Stockport air raid shelters is a network of tunnels, nearly a mile long, was cut out of the red sand stone hills on which Stockport stands, to provide shelter for 6,500 during the Second World War.
The shelters were fitted with basic amenities:electric lights, benches and bunk beds, flushing toilets, first aid post and sick bay - there were even facilities for nursing mothers.
I found it difficult to imagine such vast numbers in such a claustrophobic space, the tunnels were seven feet wide and high, there would have been benches or bunk beds lining either side of this wall surrounded by masses of bodies, children crying, frustrated parents, anxious people not knowing what they would face when emerging from the tunnels.
So much for a bit of privacy! These toilets were basically just part of one large pipe with holes in the top, the smell must have been pretty bad!
An example of the posters used in the war, the hats are very fetching!
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I love the posters! I wonder why they had to cover their hair? Or is it another way of saying get a job to support the country?
ReplyDeleteThe tunnels look like a scene from a gothic film, you expect a romantic robed figure to appear. We have no idea how life was for people during the war, living with fear and lack of privacy. I imagine you would always feel stressed and not be able to relax. A relative of mine who was a young man at the time, lived in Stretford. He said the houses in his road were for sale for next to nothing, because they could be bombed at any time. This was because Trafford Park was so near, the German planes were attempting to destroy the factories there and they were unconcerned by overshooting their targets. The history of the De Trafford estate is an interesting story that contributed to the development of Manchester and its wealth. The iron gates and a small park ( near Trafford Bar) are all that is left of the family estate.
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