War Memoirs 1940-42: Chapter One by Mr K J Devile
15 December 2009
We're always pleased to receive memoirs and stories from our members. This was sent in today by Mr Devile as an attachment to a response to one of our reader letters in the latest issue of avanti magazine
At the age of 17 and having left school I looked for a job. I had the opportunity to be an articled pupil with an estate agent but the way I was offered was not enough to pay my train fare and I did not want to be supported anymore by my father. My next application for work was addressed to the Civil Service Commissions for a temporary clerical position. While that was being processed I joined the local ARP (Air Raid Precautions) as a messenger. The wage was poor but I had no fares to pay. The ARP headquarters was situated in the Mansion House in Danson Park, Welling. My job was to deliver messages, leaflets etc on my bicycle to various places such as the Council Offices, Police Station, Libraries and others which I cannot remember. In addition to my gas mask they gave me a tin hat. It wasn't much of a job but I enjoyed it and it was the first rung on the employment ladder.
Very soon I was asked to attend an interview at the Ministry of Pensions (War Service Grants Branch) in London. I was offered a temporary position in the lowest clerical grade on the understanding that I would be prepared to move to Lytham St.Annes three weeks later. I accepted, as it was a chance to stand on my own two feet at last. I had to make a contribution to my keep in St.Annes but the balance of my pay was adequate for my needs.
We were allowed two free travel warrants home a year, which I used for holiday periods when I went home. Train journeys at weekends to London and beyond were out of the question as the services were unreliable because of air raids. If I went home for a week or more, I usually caught the 10.10pm train from Blackpool which, with luck, arrived at Euston about 5am the next morning. There was a warning notice in every carriage advising you to 'Be on your guard - careless talk costs lives'. Another section of the notice said that the lights were dim whether the train was moving or not. 'When it stops, make sure that it has stopped at a station and that you alight from the platform side of the train'. Many a passenger had got out the wrong side with dire consequences. It was a very long way down. Worse still if the train was nowhere near a station. One of these notices, still in its wooden frame, is displayed on a wall at the 'Union Inn' in Cowes. It reminded me that it was worth mentioning.
The office has organised a fire watch scheme and most of the lower grades, which included me, took it in turns to do a night shift. Generally, you slept through it but if the air raid warning sounded you went up to the flat roof all prepared to extinguish incendiary bombs. We had plenty of practises during the day with buckets of water and stirrup pumps. I wasn't too keen on having my sleep disturbed so I volunteered to join the Home Guard - my first step into the armed forces. I had a uniform and they even gave me a rifle. I had great fun running around the sand dunes firing imaginary bullets at imaginary enemy soldiers. Just like playing Cowboys and Indians but it got me exempt from fire watch duties.
I spent a very enjoyable 18 months in St.Annes spending the weekends in Blackpool or the local cinema. During the week I went to a social club and in the summer I played tennis on the public courts. At other times there was rowing on Fairhaven Lake. I was never at a loss for something to do. All good things come to an end and as the young lads approached the age of 19 they joined the armed forces. Many of them volunteered for service with the RAF, probably attracted to the blue uniform which was the best looking of the three services. As my time drew near, no heroics for me, I decided to join the Royal Armoured Corps. I reckoned I would stand a better chance of survival with all that armour plating around me. So, I enlisted at Preston on my 19th birthday and four weeks later I was in the Army. I managed to have a couple of weeks at home before I set off on the 16th October 1941 for the RAC camp at Warminster...
Submitted by letter by Mr K J Devile, Cowes
Picture shown: Mr Devile in the 1940s
At the age of 17 and having left school I looked for a job. I had the opportunity to be an articled pupil with an estate agent but the way I was offered was not enough to pay my train fare and I did not want to be supported anymore by my father. My next application for work was addressed to the Civil Service Commissions for a temporary clerical position. While that was being processed I joined the local ARP (Air Raid Precautions) as a messenger. The wage was poor but I had no fares to pay. The ARP headquarters was situated in the Mansion House in Danson Park, Welling. My job was to deliver messages, leaflets etc on my bicycle to various places such as the Council Offices, Police Station, Libraries and others which I cannot remember. In addition to my gas mask they gave me a tin hat. It wasn't much of a job but I enjoyed it and it was the first rung on the employment ladder.
Very soon I was asked to attend an interview at the Ministry of Pensions (War Service Grants Branch) in London. I was offered a temporary position in the lowest clerical grade on the understanding that I would be prepared to move to Lytham St.Annes three weeks later. I accepted, as it was a chance to stand on my own two feet at last. I had to make a contribution to my keep in St.Annes but the balance of my pay was adequate for my needs.
We were allowed two free travel warrants home a year, which I used for holiday periods when I went home. Train journeys at weekends to London and beyond were out of the question as the services were unreliable because of air raids. If I went home for a week or more, I usually caught the 10.10pm train from Blackpool which, with luck, arrived at Euston about 5am the next morning. There was a warning notice in every carriage advising you to 'Be on your guard - careless talk costs lives'. Another section of the notice said that the lights were dim whether the train was moving or not. 'When it stops, make sure that it has stopped at a station and that you alight from the platform side of the train'. Many a passenger had got out the wrong side with dire consequences. It was a very long way down. Worse still if the train was nowhere near a station. One of these notices, still in its wooden frame, is displayed on a wall at the 'Union Inn' in Cowes. It reminded me that it was worth mentioning.
The office has organised a fire watch scheme and most of the lower grades, which included me, took it in turns to do a night shift. Generally, you slept through it but if the air raid warning sounded you went up to the flat roof all prepared to extinguish incendiary bombs. We had plenty of practises during the day with buckets of water and stirrup pumps. I wasn't too keen on having my sleep disturbed so I volunteered to join the Home Guard - my first step into the armed forces. I had a uniform and they even gave me a rifle. I had great fun running around the sand dunes firing imaginary bullets at imaginary enemy soldiers. Just like playing Cowboys and Indians but it got me exempt from fire watch duties.
I spent a very enjoyable 18 months in St.Annes spending the weekends in Blackpool or the local cinema. During the week I went to a social club and in the summer I played tennis on the public courts. At other times there was rowing on Fairhaven Lake. I was never at a loss for something to do. All good things come to an end and as the young lads approached the age of 19 they joined the armed forces. Many of them volunteered for service with the RAF, probably attracted to the blue uniform which was the best looking of the three services. As my time drew near, no heroics for me, I decided to join the Royal Armoured Corps. I reckoned I would stand a better chance of survival with all that armour plating around me. So, I enlisted at Preston on my 19th birthday and four weeks later I was in the Army. I managed to have a couple of weeks at home before I set off on the 16th October 1941 for the RAC camp at Warminster...
Submitted by letter by Mr K J Devile, Cowes
Picture shown: Mr Devile in the 1940s
