Post by Matt James on Apr 9, 2009 13:06:52 GMT
Originally posted by Roger Green
I am writing to say that I joined the Post Office in Portsmouth as a Telegram Boy on the 3rd of July 1940, 3 weeks after my 14th birthday, and served until 1943 when I was a sorting clerk and telegraphist in the telegraph instrument room
The early days of the war were very difficult in the City because of the Bombing raids after a raid we were inundated with reply paid telegrams by people wanting to know if friends and relations were safe.
I recall one instance where I was out on a delivery for 5 hours, before returning to the office with a pouch full of reply telegrams on the night of January 10th 1941 the City experienced a severe fire blitz by German aircraft.
The following day I had to deliver telegrams to ships in the dockyard the street which I had to pass through was still ablaze, with fireman still endeavouring to quell the flames ,there was debris every where .
The worst part was delivering casualty telegrams, of which there were plenty, when H.M.S Strood was sunk by the Bismark I had 50 to deliver in the north end area of the City. It was a distressing job for a 15 year old but we coped, consoling people became another part of our job
I remember endeavouring to deliver a telegram to the house that I now live in, only to be told by a Policeman that everyone in the area had been evacuated because of an unexploded bomb first inside the road opposite .I remember him saying �if it detonates we won�t know much about it as we will go up with it �Needless to say I got on my pedal cycle and sped off as fast as I could go. It was eventually defused and turned out to be the largest UXB dropped on the City it weighed a ton.
On another occasion, during daylight a lone German aircraft came in low over the City and machined gunned several people and myself who were cycling along the road. I could see the rear gunner clearly in his turret, fortunately none of us were hit but bullets splattered all along the road. It was an experience to say the least, but not a pleasant one!!
There was a Head Postman by the name of Mr Lacy, whose job it was to drive a motorcycle combination around to check that us telegram boys were doing the job properly and not going around together, He was very strict, and as a result lost the title of Mr and was referred to as �Herr-Von-Lacey� !!
We also had our own Home Guard Cadet Unit of which we were all members.
I still see a colleague whom I trained as a Telegram boy and we both agree that although times during the war were difficult our days as a Telegram Boys were the best days of our Post Office career
Yours Sincerely
Norman Cross
I am writing to say that I joined the Post Office in Portsmouth as a Telegram Boy on the 3rd of July 1940, 3 weeks after my 14th birthday, and served until 1943 when I was a sorting clerk and telegraphist in the telegraph instrument room
The early days of the war were very difficult in the City because of the Bombing raids after a raid we were inundated with reply paid telegrams by people wanting to know if friends and relations were safe.
I recall one instance where I was out on a delivery for 5 hours, before returning to the office with a pouch full of reply telegrams on the night of January 10th 1941 the City experienced a severe fire blitz by German aircraft.
The following day I had to deliver telegrams to ships in the dockyard the street which I had to pass through was still ablaze, with fireman still endeavouring to quell the flames ,there was debris every where .
The worst part was delivering casualty telegrams, of which there were plenty, when H.M.S Strood was sunk by the Bismark I had 50 to deliver in the north end area of the City. It was a distressing job for a 15 year old but we coped, consoling people became another part of our job
I remember endeavouring to deliver a telegram to the house that I now live in, only to be told by a Policeman that everyone in the area had been evacuated because of an unexploded bomb first inside the road opposite .I remember him saying �if it detonates we won�t know much about it as we will go up with it �Needless to say I got on my pedal cycle and sped off as fast as I could go. It was eventually defused and turned out to be the largest UXB dropped on the City it weighed a ton.
On another occasion, during daylight a lone German aircraft came in low over the City and machined gunned several people and myself who were cycling along the road. I could see the rear gunner clearly in his turret, fortunately none of us were hit but bullets splattered all along the road. It was an experience to say the least, but not a pleasant one!!
There was a Head Postman by the name of Mr Lacy, whose job it was to drive a motorcycle combination around to check that us telegram boys were doing the job properly and not going around together, He was very strict, and as a result lost the title of Mr and was referred to as �Herr-Von-Lacey� !!
We also had our own Home Guard Cadet Unit of which we were all members.
I still see a colleague whom I trained as a Telegram boy and we both agree that although times during the war were difficult our days as a Telegram Boys were the best days of our Post Office career
Yours Sincerely
Norman Cross