Letter from Kenneth Gill to his parents
Title
Letter from Kenneth Gill to his parents
Description
Hopes the photographs he sent arrived alright and describes where some were taken including those of squadron doing drill. Catches up with family news and gossip. Mentions good food, no air raids in the United States unlike at home. Writes a little about training, a visit to Sarasota and character of American people. Continues catching up with news of family and friends.
Creator
Date
1942-03-25
Temporal Coverage
Spatial Coverage
Language
Format
Six page handwritten letter and envelope
Publisher
Rights
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
Identifier
SGillK1438901v10022
Transcription
[underlined] AIR-MAIL [/underlined]
[post mark] [postage stamp]
MR & MRS F. GILL
55, KYFFIN AVENUE,
HALTON
LEEDS
YORKSHIRE
ENGLAND.
[page break]
1438901. L.A.C. GILL. K. 25/3/42
CARLSTROM FIELD.
ARCADIA.
FLORIDA.
31. RAF P D.
MONCTON
CANADA
[page break]
1438901. L.A.C. GILL K.
No. 31. R.A.F. PERSONEL DEPOT
MONCTON.
NEW BRUNSWICK.
CANADA.
Dear Mum & dad,
Hope the snaps have arrived alright, we haven't had many taken of late but maybe next time I send some they'll be something more interesting than our faces. The one taken of the alligators was in a park, at Albany but we really did have them on the river banks near the camp at Turner Field.
The snap of the squadron was taken from the roof of one of our billets, & hasn't been
[page break]
2.
properly developed but I think you will be able to see that we're all in step & that's something when you're twelve abreast. We shook the Americans with our drill & we always had a large gathering on our parades. Note the rifles are being carried on the right shoulder & bayonets on the left hip, it took a bit of getting used to but we managed it alright. The other four snaps are of my room-mates & of course me. The size is very handy for air-mail don't you think, although my own camera takes them contact size. I havn't [sic] as yet had any decent prints from mine as I had a little trouble at first with the shutter.
[page break]
3.
Well mum, how's everybody at home going on? I hope you're still keeping well & boy how I wish you could all come over here & enjoy the sunshine and delicious food. Sometimes when we think of home, we feel rather guilty, being over here & enjoying ourselves, having good food & no fear of air-raids, while you're having to struggle through on short rations, with constant fear of Jerry coming over every night. I'd like to be back home again, you know we actually miss the excitement of raids, and not enough food to eat. Over here we can't find anything much worth grumbling about & maybe dad will tell you, a soldier's never happy unless he has something
[page break]
4.
to grouse about.
However I'm still well & healthy & looking forward to finishing my training, so I can come back & have a go at the Hun.
Don't worry about me at all, I'll be alright here, wait until I'm coming back across the Atlantic Ocean, that'll be the day or days to start thinking.
Well mum in my last letter I think I said I'd been to Sarasota, & since then I've been twice, and had a grand time. The Gulf of Mexico is grand for bathing in & we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We were invited to an hotel for dinner again & had a grand time there. One thing
[page break]
5.
that is common between the Americans and the British is their hospitality towards strangers & everywhere we go we are treated very well.
From what I hear, the American chaps are doing alright in Ireland & have been received as well as we were.
That's all about me for now. How's the lad going on? the big-un I mean, is he still at Filton or has he moved elsewhere? I notice he hasn't written to Dick Thomas for a while, at least there was no reply in the January & February News Letters.
No mail has come through as yet for me, but I hope you've got mine by now.
Is Leslie still working hard
[page break]
6.
and doing his bit in the "Home Guard"? Tell him to remember me to the boys when he goes up.
What's the nipper doing these days? he should be doing well at school now isn't he?
Now mum how about you and dad, are you alright, hope so anyway, chins up, it won't be long. I can't thing [sic] of anything else to write just now so I'll close.
Give my love to Aunts & Uncles & Grandma & Grandad & remember me to all enquiring friends & neighbours.
Thats all for now.
Chins up, keep smiling
Your Loving Son
Ken xxxxxxxxxx
David xxxxxxxxxx
[post mark] [postage stamp]
MR & MRS F. GILL
55, KYFFIN AVENUE,
HALTON
LEEDS
YORKSHIRE
ENGLAND.
[page break]
1438901. L.A.C. GILL. K. 25/3/42
CARLSTROM FIELD.
ARCADIA.
FLORIDA.
31. RAF P D.
MONCTON
CANADA
[page break]
1438901. L.A.C. GILL K.
No. 31. R.A.F. PERSONEL DEPOT
MONCTON.
NEW BRUNSWICK.
CANADA.
Dear Mum & dad,
Hope the snaps have arrived alright, we haven't had many taken of late but maybe next time I send some they'll be something more interesting than our faces. The one taken of the alligators was in a park, at Albany but we really did have them on the river banks near the camp at Turner Field.
The snap of the squadron was taken from the roof of one of our billets, & hasn't been
[page break]
2.
properly developed but I think you will be able to see that we're all in step & that's something when you're twelve abreast. We shook the Americans with our drill & we always had a large gathering on our parades. Note the rifles are being carried on the right shoulder & bayonets on the left hip, it took a bit of getting used to but we managed it alright. The other four snaps are of my room-mates & of course me. The size is very handy for air-mail don't you think, although my own camera takes them contact size. I havn't [sic] as yet had any decent prints from mine as I had a little trouble at first with the shutter.
[page break]
3.
Well mum, how's everybody at home going on? I hope you're still keeping well & boy how I wish you could all come over here & enjoy the sunshine and delicious food. Sometimes when we think of home, we feel rather guilty, being over here & enjoying ourselves, having good food & no fear of air-raids, while you're having to struggle through on short rations, with constant fear of Jerry coming over every night. I'd like to be back home again, you know we actually miss the excitement of raids, and not enough food to eat. Over here we can't find anything much worth grumbling about & maybe dad will tell you, a soldier's never happy unless he has something
[page break]
4.
to grouse about.
However I'm still well & healthy & looking forward to finishing my training, so I can come back & have a go at the Hun.
Don't worry about me at all, I'll be alright here, wait until I'm coming back across the Atlantic Ocean, that'll be the day or days to start thinking.
Well mum in my last letter I think I said I'd been to Sarasota, & since then I've been twice, and had a grand time. The Gulf of Mexico is grand for bathing in & we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We were invited to an hotel for dinner again & had a grand time there. One thing
[page break]
5.
that is common between the Americans and the British is their hospitality towards strangers & everywhere we go we are treated very well.
From what I hear, the American chaps are doing alright in Ireland & have been received as well as we were.
That's all about me for now. How's the lad going on? the big-un I mean, is he still at Filton or has he moved elsewhere? I notice he hasn't written to Dick Thomas for a while, at least there was no reply in the January & February News Letters.
No mail has come through as yet for me, but I hope you've got mine by now.
Is Leslie still working hard
[page break]
6.
and doing his bit in the "Home Guard"? Tell him to remember me to the boys when he goes up.
What's the nipper doing these days? he should be doing well at school now isn't he?
Now mum how about you and dad, are you alright, hope so anyway, chins up, it won't be long. I can't thing [sic] of anything else to write just now so I'll close.
Give my love to Aunts & Uncles & Grandma & Grandad & remember me to all enquiring friends & neighbours.
Thats all for now.
Chins up, keep smiling
Your Loving Son
Ken xxxxxxxxxx
David xxxxxxxxxx
Collection
Citation
K Gill, “Letter from Kenneth Gill to his parents,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed April 24, 2024, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/35570.
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