticeship at Pirelli's, did National Service in the Royal Artillery, and was a Representative for Birdseye Frozen Foods. The move to Western Australia came in 1966, where I continued a 'Sales' career. I retired in 2000 and lived in a 'Hills' suburb east of Perth City until August 2019. I currently live happily in a Nursing Home in Georges Hall, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
It is an interesting point that our age group did not think the war terrible when we were children because that is all we knew. It was normal that some of our friends had lost their Dads, brothers, uncles and cousins and some were ‘bombed out’ and lived with relatives or were billeted with some reluctant person who still had a house.
Recently I was enjoying a beer at a pavement cafe in France when a siren sounded at noon to signal the end of the market. There was an involuntary flood of adrenaline and a rush of memories at the sound even after all the intervening years. I looked up to find the nearest shelter. It was a good feeling to relax back, sip the beer and reaffirm that Europe is now at peace.
When my mother recalled her war years in Singapore, she sounded calm and matter-of-fact, but still there was anger. She remembers food shortage and starvation, and how they got on without a big fuss. People died in horrific ways; the Japanese were brutal; the white people were tortured …… People went missing.
My mother was a malnourished 10-year-old. She said small children normally did not have to work for the Japanese, but she and her mother were often short of food, so her kind neighbours got her a small job as a stone carrier. My mother would work with adults, including some old people, and they all kept an eye on this little girl. “My job was very small; nothing important. I filled some stones in the bucket, then I carried the bucket from one place to another, and the adults would pave the roads near the airport (Changi) with the stones.” My mother said.
Does anyone remember the old black huts as we knew them? My Granma used to live in one of them at one time during or after the war (not sure when) I remember visiting her in them and I must have been less than five years old at the time. My Grans name was Mrs Unsworth And sorry to say I can’t remember her Christian name and sadly all her children are now gone including my Mum. Grandmums children were Cyril and Bill who were killed in action in Europe aged 19 & 22 then there was Freddie, Douglas, Peggy and my Mum Joan aka Lucy.
Mum married My Dad, a Glasgow boy called Bill (Jock) Drever. The black huts as best I can remember were down a little gravel footpath that ran beside a small terrace of houses that I think are still in place just opposite the Hut pub on Bournemouth Road. I think the huts were roughly around where Selwoods plant was built but alas all is now an industrial estate. I think the garden used to run all the way down to as I recall Mum saying was called Ponds farm where there were orchards they would scrump from.
As I recall the huts were made pretty much from tarred together rail sleepers and a tin roof, raised from the ground and steps to enter. The huts were basic in the extreme. I have many fond memories of visiting Gran with Mum (Joan) and Aunt Peg her older sister who married Donald Hibberd a local boy who I believe served in a tank regiment and went on to work most of his life in the rail works at Eastleigh.
We lived in Eastleigh but moved to 26 Faulkland Road at a year I cant remember but I do know there were no shops and the old nissun huts were just across the road where we played in and on them. Mum and Dad were housed in one after the war for a while and I think my sister Diane may well have been born in one. Not far away were what I was told were the remains of the POW camp.
I guess that’s where the name of Velmore camp as we knew it came from. If only we all had as now ‘smart phones’ to take photos. I’m sure someone else must remember the old huts and with a bit of luck may know of an old photo of them, I’d love to see it.
I remember the Black Cottages as we called them very well they were behind the the terraced houses on Bournemouth Road down as far as the old senior school which then became Selwoods yard. I lived in Station Lane, born there in 1942, a matter of yards from the the Black Cottages and grew up playing all around that area down to the brick field and the woods beyond on Mr Fortunes farm and School Lane .There were about 4 cottages together and a further 2 further down School Lane where the Ormrod family lived. The first 4 were knocked down quite early on I can’t remember anyone ever living in the 4 top cottages – maybe they were workers cottages for the brick works which closed I believe in the very early 1900’s or late 19th century.
When I was growing up in the 50’s the land behind the Black Cottages were allotments – my Dad had one there. There were allotments on the other side of School Lane as well.
I remember that there was a family there called Young as a friend of mine was a Margaret Young who lived in the Black Cottages.
Sadly have never seen any photos of the black Cottages not many people had cameras at that time if only we all had the technology of today, phones with cameras, what a story could be told!
Hi Glen Drever
I am blowed if I can work out where the huts you refer to exactly were … I must have gone past them, or at least seen them, I would have thought, as I used to walk from Meadow Grove to Kings Road School every day … the name Unsworth sort of rings a bell, in particular Peggy … Don Hibberd, I think, is the same Don Hibberd who lived at 6 Meadow Grove, with brothers Raymond, Douglas and Les … Don, I thought, at one time at least, was in the Royal Navy, as was Douglas … Les married and moved into 9 Meadow Grove and they had 4 girls …
Doug Clews
I was fascinated to read Doug’s excerpts from his book, I grew up at No.2 Meadow Grove Chandler’s Ford. Lived in Chandler’s Ford until 1964 when I moved to Scotland and then finally moved to Australia to live in 2003. No doubt we could share quite a few childhood memories. Barbara Lock
*I remember you as I had a photo of you with my brother David higman of 5 meadow grove well remember doug clews as we’ll your dad mum I’m now 80 yrs since 15 Aug 2024 sadly lost david 2022.
[…] Through Doug’s comments, I wrote to invite him to share his memories of Chandler’s Ford. Doug later kindly shares with us his childhood memories in a series titled The War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945. […]
It is an interesting point that our age group did not think the war terrible when we were children because that is all we knew. It was normal that some of our friends had lost their Dads, brothers, uncles and cousins and some were ‘bombed out’ and lived with relatives or were billeted with some reluctant person who still had a house.
Recently I was enjoying a beer at a pavement cafe in France when a siren sounded at noon to signal the end of the market. There was an involuntary flood of adrenaline and a rush of memories at the sound even after all the intervening years. I looked up to find the nearest shelter. It was a good feeling to relax back, sip the beer and reaffirm that Europe is now at peace.
When my mother recalled her war years in Singapore, she sounded calm and matter-of-fact, but still there was anger. She remembers food shortage and starvation, and how they got on without a big fuss. People died in horrific ways; the Japanese were brutal; the white people were tortured …… People went missing.
My mother was a malnourished 10-year-old. She said small children normally did not have to work for the Japanese, but she and her mother were often short of food, so her kind neighbours got her a small job as a stone carrier. My mother would work with adults, including some old people, and they all kept an eye on this little girl. “My job was very small; nothing important. I filled some stones in the bucket, then I carried the bucket from one place to another, and the adults would pave the roads near the airport (Changi) with the stones.” My mother said.
I wrote a series about the WWII in Singapore in another blog:
Pilgrimage of a son: How Changi Cross made history
The Incredible Journey Of Harry Stogden’s Changi Cross In Singapore
Eric Cordingly – Diary of the Changi POW Chaplain in Singapore
Changi stones and Prisoners of War in Singapore
The Uplifting Changi Murals and Stanley Warren
These posts are so interesting and help to flesh out what I know of our local history.
Does anyone remember the old black huts as we knew them? My Granma used to live in one of them at one time during or after the war (not sure when) I remember visiting her in them and I must have been less than five years old at the time. My Grans name was Mrs Unsworth And sorry to say I can’t remember her Christian name and sadly all her children are now gone including my Mum. Grandmums children were Cyril and Bill who were killed in action in Europe aged 19 & 22 then there was Freddie, Douglas, Peggy and my Mum Joan aka Lucy.
Mum married My Dad, a Glasgow boy called Bill (Jock) Drever. The black huts as best I can remember were down a little gravel footpath that ran beside a small terrace of houses that I think are still in place just opposite the Hut pub on Bournemouth Road. I think the huts were roughly around where Selwoods plant was built but alas all is now an industrial estate. I think the garden used to run all the way down to as I recall Mum saying was called Ponds farm where there were orchards they would scrump from.
As I recall the huts were made pretty much from tarred together rail sleepers and a tin roof, raised from the ground and steps to enter. The huts were basic in the extreme. I have many fond memories of visiting Gran with Mum (Joan) and Aunt Peg her older sister who married Donald Hibberd a local boy who I believe served in a tank regiment and went on to work most of his life in the rail works at Eastleigh.
We lived in Eastleigh but moved to 26 Faulkland Road at a year I cant remember but I do know there were no shops and the old nissun huts were just across the road where we played in and on them. Mum and Dad were housed in one after the war for a while and I think my sister Diane may well have been born in one. Not far away were what I was told were the remains of the POW camp.
I guess that’s where the name of Velmore camp as we knew it came from. If only we all had as now ‘smart phones’ to take photos. I’m sure someone else must remember the old huts and with a bit of luck may know of an old photo of them, I’d love to see it.
I remember the Black Cottages as we called them very well they were behind the the terraced houses on Bournemouth Road down as far as the old senior school which then became Selwoods yard. I lived in Station Lane, born there in 1942, a matter of yards from the the Black Cottages and grew up playing all around that area down to the brick field and the woods beyond on Mr Fortunes farm and School Lane .There were about 4 cottages together and a further 2 further down School Lane where the Ormrod family lived. The first 4 were knocked down quite early on I can’t remember anyone ever living in the 4 top cottages – maybe they were workers cottages for the brick works which closed I believe in the very early 1900’s or late 19th century.
When I was growing up in the 50’s the land behind the Black Cottages were allotments – my Dad had one there. There were allotments on the other side of School Lane as well.
I remember that there was a family there called Young as a friend of mine was a Margaret Young who lived in the Black Cottages.
Sadly have never seen any photos of the black Cottages not many people had cameras at that time if only we all had the technology of today, phones with cameras, what a story could be told!
Hi Glen Drever
I am blowed if I can work out where the huts you refer to exactly were … I must have gone past them, or at least seen them, I would have thought, as I used to walk from Meadow Grove to Kings Road School every day … the name Unsworth sort of rings a bell, in particular Peggy … Don Hibberd, I think, is the same Don Hibberd who lived at 6 Meadow Grove, with brothers Raymond, Douglas and Les … Don, I thought, at one time at least, was in the Royal Navy, as was Douglas … Les married and moved into 9 Meadow Grove and they had 4 girls …
Doug Clews
I was fascinated to read Doug’s excerpts from his book, I grew up at No.2 Meadow Grove Chandler’s Ford. Lived in Chandler’s Ford until 1964 when I moved to Scotland and then finally moved to Australia to live in 2003. No doubt we could share quite a few childhood memories. Barbara Lock
*I remember you as I had a photo of you with my brother David higman of 5 meadow grove well remember doug clews as we’ll your dad mum I’m now 80 yrs since 15 Aug 2024 sadly lost david 2022.