The past in a suitcase ....... "stuff" from a World War

Now here is an odd collection of “stuff” from the last World War.

It was acquired by my old “posty” friend David Harrop and consists of a suitcase in which there is a child’s doll, a small handknitted item, a letter from a Mabel Pearman and three war time books.

Added to which there is one of those evacuee labels, which would give a name, an address, the school from which the child was evacuated and the name or number of the Party or group.

The labels were produced by local authorities which seem to have led to slight variations, so while some like London County Council included a date of birth, others like Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow did not.

Sadly, this one is blank, which means there is no way of identifying the evacuee or tying the label to the letter.

And that makes me think the two are not connected.  

There is no mention of a child in the letter and there is every indication that Mabel Pearman had arranged her own private evacuation.  The letter is dated May 21st, 1941, and was sent from Nutcombe Lane in Hindhead which is still a tiny village in Surrey.

Even now the population of the place only amounts to just over 4,000 and as it is 46 miles from London was perfect for what Mabel refers to as a “hide out”.

And there is much discussion about the original plans to move the whole family to Wales, but two family members were no longer keen on the idea because “they did not want to take the children out of school unless the invasion actually arrives”.

Nor was Mabel convinced that the invasion would now take place and was also concerned about whether they would be allowed to travel to Wales, and the expense of furnishing and paying for a house in Wales, however small, given that “we have been pretty badly hit by the war as we had a good deal of property in London, and nothing has been left standing”. 

I went looking for Ms Pearman in London before the war , but the trail proved difficult.  There were a number of Mabel Pearman’s on the electoral registers and two listed in the 1939 Register, but none fitted the bill.

So, for now that line of enquiry has petered out.  

Leaving me just to flick through the books, one of which was published by the London Evening News showing the devastation to London during the Blitz.  It is entitled “Hitler Passed This Way” and contained “170 pictures” from the newspaper and sold for 2/6. 

Equally interesting is the “Three Rapid Methods of Making Identification Models”  with “Three-Dimensional Silhouettes” and “Full Instructions and Ten Plans” .

I rather think I would find this more fun than the last book which is a report by the "Supreme Commander To the Combined Chiefs Of Staff On The Operations In Europe Of the Allied Expeditionary Force, 6 June, 1944 to 8 May 1945".

That said the historian in me would love to read through it and match its description of this last phase of the European war with modern scholarship.

And that is it.  I can’t link each item but  they cover at least 4 years of the war, and offer up a fascinating insight into the period.

Location; circa 1941-45

Pictures; the contents of the suitcase, circa 1941-45 from the collection of David Harrop