Suttons Secondary Modern Boys' School, Hornchurch

A Memory of Hornchurch.

My Dad, Dennis (Den) Smith lived at 69 St. Andrews Avenue with his widowed mother Iris and his younger sister Mary. During WWII the area suffered bomb damage and dad and his sister were evacuated to Birmingham. However, dad soon got homesick and returned to Essex. During the war his mother worked at the Munitions Factory at Dagenham. Dad attended Suttons School, Hornchurch, Essex between 1943-1945 and was in class the day the Spitfire crashed. He joined the Naval Cadets in 1943 for 1 year. In 1949 he enlisted with the British Army at Romford with the R.E.M.E. He served for 5 years with Colours and 7 years with the Reserves and the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) in Germany between 1953-54. In 1954 he attended a dance at The Kings Head Tavern in Romford, where he met my mum. They were married the following year and have lived happily together ever since. The family emigrated to Australia in 1964. Dad has many fond memories of his childhood and teenage years growing up in Essex, England. He has lots of wonderful old photos from his life in Essex, his army days and various other parts of England during the 1940's, '50's and '60's.