I don’t suppose there is anyone today who could tell me about David Herbert, or Alfred Bowlers. Both were living in Cavendish Road* on the night of May 1st 1941 and both of them died in the early hours of the following morning. According to the records May 1st 1941 was a quiet night. There were only nine casualties on that night from German bombing. It just so happened that David and Alfred were two of them. Of the remaining seven all were from Chorlton and only one survived to be admitted to Withington Hospital.
The night of May 1st 1941 was closely documented. A local defence volunteer recorded the incident when four 250 kg bombs fell close to the old railway line at 11.30 that night. Two fell near Barlow Moor Road, perhaps on the corner with Brundretts and another two near Egerton Road South.
Many of the deaths, casualties and damaged property during the early years of the war were close to the railway line. A year earlier on May 1st 1940 a direct hit on the corner of Chatsworth and Cavendish Road destroyed two houses and killed seven people. There were also fatal hits on Brantingham, Cheltenham, Scott, Torbay, and Dartmouth.
After seventy years much of the physical evidence has gone but not entirely. There are still some air raid shelters in back gardens, and the concrete base for a barrage balloon in the Rec was only dug up a few years ago. Occasionally the evidence is more dramatic. On Claude Road the long lines of Edwardian terraced houses are broken by two rows of houses which are much newer in design and were built to replace some which had been destroyed in a bombing attack. On the night of Thursday May 1st 1940 during a three hour raid a stick of bombs fell across Barlow Moor and Claude Road destroying the cinema and nearby houses.
The night of May 1st 1941 was closely documented. A local defence volunteer recorded the incident when four 250 kg bombs fell close to the old railway line at 11.30 that night. Two fell near Barlow Moor Road, perhaps on the corner with Brundretts and another two near Egerton Road South.
Many of the deaths, casualties and damaged property during the early years of the war were close to the railway line. A year earlier on May 1st 1940 a direct hit on the corner of Chatsworth and Cavendish Road destroyed two houses and killed seven people. There were also fatal hits on Brantingham, Cheltenham, Scott, Torbay, and Dartmouth.
After seventy years much of the physical evidence has gone but not entirely. There are still some air raid shelters in back gardens, and the concrete base for a barrage balloon in the Rec was only dug up a few years ago. Occasionally the evidence is more dramatic. On Claude Road the long lines of Edwardian terraced houses are broken by two rows of houses which are much newer in design and were built to replace some which had been destroyed in a bombing attack. On the night of Thursday May 1st 1940 during a three hour raid a stick of bombs fell across Barlow Moor and Claude Road destroying the cinema and nearby houses.
No comments:
Post a Comment