Year 6 Trip to Air Raid Shelter

The Stockport Story

On Tuesday 13th May Year 6 went on a trip to a World War 11 museum in Stockport. At the start of the day we all arrived dressed up in our evacuee's costumes. From pinafores to lace-up shoes, everyone looked the part. On the way there we learned some songs like 'Run Rabbit Run' and 'Pack up Your Troubles'.

As soon as we arrived it was as though we had been whizzed back in time to the start of the war on the day of September 3rd 1939.There were gas masks, a Warden's whistle and best of all an air raid siren.

We had all been given gas masks and shown how to put them on because it's much more difficult than it seems. Firstly you put your hand on the chin piece and bring the tags onto your head. That's how you do it but very fast otherwise you might die from the gas!! We were taught about all the different kinds of gas masks from the Mickey Mouse mask to the Police and Air Raid Warden's masks.

Soon after we all trotted upstairs where we learned how to make rag rugs, with just an old potato bag and how we used broken pieces of wooden pegs to make the holes and thread all the scraps of material through. We also found out that instead of buying new clothes, that once they were torn they used wool to stitch it up.

We all came with our WW11 lunches -- we all had food like salt 'n shake crisps and home-made cake and a small amount of cheese all wrapped up in baking parchment.

After lunch we all visited the shelters such as the Anderson and Morrison shelters - all UNDERGROUND. The underground shelter was originally meant to hold 4000 people but actually held 7000 and the Government thought that it was absolutely unsafe. All the beds they had put in, together with matresses and quilts, were all damp and mouldy.

The toilets were a later addition and were the first flushing toilet. Some people did things like 'hot seating' which involved somebody throwing a piece of lit newspaper into the toilet whilst it was flushing. You can imagine what happened to those pepole who were still sitting down!!

Some people pretended to be badly behaved so that they got locked up. Why, you may ask? Well, in the room where you got locked up there was an infra - red heater, a toilet and even a bed. In those days that is what you called 5 star luxury.

Whilst we were down in the shelters we experienced a black out , which was quite scary, as you can't see where you are going and where everyone is.

Down in the sheler there was a small hospital which, on every Thursday evening many women complained they were ill, just to be taken to hospital and isten to the radio series.

As soon as the day was coming to a close, we all managed to learn a new song and this is how it went:

Whose that knocking on the window?

Whose that knocking on the door?

If it's Hitler, let him in and stick him on a pin

And there won't be any Hitler any more

Hooray!

Sarah Parker 6M

Posted 16/05/08