Sway – Events to remember
An written account from Donna Martin. Interview Date 02/01/2014
I was born in 1931 at Lindbergh Cottage Back lane Sway the daughter of Sydney and Gladys Gates I had one brother Peter six years older than me. I was seven years old almost eight when the Second World War was declared on the 3rd of September 1939.
That very evening my parents had to cover the windows so that no light could be seen from the air we were still living at the place of my birth later called Topps Cottage. The following spring we moved to Highfield Close at Sway with gas and electricity for the first time. At night the German planes would fly low overhead looking for Wellworthy Piston ring factory in Lymington my parents presumed.
We did have quite a few bombs dropped through Sway. Watching the sky one day my Mother was horrified to hear me call out about a lot of little black things falling from a plane overhead they were the bombs dropped at Hincheslea.
All the large houses in Sway were taken over by troops my cousin from London being stationed at a kettlesthorns so we saw a lot of him and his friend. When the air raid siren sounded at night I was made to sleep in the cupboard under the stairs sometimes with other children from the road. My Mother told me that she would suddenly see a pair of heels going back up the stairs and me saying “If I am going to die I am going to die in my bed”.
Before leaving Back Lane my Mother, at that time caretaker of the Scout Hut at the top of Back Lane, helped with the evacuees from Southampton and Portsmouth finding them accommodation – not easy!.
The Observer Corp had a hut on the top road my Brother worked for them from aged sixteen to eighteen when he was called up and in the trenches in the snow.
Longslade bottom was planted with corn and alternate years with potatoes. Big Bertha a huge artillery gun also on the top road would blast away at any enemy aircraft sending shrapnel down on to our chicken houses.
I think I am correct in saying all our lovely Canadian soldiers stationed at Heathy Close now The Manor were killed at Dunkirk.
Some of the larger houses occupied by troops:-
- Heathy Close (Heathy Close appears to have gone as the area is now Rowan Close and sway industrial estate)
- Birchy Hill (Birchy Hill, Birchy Hill, Sway, SO41 6BJ (Now Birchy Hill Nursing Home)),
- Quarr House (Quarr House, Manchester Road, Sway, SO41 6AS (Now flats)),
- Sway House (Sway House, South Sway Lane, Sway, SO41 6BL),
- Sway Place (Sway Place, Church Lane, Sway, SO41 6AD (Now Shelbourne Nursing Home))
- Kettlethorns (Kettlethorns, Adlams Lane, Sway, SO41 6EG)
We had regiments from USA, Royal Corp of Signals, The Black Watch to name a few.
On VE Day my Mother on hearing the church bells ringing took me to church when we got there the church was so full we could not even get inside the door.
Quarr House is also listed as being POW Camp 624 on the Prisoner of War Camps UK Google Earth Data. No other information. http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/nov/08/prisoner-of-war-camps-uk#data