Family Memories War

Reading

At Reading conditions were very different. It is difficult to define what we were. We were soldiers combined with civilians, home guard with women’s A.T.S. In addition to office work we were also trained as infantry, thereby became jack of all trades. There were the usual guard duties, fire watching, week end camps, range practice on the Berkshire Downs, physical training with cross country runs, swimming and lectures. Never a dull moment. It was much of an occasion to have any free time. Night duties were performed at short intervals of three to four days. We were in a vital area. Riffles or Sten guns we carried at all times. The area was vital and raiders and flying bombs were around, and on one occasion a lone raider made our main office at Balmore his target. Very different indeed from Ilfracombe.

To make things more difficult our offices were scattered around the town. At the centre was Friar Street and the Corn Exchange. We had offices at Huntley and Palmers and school buildings. The main office was at Balmore a large house with single storey places erected in its grounds, where I remember the walnut tree and the luxury of fresh walnuts and the hedgehogs we watched on night time guard duty.

My wife was able to again join me and we had rooms at Tilehurst. She was conscripted for work at Gascoignes milking machine makers and then at Goodenoughs corn merchants. Her brother was stationed in the South of the country. When taking his Bren gun carrier to Oxford he broke his journey at Reading, staying the night and leaving his too obvious armoured vehicle in the road outside. He and his wife were married in Handsworth in the 16^th Oct 1943. We all travelled back to Reading where they spent a short honeymoon with us.

It was at Reading that I became a minor casualty. An iron radiator fell across my foot breaking a couple of bones. For two or three weeks I was in hospital a converted school. My leg was encased in plaster. It took several months to heal properly but did not excuse me from Army duties.

In conjunction with the Home Guard we camped at Arborfield with exercises. Learning how to comb fields and woods for parachutists. The rifle ranges were at Blewbury up on the Berkshire Downs. It was a bleak place more often than not encased in fog.