Sandhurst School

As Catford was on the flight path out of London, bombers would often drop their load before returning back to Germany. However, many regarded the Sandhurst attack as a calculated hit and evidence of German barbarity.

Video courtesy of Bomberguy

National Coverage

Oral history of Gordon Dennington

Music composed by Mendelson, courtesy of Spadecaller

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1. Please use your arrows keys to read the evacuation stories

   
   

   WW2 Catford Evacuees

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2. 

   Joan ‘s Story:
   First place was Biggleswade in Bedford & then to a place called Stock in Essex. My mother came with us all the time. I’ve got a brother and sister so we all went.  So then when I came back to Catford, I just went back to Plassey Rd School. I went to Askes, the war was over when I went to Askes .

   WW2 Catford Evacuees

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3. 

   Silvia’s story:
   Catford  to Motcombe in Dorset. I was evacuated, I went with my school. You know, being in the country you lived quite well. We were distributed around this village. I was on my own. I was sent to this lady, who had a daughter 3 years younger than me, I was very lucky, I was quite happy there actually. I’ve always loved the country so it suited me really. It was like an adventure.

   WW2 Catford Evacuees

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4. 

   How a Mother felt:
   Children cope. It’s the mothers who suffer. I remember Mum seeing me off. She went home, she had a bilious attack, she felt so ill and worried. They didn’t know where we were going; we didn’t know where we were going. When we got there we were given this card to send home to mum to tell her were we were. They didn’t know where we were not until they got the cards.

   WW2 Catford Evacuees

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5. 

   Mavis’s story:
   I was born in Hazelwood Castle, Tadcaster, Yorkshire, because where we lived was near the mainline to London which they were bombing, so all mothers-to-be were transferred out for safety. We stayed in the Castle & then the Yorkshire people were paid by the Government to take us in for about 6 months.  They put us down in a cellar! There were rats crawling over the pram, so my mum said “I can’t stay here!” She told the people who were doing the letting and the woman got summonsed to court. Then we got another home that was very nice.

   WW2 Catford Evacuees

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6. 

   How Suzy’s parents met:
   My parents met in Italy in the war– my dad used to come to the village. My Dad was in the Royal Engineers, and was part of the occupying forces in Northern Italy at the end of the war, and the local villages would organize dances and things, and he would go to the dances. I think it was his best mate who fancied her in the first place, but my Mum didn’t like him Dad brought her initially to Southwark St. They lived with his mum and dad in a tenement flat – it must have been awful for her but she never ever complained. She made her life over here as good as it got, and she lived until she was nearly 88.

   WW2 Catford Evacuees