Evacuee During World War 2

A Memory of Croxton Kerrial.

I was privately evacuated to Croxton Kerrial with my sister in 1940, we were billeted in a cottage named Woodbine Cottage, this was next to the Bakery. We attended the village school, I still remember some of the children's names that attended the school, my sister and I had quite a happy time in Croxton Kerrial. I have been told by my sister who revisited some years ago that Woodbine Cottage is no more. I was in the choir at the church. When I became aged 11 I atttended the school at Bottisford. If there is anyone who was at the village school during 1940 I would be only to pleased to hear from them. I use to go down to the sheep dip in the village to collect tadpoles. There was a photo taken in 1940 of the pupils at the Village school, during various moves it has got lost, if anyone has a copy of it I would be only to pleased to purchase a copy. My sister and I returned to Surrey just after being in Croxton Kerrial for just under 18 months. Some of the surnames of the pupils were: Thornton, Baggley, Copley, Hayward, Jarvis, Burrows, Charity. The name of the Head Teacher was Mrs /Miss Gilbert. The name of the people I was billeted on were Mr & Mrs Lane and sons, Sidney, and Kenneth. I remember the Army Convoys coming through the village, stopping, some of the soldiers buying jam tarts from the bakery. I enjoyed the country life, went gleaning during the harvesting, drinking cold tea from a bottle during a break from harvesting, collecting mushrooms, riding in the cart through the village after collecting swedes from the clamp, collecting the milk in a cannister from the farm at the bottom of the village, helping of perhaps hindering to bring in the BE AST. When I first arrived I collected water in a bucket from the pump a few yards from the cottage, within a short time I was carrying 2 buckets with little effort. At the back of Woodbine Cottage were 3 large huts, each must have held 30 / 50 laying chickens, I collected Maize, corn and broken shell from a large shed in the garden to feed the chickens, I then collected the eggs, then there were more chickens at the other end of the village to feed, I enjoyed this work. We collected rain water from big containers for washing, this was put on the stove to warm, this was so different from just turning on a tap.  When I returned to Surrey, friends told me I talked different, I can remember saying do it your sen, bairns, for children, be ast for cattle. All in all, I was pleased with the time I spent in Croxton Kerrial.

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