Sheffield Blitz

[buck 11]

I grew up just after the war. I'm sure my parents told me that the reason why the steelworks were spared was because the shops downtown left their lights on to take the hit rather than the more valuable steel industry. Is there any truth at all to this and if not, how did the steelworks escape being hit, while the Moor became "a derelict bomb site?"

There was a theory that the germans homed in on the flashes coming from the tram wires as the trams moved around the city. A line of parked tramswere his at the bottom of the high streetnand set afire. The flames ignited Walsh's store ,and the germans sent doen more bombs there which causd the terrible loss of life at the Marples.

[buck 11]

It would be interesting to find out from older forumers or those with elderly relations, who would be in their mid to late 70s onwards, what it was like and the conditions people survived in.

 

For instance my mother who is 75 and lived in Pitsmoor says that her school was bombed and she had to go to the Catholic school where they were bullied and beaten by the nuns because they were C of E (I'm not having a go at any religious group here).

 

Some houses had Anderson Shelters and others had reinforced cellars.

 

She says that they had to sit out the early raids under the cellar stairs for almost a year because the cellars had to be knocked through for escape purposes and reinforced which took ages.

 

She recalls how her two sisters, my aunts (now long gone) escaped from a bombed public shelter in the Wicker, my Grandfather was at his whits end, going out in the midst of an air raid to look for them and risking arrest because he should have been fire watching with another bloke on their street.

 

I believe fire watchers had the great job of knocking incendiaries off roofs and covering them with dirt as these were made from phosphorus which burns when exposed to air as well as dealing with any other small fires caused by shrapnel.

 

Before my Grandmother died she was genuinely terrified of fireworks and hated Bonfire Night.

My Aunt Nellie had an Anderson shelter in her backyard in Darnall, which she made comfortable by having double bunk beds and carpets. Next door also had one but had struck a water line while digging ,and it flooded. On the Sunday night both families went into Nellies shelter just in time for a bomb to hit so close that the edge of the crater was two feet fom the shelter entrance. The blast took the unused Anderson out of the ground and threw it over a wall. Everyone survived with damaged hearing, except for the Grandpa from next door who had gone into their house for a cup of tea. He was killed and they used the back door of his house as a stetdher.

[Tooeg 10]

All over the city there used to be evidence of bombing where 2 or 3 houses are missing from a terrace. These were kids playgrounds which they would call "bomb sites". most have, over the years been infilled. Now I've said that I can't think of an example.

Although if you drive up Crookes road from broomhill, there is a small break in the terrace on the right. both remaining gable ends were for many years 4 inch single brick dividing walls. They were finally repaired properly 15 or 20 years ago I guess. Often there has been a buttress built, or the Chimney stack reinforced to help support the remaining property.

[Cynthia 10]

As my mistake with the dates of the Sheffield blitz seem to be of vital interest on this subject, I would like to inform you that I was in an unfinished air raid shelter that was bordered by Heather Rd. Foxglove Rd.Windmill Lane & Wincobank Ave. First incendiary bombs were dropped down Heather Rd and then the land mine exploded at the corner of Heather Rd and Foxglove Rd. Killing Mrs. Booth and injuring several people and damaging lots of houses including ours. I have posted before about having to live down the basement of St. Hilda's Church as we had no roof or windows. About one house having water and queueing outside their kitchen window with whatever we had to hold water. About the second land mine that dropped on the Sunday night on the allotments. I have lots of memories about being a child during a war, it was not funny, why I made the mistake about the dates I do not know, like lots of other people I will say it was a "Senior moment".

By the way I always understood that with the steel works being in the valley and a thick mist hanging over the valley the Germans missed the works and bombed the houses. I do not know if this theory is true.

Cynthia, Canada.

[teeny 10]

My adopted parents lives in the beauchief area during the blitz my mum told me one of the reasons the germans could see us was i was a full moon, my dad was on leave at the time and they spent the night in the woods with friends by beaucheif golf course, The germans dropped bombs in the woods by the railway too , you can still see some damge in the woods now. During the war My dad and his brothers bred rabbits for food and exchanged them for veg and extra goodies , during the war my mum hadhad TB of the stomack and wasn't able to work as a land girl like the rest of her family.

[soft ayperth 11]

All over the city there used to be evidence of bombing where 2 or 3 houses are missing from a terrace. These were kids playgrounds which they would call "bomb sites". most have, over the years been infilled. Now I've said that I can't think of an example.

Although if you drive up Crookes road from broomhill, there is a small break in the terrace on the right. both remaining gable ends were for many years 4 inch single brick dividing walls. They were finally repaired properly 15 or 20 years ago I guess. Often there has been a buttress built, or the Chimney stack reinforced to help support the remaining property.

 

Bottom of Duke St below the Embassy Court Flats where my aunt and uncle lived there was a large piece of ground strewn with building rubble that stayed like that well into the '60s. Had to have been a bomb site. Below it were a terraced row of shops, newsagent, f & c shop, etc., with Gunstone's bakery on opposite side of road. My aunt operated the f & c shop on Broad St and her large glass store windows were blown out the night of the blitz.

[flyer 10]

my brother and I had ran away from Fullwood Home's on one of the Blitz nights we was on wood st when it was all in flames, the fireman told us to on home and sharp, well all we was looking for was something to eat(or dare i say it steal) he would be 8 &me 9:o:o:o

[hazel 11]

My Dad said that the Germans were to take the wicker arches as their start and follow the river running by the side of the steel works and drop their bombs

He said they mistook the shine of the tram lines for water and went the wrong way from the arches and bombed town and the moor. mmissing all the steel works.

hazel

[anita morris 10]

I noticed that there had been bombs around the Jenkin Road area of Brightside, does anyone have any idea if an air raid post was hit there. My mother always told a story about it and I would love to know if it was true. Thanks Anita

[Tooeg 10]

My Dad said that the Germans were to take the wicker arches as their start and follow the river running by the side of the steel works and drop their bombs

He said they mistook the shine of the tram lines for water and went the wrong way from the arches and bombed town and the moor. mmissing all the steel works.

hazel

 

Which way would the bombers have come, crossing the coast in the south east, Kent or Essex. Or further north Grimsby or Cleethorpes. coming in from the east coast, the wicker arches would be too late.

It would be easier now follow the M1, turn left (or right) at the cooling towers.

[Bayern Blade 10]

Which way would the bombers have come, crossing the coast in the south east, Kent or Essex. Or further north Grimsby or Cleethorpes. coming in from the east coast, the wicker arches would be too late.

 

Raiding Sheffield the Luftwaffe came in over the east coast.

Raids coming in from the south would have been out of the question.

Due to the distance and the time spent over enemy territory.

[Nigel Womersle 10]

My late Uncle worked for Montague Burton Ltd (tailors) at the time of the Sheffield Blitz. He was their youngest manager - not yet old enough to be called up for war service. He managed the branch at the top of Angel Street, which is now occupied by Primark. In the 1960's Burton's rebuilt the site and opened their ladies branch of the company, Peter Robinson. He would tell us how he and other city centre workers had been issued with passes to get into the centre, should it be necessary to close it to the public. On the Monday morning after the Sunday night attack, a friend took him to work on his motorbike. It must have looked strange as both the friend's legs were in plaster casts. When they approached Wicker, they were stopped by the police at the arches and asked to produce a pass, which of course my uncle did. They were allowed through after being warned of the carnage awaiting them. The police never commented on the plaster casts on the legs. My uncle said it was an horrendous sight - bodies in the street, shop windows blown out, shops reduced to rubble and vehicles blown to bits, and on their sides. Broken water mains were cascading like fountains. When he reached Burton's it was a burnt out wreck, and as some members will remember, stayed that way until the early sixties when Burtons rebuilt the site. Evidently city planners had wanted Burton's to rebuild using the burnt out shell and they refused. Finally the site was completely cleared and a new building erected.