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War came to Oxhey rather early - Ithink it was about 1937 when theGovernment decided to test the de-fences of UK against Air Attack. ASearchlight Battery, Royal Engineers,probably from Harrow TerritorialArmy, was deployed one weekend onthe golf course at Oxhey. We chil-dren heard about it on the 'grapevine'and decided to go and see it. A smallgroup of us left Watford Heath to godown the footpath that led to Absa-Iom's Wood (penrose's), over therailway footbridge and across thefields, over the brook, to the 'Green'where there was a large periscope. Inthe winter the reverse slope was usedas a toboggan run when we wereScouts and we had a giant sledgeholding about 10 boys. This after-noon the area was covered with belltents (1914 pattern), a row oflarge .lorries and a searchlight. It consistedof a large diameter circular drum witha glass front, mounted on gimbals,secured to a chassis with 4 wheels.Much more important to us boys wasa deadly looking 'Lewis' machine gunmounted on a tripod, to resist dive-bombers. "Gi'e us ago," we beggedthe soldier in charge - "F*** off,"was his reply and a large hand wasraised to give us a clout - we took thehint! It did not pay to cheek adults inthose days as retribution was swift!

Nothing seemed to be happening andmy pals found out the 'Light' wouldnot go on for many hours. They wentoff to play in the brook, building wa-ter wheels or dams or up to the rail-way line to place pennies on the railsso the trains flattened them out. Iwasmore stubborn (or stupid) and I askedthe soldier what the problem was andwhy it took so long. "Waiting forcandles," he replied. "Go on, you'rehaving me on" was my answer. "Likeall kids - a smart arse, know every-thing, come round here," and he tookme round to the front of the search-light. Opening the door he showedme a space between the glass and thepolished reflector plate. "That's wherethey go," he said. I remained uncon-vinced. Round to the side he took me,one hand grasping my ear, andshowed me a brass plate. "What doesthat writing state?" he demanded andI read ''umpteen thousand candlepower!" The soldier had me cold - I

could only stammer an apology."They will come soon but it takeshours to pack them in the casing andthen sometimes we run out of matcheslighting all the candles," he went on.I could see the logic of what the sol-dier said. Eventually the searchlightwent on to reveal an ancient biplaneslowly flying across the sky. I darenot go home across the fields so setoff towards Hamperrnill Lane and gotlost. A policeman found me and gavea lift home on his bike. 'Half acrown' changed hands and Iwas sentup to bed.My Dear Old Dad (D.O.D.) hadserved in 1914 after an adventurouslife abroad. His regiment was LondonIrish Rifles and he fought as a PrivateRifleman in France, Belgium, Egypt,Palestine, Salonika and Macedonia.He continued to study weapons andtactics as a hobby. In 1938, con-vinced as many were that War wasinevitable, he decided to build a bombproof 'dugout'. Together with mybrother Jim and hindered by Mick andmyself, he dug a large hole in ourlawn. The sides were concrete panelsfrom his work and metal posts wereconcreted in. Then Chamberlaincame back with his 'piece of paper'and Dad was overwhelmed with workconnected with impending war, de-spite the Government's promise thatWar had been averted. The Councildelivered an 'Anderson' Shelter andthis fitted into the hole nicely. It wasa corrugated iron, semicircular shedwith an escape hatch one end and anopen entrance the other. Dad put 3feet of earth on top and turned it into arockery. It was a great place to growmarrows too. A metal door wasbought and hinged on to the entrancewith a 'blast' wall in front. Eventu-ally, electric light and bunks werefitted. Cork insulation was applied toabsorb condensation without success.D.O.D. invited us children to sleepdown there all the time for the firsttwo years together with an adult. Itwas damp, dark, full of insects andvery stuffy with the door closed.Open, it was freezing cold in winterand very hot in summer. No wonderwe had perpetual colds. Dad's firmwas now making concrete shelters forMPs and Civil Servants with all 'modcons', concrete pipes for the new

camps springing up everywhere andeven concrete landing craft! I do wishI had saved some of the publicity leaf-lets!

My D.O.D. had been gathering tech-nical information on weapons andexplosives for a long time and prepar-ing scale drawings (he was a superbdraughtsman). He realised that therewere no training manuals on Germanweapons so published a series ofbooklets starting with grenades. TheMilitary Intelligence arrested him andconfiscated all his work, without pay-ment, for the Regular Army! He wasreleased once they bad decided hewas not an Enemy Agent (he neverdressed as a Nun, which was recog-nised at the time as a sure way of de-tecting a German Agent or Parachut-ist!)

One morning a long column of armyvehicles arrived in the Avenue anddown in Oxhey Street. The youngofficer in charge had come to bid fare-well to his parent (the 'Colonel') wholived in the big house on our side,adjoining the Brennans. I believe hewas killed in France and the familymoved away as the Smees bought theproperty.

About 1940, Churchill raised theLDV (Local Defence Volunteers) andour lot later became the 6th BattalionHertfordshire Home Guard. The HQwas the Gasworks in the High Streetand they soon became known as the'Gasworks Gang". Wives were verysuspicious of the LDV as their men-folk seemed over-anxious to join andwere mysterious about their duties."Defending the Pubs more likely",was the general verdict. There wereno weapons, no uniforms except alarge khaki patch with LDV in blackletters, sewn onto the sleeve. Laterthey got a khaki blouse and trousers, a Ileather belt with brass buckle, ammu-nition, black boots and short leatheranklets, into which trousers weretucked. A side hat (forage cap) with abrass stag in a circle with lettersHome Guard was eventually issued.

My D.O.D. went up in the attic andfrom behind a rafter produced a bun-dle which. when opened, contained ablack leather holster, a belt and a9mm German automatic pistol with I

two magazines. He had shot an offi-cer in Palestine and 'souvenired' hispistol. On the strength of his techni-cal knowledge and possessing one ofthe few weapons, Dad was made Ser-geant. Later, when the LDV becameHome Guard and things were moreorganised, D.O.D. was commissionedand became Weapons Training Offi-cer. American rifles and bayonetswere issued but for a long time, nomodern weapons were available. AColonel Blacker (ret'd) began to de-sign weapons for the Home Guardand soon around Oxhey, at crossroadsand bridges, appeared concrete pitswith a concrete circular plinth with astainless steel tube in the middle.This was to take a fearsome mortarcalled a 'Blacker Bombard', whichfired beer bottles filled with petrol/oil.Later still another weapon - theSmith Gun, was issued. This had asmooth bore barrel, crude sights andtwo convex solid wheels. It wastowed by a car or pulled easily by twomen. Turned on its side, the wheelsallowed the gun to rotate and it firedsmall shells.

Dad commenced to issue his manualsfor all these weapons and they were .snapped up by H.G.'s anxious tolearn. Manuals followed on the Bom-bard, Smith Gun and German weap-ons. Sold by W H Smith at 2/6d amanual, Dad was a happy man. Local'politics' ensured he never got pro-moted beyond Lieutenant but he wasknown and respected throughout thecounty.

Having joined the LDV at the GasWorks, Dad started up a 'Bomb Fac-tory' in our house, since weaponswere not available. We children wereco-opted to fill Benskin's beer bottlesby the dozen with a mixture of petrol,oil, wax etc. to form a 'MolotovCocktail' bomb for use against tanks.Fuses were made from string soakedin salt petre and other chemicals. Wecut lengths, soaked them and put themto dry on the patio wall. Lengthswere set alight and time measured, togive an idea of how long they wouldtake. Crude but efficient. I acciden-tally dropped another type of small¥enade into the 'Anderson' and blew-P the bunks etc. My parents werelot amused and nor were theieighbours, It was difficult to sit(own for several days!

My brother Jim volunteered for theRoyal Navy but waiting to 'come ofage' he became a store man for theHome Guard. The colonel of 6thHerts H. G. either had one arm orcould not raise his arm, so he ordereda hand made, very expensive carbine,fitted to fire with one hand from theshoulder. Jim brought it home and weall had a go at targets at the end of thegarden (I hope no one was in the al-lotments).

Tun left and Wendy, my elder sister,became a Postwoman; my motherworked nights at a light engineeringfactory making anti-aircraft gunshells. Everybody had to do their'bit'. Brother Mick and myself col-lected salvage with the Scouts andhelp in the WVS canteen inCas-siobury Park, washing up mainly. Weoffered to help look after the cakesand sandwiches but the women re-fused - why were adults so suspiciousof boys in those days?

Rationing came in and soon our sweetration was very small indeed. Gobstoppers and the despised boiledsweets became popular due to theirlasting properties.

Our parents were plagued by a. suc-cession of petty minor Council Offi-cials and particularly, overbearingwomen, demanding information orassistance. My mother was a veryimposing lady with an 'aristocratic'voice and a lively temper. They allgot short shrift, Iam afraid. My par-ents did have to accept some thingsthough. You were 'fair game' tosome Council Officials with Socialist!Marxist ideas. We had to acceptlodgers for instance. The official de-manded to see every room and allrooms counted as bedrooms. Ourlodgers were Noreen and Mick - hewas a southern Irish, Regular ArtilleryBandsman and Noreen was American,wed on a pre-war tour. She waswealthy - had 2 cars in USA and wasvery spoilt. Life as a private's wifedid not suit her. Her mother sent herregular food parcels, including 7 lbtins of marshmallow. She would notgive up one mouthful, even to ourlittle sister Janet, but would eat spoon-fuls out of a tin in front of us. Wewere really pleased when Noreenwent and was replaced by a youngman, employed on war work who

became one of the family for a longtime. It was very hard on mother tohave to share her home with strangers.In the summer we collected blackber-ries for jam (there was a sugar allow-ance later) and 'Hips' from wild rosesto provide Vitamin 'C'. WhenWendy had a baby she got Rose HipSyrup on ration and ghastly was itstaste!

Wardens patrolled rigorously and MrSargent was our Warden. He got Dadfined because we children turned on alight, without blackout. Firemencame round and all the antiques andthousands of books, housed in ourattic (the remains of Dad's antiqueshop venture) were taken out andburned in the garden. I never saw myDad so upset.

We heard that brother Jim's ship,HMS Cairo on the Malta Convoy, hadbeen torpedoed and we did not knowif he was saved. Mother went to workthat night and made a national recordfor the number of anti-aircraft shellsmade! He was saved by a Destroyerwhose Captain came from Oxhey (Ido not know his name). Later Jimjoined a destroyer which turned turtlein the ChanneL He then joined HMSSheffield on Russian Convoys as aRADAR operator and despite beingcontinually at sea during the whole ofthe War, he survived.

Sister Wendy married another sailorand came off stage to be a wife,mother and Postwoman. In her sparetime (?) she gave private dancing les-sons at home.

We would sit on the bridge parapetand watch the trains go by and see theloads of tanks, guns etc. We werekeen aircraft spotters too, right fromthe beginning. We soon learnt to lis-ten to the engine noise and could tellaircraft simply by sound. Later wewatched Spitfires and Tempests at-tacking 'Flying Bombs' by tippingthem over by a wing.

There were many exhibitions to go to- especially in London. Outside Wat-ford Town Hall there were parades inaid of 'Wings Week' or SavingsBonds etc. I remember a tank and aHurricane being on show, for exam-ple. There was a wonderful 'Burma'exhibition in London with realisticimitation jungle, even down to croco-

dilesl We could watch London burn-ing during the Blitz. The Rockets,especially the one which landed inWatford, were very frightening.Our parents tried - not always suc-cessfully - to keep us apart from theWar as far as possible.'D-Day was special. To see hordes ofbombers passing overhead and to hearthe hourly reports on the radio wasbreathtakingly exciting. The Radio ofcourse was vital. News - especially9pm news - was sacred. Adults gath-ered round and were very quiet. Welearnt of the torpedoing of Jim's shipbefore we got the telegram. Peoplewere more stoical then - no hysteria-no public tears - just a quiet determi-nation to get on with the War.Neighbours respected grief or quietlyhelped out - seeing us children off toschool, for example.The War ended for our family withthe party organised by my Mother atthe Parish Hall (now Table Hall, soonto be demolished) in Pinner Road,opposite the Co-op (now Hairtech andVideo shop). My sister Wendy sang

'In My Sweet Little Alice BlueGown' wearing her wartime weddingdress of blue. She also did acrobaticdancing and played the Accordion.The Blackout was taken down and theAnderson discarded. Later the Coun-cil demanded its return! Dad's firmwent back to making drainage pipes,brother-in-law Leslie came home andmoved with Wendy to the new coun-cil estate at Garston. Brother Jimcame back, married Hilda Hanhamand went off to Berkhamsted to start ashop. I left school to join StimpsonLock and Vince at Bushey and then atOxhey Station. Brother Mick wasapprenticed to Rembrandts. SisterJanet eventually went into jewelleryand watches.The War - yes, those of us who areleft now remember the War. Manybad memories, but a lot of good onestoo.David Manders'(previously 72 (136) Oxhey Avenue

Now "Swans Way", Dunkerton. Bath, NESomerset BA2 SBW

Tel: 01761433861.

1:~.'If~',

Thank you David, for your magnifi-cent contribution to our set of HistorySheets. We do appreciate the time andeffort you spent in writing them, espe-cially as you did it all in longhand.I'm sure everyone enjoyed readingthem and is sorry that this is the lastone in the series! Editor

1. David says that Colonel John Sains-bury TD.FSA, has written severalbooks at low cost recording the historyof Hertfordshire soldiers includingYeomanry, Infantry, Artillery andrecording all medals and decorationsawarded to Hertfordshire men andwomen. He is now writing a book onthe Home Guard and would like tohear of anyone connected with the 6thBattalion Hertfordshire Home Guardwhose HQ was at the Gas Works inLower High Street, or anyone eon-nected with Home Guard in Herts. Hecan be contacted on 01438 715053 orwrite to him at: 2 New Place, Welwyn,AL69QA.

2. David would pleased to hear fromanyone who served in Croxley Greenin 479 or 286 Herts Yeomanry RA.