Leeds in WWII

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Bevo
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon 07 Dec, 2020 11:08 am

Leeds in WWII

Post by Bevo »

Hello everyone, new to this forum and was wondering if there was any posts regarding Leeds in WWII as I am trying to find information about night watchers that used to stand on roofs of buildings in Leeds. Thanks.

jma
Posts: 496
Joined: Fri 05 Aug, 2016 3:38 pm

Re: Leeds in WWII

Post by jma »

I'll offer a welcome to the forum. I'm a relatively recent member myself so my memory of content doesn't go back far.

My main reason for posting is to suggest contacting the Leeds library service, if you have not done so already.

I know they did a project about the roles played by women in the war because they interviewed my late mother about her work (as a cashier in the canteen) at the Thorpe Arch bomb factory. She was an air raid warden during part of the war but never mentioned being on any roofs. I know she had various things like a whistle and a big wooden rattle to warn people of different types of bomb and she used to stand alone in the total (blackout) darkness on Armley Road, worrying how she would know there had been a gas attack to sound the alarm before she herself became overwhelmed by it. Luckily, she never found out.

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blackprince
Posts: 876
Joined: Tue 04 Sep, 2007 2:10 pm

Re: Leeds in WWII

Post by blackprince »

Hi,
You will find lots of posts about WW2 , air raids on Leeds, AA gun sites, air raid shelters , POW camps , armaments factories, etc.
The best way to find what you are looking for on this site ( or any other ) is to do a site specific search or use google advanced search just on this site.
see https://www.google.com/advanced_search.
There is some information about the air raids on Leeds here (enter the site & click on timeline /1940)
http://wlbhs.x10host.com/Frameset5.htm

Teachers at the school above used to volunteer to do fire watching. Two of them were in the art room on the top floor when bombs landed in nearby Armley. There was a metallic crash and both were slightly dazed. When they recovered they realised that they had crashed their steel helmeted heads together when they both ducked.
It used to be said that the statue of the Black Prince had been placed in City Square , near the station, pointing South to tell all the southerners who've just got off the train to b****r off back down south!

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