Pickford, Leslie

Title

Pickford, Leslie
Pickford, L

Description

189 items. The collection concerns Leslie Pickford (551653 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, diaries, a scrapbook, photographs and correspondence. He flew operations as a wireless operator air gunner with 139 Squadron. He became a prisoner of war in Italy in 1941, detained in camps at Prato all'Isarco, Rieti and Sulmona.

The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Jayne Bailey and catalogued by Barry Hunter.

Date

2021-08-11

Publisher

IBCC Digital Archive

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.

Identifier

Pickford, L

Collection Items

Les Pickford's Medal
A framed medal, dated 1942. Red and white stripe on a blue ribbon.

Leslie Pickford
A head and shoulders portrait of Les.

104 (B) Squadron Group Photograph
A squadron photograph taken at Bassingbourn in May 1939. Four rows of airmen and ground crew positioned in front of a Blenheim.

Christmas Card
A card sent by the UK Apostolic Delegation

Letter to Les Pickford's Mother from Red Cross
The letter expresses delight that Les has arrived safely in the UK.

Letter to Les Pickford's Father from Air Ministry
The letter accepts that Les is a prisoner of war and blames the mis-reading of a Red Cross report.

Letter to Les Pickford's Mother from Air Ministry
The letter asks that Les' mother forwards her letter from Les confirming he is a prisoner of war.

Letter to F Ditchford's father from RAF Record Office
The letter advises that his son, Sergeant Ditchford (551653) of 139 Squadron is missing believed killed.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He has escaped from the camp and is now with the British Army.

Greetings Telegram from Les Pickford to his mother
A telegram sent at Easter stating he is keeping well and hopes his family are doing the same.

Greetings Telegram from Les Pickford to his mother
Les sends seasons greeting to his mother.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He is moving to a new camp at Sulmona. He has received five letters so far. He asks for a fountain pen.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He has had no mail from her. He is in good health and has just received a Red Cross parcel.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He has had no mail from her. Its been raining again. He is rehearsing for a concert party. No sport this week because of the weather.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He asks for a cigarette machine and a diary. His health is good. They are having a sports meeting plus board games, lectures and concerts.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He asks for a razor and letters via the Red Cross. He is well but its been raining a lot.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He will write again once he is moved. Food is good and he is being treated well.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
Les writes he is alive and in good health. He is being treated well and the food isn't bad. He is a prisoner in Tripoli.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He writes that they raided Guernsey and it was in the papers. He claimed he shot down a Heinkel 113, his first kill.

Letter from Les Pickford to his mother
He apologises for not writing but he has been busy on operations.

Letter to Les Pickford's Father from RAF Record Office
The letter advises that his son is promoted.

Letter to Les Pickford's Father from RAF Record Office
The letter advises that his son has died of wounds whilst a prisoner of war.

Letter to Les Pickford's Mother from RAF Record Office
The writer promises to clear up a confusion caused by a telegram received from the International Red Cross.

Letter to Les Pickford's Mother from POW & "Missing" Accounts
Les had arranged for £50 to be sent to his mother and the cheque is enclosed in this letter.

Letter to Les Pickford's Mother from 139 Squadron
The writer confirms that her son is definitely a prisoner of war.
View all 189 items

Collection Tree