- Contributed by
- Researcher 241838
- People in story:
- Florence, Herbert and Eileen Smith
- Location of story:
- North London.
- Article ID:
- A1168571
- Contributed on:
- 06 September 2003
When my mother was asked if she had heard the prime minister's speech declaring war she said she hadn't, as she was busy. That was because I was born at 3.30pm on the day war was declared.
We lived in Barking, Essex and, as my father was a refrigeration engineer, it was considered necessary for him to stay in the London area.
However, the government thought that all pregnant women should be evacuated from there and my mother was taken by coach to Bishops Stortford, where I was born.
It was only thinking about it recently that I appreciated how traumatic that was for my father. They had lost their first baby at eight days old and my mother had nearly died as well, but the families were not told where the women were going and had no way of knowing if they were all right or when their babies were born.
After two weeks in hospital my mother and I were returned home and stayed in the London area throughout the war.
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