1
25
6
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1857/33251/SAdderM175073v10064.1.pdf
6456427a2c87e7c21be695682dad2b91
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1857/33251/SAdderM175073v10062.1.jpg
bda55856bd9d104a650bd5d9fea0c295
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Adder, Mervyn
M Adder
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-05-29
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Adder, M
Description
An account of the resource
88 items. The collection concerns Pilot Officer Mervyn Adder (1922 - 1944, 175073 Royal Air Force) and contains his diaries, correspondence and photographs. He flew operations as a navigator with 44 Squadron and was killed 15 March 1944. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Mary Sprakes and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br /><span data-contrast="none" xml:lang="EN-GB" lang="EN-GB" class="TextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0">Additional information on<span> Mervyn Adder</span></span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0"><span> </span>is available via the</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW207633627 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":200,"335559740":276}"> </span><a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/100101/">IBCC Losses Database.</a>
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[Royal Air Force crest]
1457970 L.AC. Adder M
Hut 124
R.A.F. Station
Millom
Cumberland
Thursday.
Dear Alex,
Well how’s tricks! I thought I would write tonight as I haven’t much to do until eight o’clock, it’s now just after six, when I am going along to the picture show in the NAAFI. It’s a good film I believe, ‘The Glass Key’ with Alan Ladd & Veronica Lake, however I don’t think I shall be able to see it right through as we are night flying tonight, [deleted] and [/deleted] briefing is at 22.15 hrs. and you have to get there before this to work out your Flight Plan.
I haven’t heard from home very much since I came back, but this is partly my fault as I haven’t written myself, other than the usual letter in a parcel and I had the last one already packed for three days before I got the
[page break]
chance to post it.
We still have plenty of free time and days off between trips, and about a fortnight ago I spent a very nice day with a couple of the boys exploring the countryside. We completed a walk over the hills into the next valley at Coniston, where we had tea before catching a train back to Millom, - and what a glorious place it is! It’s on the edge of Lake Coniston and the scenery is I think the best I have yet seen in this country, and would very much like to spend a holiday there. If we get another chance we are going to spend a day there.
It has been our day off today, we stopped in bed as usual this morning until somebody at about a quarter to eleven [inserted] [deleted] when somebody [/inserted] [/deleted] suggested a game of football, and this had the effect of getting fifteen of us out of bed. It was a grand day so we put on gym kit, drew a soft ball from the stores and had
[page break]
a grand game of Soccer until dinner time. The North played the South and we won 8 – 1 although had to borrow two of their chaps to make the sides even.
For some unknown reason we had dinner out of doors today, it was a change but not very nice as we had to dig out our mess tins from the bottom of our kit bags, and there was the usual battle to keep insects etc out of your dinner.
The flying is going down quite well and I have now about sixty eight hours to my credit. We had a very enjoyable trip a few days ago, it was another low level map reading trip and this time [deleted] we went [/deleted] over Northern Ireland. It was very ‘low level’
[page break]
lifting up to go over trees etc and we met a few chaps mending the road in one part whereupon we made the usual sortie and a few seconds after we had pushed over them we had a smell of tar in the plane for a very short time.
I should be home a fortnight on Monday as we are passing out then, so that if you can wangle some more time off about that time, (I don’t think we shall get more than seven days leave,) I’ll see you then. I think Mary is having her holidays the same week and I am looking forward to seeing her again very much indeed.
I don’t think I have anything else to tell you at the moment so I’ll say cheerio for now.
Mervyn
[page break]
c. 27 May 1943
Here Mervyn describes a trip to Lake Coniston 17 May with friends on a day off. He had really enjoyed the beauty and expressed a wish to have a proper holiday there. I’m pleased to see in his diary that they managed another trip there on 28 May.
He always goes into detail about football matches – an indication of how much he enjoyed it.
There is also a very interesting description of a low-level flying trip to Northern Ireland when they were flying so low that they smelt the tar that was being laid on the road.
He also refers to his forthcoming passing out parade which took place on 14 June 1943 and the usual film (see attached.)
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Mervyn Adder to his brother Alex
Description
An account of the resource
Letter and explanatory note. Writes of plan to go to cinema later that evening and then go night flying. Mentions exploring the local glorious countryside including visit to Coniston. Describes a football match he took part in and low level flying in Northern Ireland.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
M Adder
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-05-27
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four page handwritten letter and printed explanatory note
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Text. Personal research
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SAdderM175073v10064, SAdderM175073v10062
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Cumbria
England--Coniston (Cumbria)
Northern Ireland
Great Britain
Great Britain
England--Westmorland
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-05-27
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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.
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending text-based transcription. Under review
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
military living conditions
military service conditions
RAF Millom
sport
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1857/33250/SAdderM175073v10059.2.pdf
e562b0c34d70e931f7dbd0a29d8700fa
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1857/33250/SAdderM175073v10058.2.jpg
ea5843060020e6344577711d2b240540
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Adder, Mervyn
M Adder
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-05-29
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Adder, M
Description
An account of the resource
88 items. The collection concerns Pilot Officer Mervyn Adder (1922 - 1944, 175073 Royal Air Force) and contains his diaries, correspondence and photographs. He flew operations as a navigator with 44 Squadron and was killed 15 March 1944. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Mary Sprakes and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br /><span data-contrast="none" xml:lang="EN-GB" lang="EN-GB" class="TextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0">Additional information on<span> Mervyn Adder</span></span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0"><span> </span>is available via the</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW207633627 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":200,"335559740":276}"> </span><a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/100101/">IBCC Losses Database.</a>
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
1459790 L.A.C. Adder M.
Hut 114
RAF Station
Millom.
Cumberland.
Sunday
Dear Alex,
So sorry about the delay in answering your letter but as you will see from the address I have changed Stations in the meantime and with this and having about a dozen letters to answer I have been kept rather busy.
I am writing this letter in pencil as I am in bed – in hospital. I reported sick yesterday morning as I felt absolutely lousy, a terrific headache and a temperature of 101 in the shade so they shoved me in dock and I have been in bed ever since. You have a super time here but am I browned off with sticking in bed all day they wouldnt [sic] even let me get up to shave today – so I shaved in bed. (I think I could [deleted] stick [/deleted] [inserted] put [/inserted] it in here quite well – I have grown a moustache, it’s very fair inclined to be slightly
[page break]
ginger but it’s definitely there and quite thick. The medicine they give you is absolutely lousy – it makes you ill to drink it, but the little food we do get is very good as are the W.A.A.F.S who look after you. Another attraction is the wireless which they have in the ward, I didnt [sic] feel very fit yesterday but I enjoyed the commentary on the Arsenal – Spurs match and it’s a nice change to hear a dance band again as they haven’t a wireless in the NAAFI at this place and therefore until yesterday I hadn’t listened to the wireless for quite a while.
I have been at this place a fortnight now and haven’t done any flying yet, this is due to the weather, this area I believe is known as the Piss Pot of England and very rightly so, and during our first week we had of course to get to know the ropes. A few days ago flying was scrubbed due to bad weather this didn’t bother four of us in our section as we hadn’t been detailed therefore when we were told, half way through the morning to put our flying kit on we were very surprised indeed. Nothing happened
[page break]
as we weren’t allowed to take off, we were going to look for a Beau down in the drink and we were going along for air experience – were we annoyed when it had to be scrubbed although I guess they know best and they were found later.
I had a Christmas Card forwarded on from home the other day it was from Marian, the girl in America, and a surprise too so I guess I will have to drop her a line in the near future. I received a letter from Louis & Don at the same time, Louis is taking a final course at Fort William (Inverness) before going into Coastal Forces and Don is taking his Link Trainer Instructors course before going to Elstree – he should have a good time there.
I didn’t mention to Mother the prospect of Mary and I becoming engaged as everything went to cock that last weekend and we couldn’t do anything about it then. It’s absolutely a dead cert. for my next leave which will be about twelve weeks hence.
[page break]
I dont [sic] think there is anything else to tell you at the moment Alex so I will sign off now
All the best.
Mervyn
[page break]
14 February 1943
Mervyn wrote this to Dad from his hospital bed. He must have had a very bad bout of influenza as he was hospitalised from 13 February until 19 March.
He writes of growing a moustache which was slightly ginger! Also he is enjoying listening to the wireless as they didn’t have one in the NAAFI. He also writes about his forthcoming engagement. Obviously he and Dad shared secrets from their Mother as she was so disapproving of everything.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Mervyn Adder to his brother Alex
Description
An account of the resource
Letter and explanatory note. Writes from hospital after reporting sick the previous day and describes experiences. Enjoying the facility of having radio which was not available in the NAAFI on base. Mentions he had been at RAF Millom for a week but had done no flying due to weather. Comments on his recent mail. Mentions prospect of getting engaged and that he had not told his mother yet.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
M Adder
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-02-14
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four page handwritten letter and printed explanatory note
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Text. Personal research
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SAdderM175073v10059, SAdderM175073v10058
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Cumbria
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-02-14
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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.
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending text-based transcription. Under review
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
military living conditions
military service conditions
RAF Millom
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1857/33249/SAdderM175073v10056.1.pdf
c53b7d9a4bd37dad2054e76233a467d3
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1857/33249/SAdderM175073v10055.1.jpg
eb03937d5753a92ded66899a37ac305e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Adder, Mervyn
M Adder
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-05-29
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Adder, M
Description
An account of the resource
88 items. The collection concerns Pilot Officer Mervyn Adder (1922 - 1944, 175073 Royal Air Force) and contains his diaries, correspondence and photographs. He flew operations as a navigator with 44 Squadron and was killed 15 March 1944. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Mary Sprakes and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br /><span data-contrast="none" xml:lang="EN-GB" lang="EN-GB" class="TextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0">Additional information on<span> Mervyn Adder</span></span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW207633627 BCX0"><span> </span>is available via the</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW207633627 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":200,"335559740":276}"> </span><a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/100101/">IBCC Losses Database.</a>
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
1459790 L.A.C. Adder. M
Hut 114
RAF Station
Millom
Cumberland.
Dear All,
Thank you very much for the parcel Mother I received it at lunch time today and as I had just sufficient time before the afternoon lectures I dashed back to the Hut and opened it. I hadn’t time however to discover all the nice things you sent me and picked up all the letters from the top leaving the unpacking until tonight.
I was very pleased with the large bottle of Ovaltine tablets which you sent me, they will come in very handy when we start flying as we seem to get very little chocolate at this place and as the usual length of flights is three hours you need something to chew on the way. Thank you very much Dad for lending me your knife I will look after it and let you have it back as soon as possible although we
[page break]
have very little opportunity to do any shopping in Millom, if that is possible – although I guess it must be, and as yet we haven’t had a day off but are expecting one on Friday.
The chocolate biscuits were very nice, we have just eaten them tonight over a cup of tea in the Salvation Army Canteen and the soap, well I guess it must have had some effect as I had a bath tonight as soon as we finished lectures. Don’t worry about our having to sleep between blankets, they are reasonabley [sic] clean and we should be issued with sheets very shortly.
It was very nice receiving all those letters which you sent me but I am miles behind with my correspondence, I owe Alex one so perhaps you could keep him quiet for a little while – it would help, and will have to get cracking with the old pen if I am going to answer all of them. The letter from America was from Marian, it was an amusing little
[page break]
Christmas Card, better late than never, I think I will drop her a line in the near future as she wanted to know whether I had joined the R.A.F. The other two letters were from Don and Louis, who is now taking a course at Fort William (Inverness) and complaining about having to stay at a place where it rains 25 hrs a day and 8 days a week for five weeks when we have to stay here for fourteen. They and Mary [deleted] all [/deleted] wish to be remembered to you all.
I was alarmed to hear of your mishap with the balloon barrage and hope that by now you have put things more or less shipshape again – it was very fortunate that nobody was hurt.
I went into Millom with two of the boys on Saturday night for the first time, it was dark so of course we couldn’t see much of it however we didn’t want to do as it was pouring with rain, the heaviest I have seen for some time. In this part of the country it’s always raining, it is as I am writing this
[page break]
letter and since we have been here we have only had about three days clear of rain which I believe is a record. On Sunday however it was a glorious day cold, clear and sunny and was one of the few occasions on which we could see the summit of our mountain (we call it a mountain it’s about 2000’ high and stretches on one side of the camp – the other side is the sea hidden from view by the sand dunes) which was covered with snow.
We are going into Barrow tomorrow afternoon for swimming, occasionally you get the chance and leave Camp about a quarter past four, catch the train into Barrow which arrives about half past five and swim at the baths until half past six, when you are given your return ticket and are free to have a look round Barrow until half past nine when you catch the last train back. I shall take this parcel with me to post as there isn’t a post office on the Camp and if you want to post anything you have to take a bus into town and catch
[page break]
the Post Office before it closes which is a rush and a dashed nuisance.
I believe I started telling you about our visit to Millom and then broke off to tell about the weather so I will continue from where I left off. We had decided to go to the only picture house in town, a very ancient affair too, and having an hour to wait found the nearest fish shop where we ate 6d of chips each before braving the elements again to find the picture house. We saw an old film, it was only to be expected, but it was very amusing and we enjoyed it very much it was called ‘My Favourite Blonde’. It had stopped raining [deleted] I am [/deleted] when we came out of the pictures, we caught the last bus home and arrived back at eleven o’clock and went straight in to supper – meals are served at nearly all hours of the day at this place.
I am enclosing my watch as they have given us Astro watches and I don’t want two, perhaps Dad would wear it for me so that it won’t
[page break]
go wrong for want of using, as they sometimes do.
I think I have about exhausted all the news so I will say cheerio for the present.
Love to All,
Mervyn.
P.S. Believe it or not I have grown a moustache.
P.P.S We had tripe for tea the other night.
[page break]
8 February 1943
Mervyn wrote this letter in response to a much-needed food parcel from home. He had just arrived at Millom. He saw My Favourite Blonde on 6 February 1943 – see attached information. The cinema was The Millom Palladium which has been bought by the local amateur operatic society and is used as a theatre today.
The hill he describes must have been Holborn Hill with Black Combe in the background – see picture.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Mervyn Adder to his family
Description
An account of the resource
Letter and explanatory note. Thanks him for parcel and was pleased with contents. Thanks his father for lending him his knife. Describes some activities and conditions but says he is behind in his correspondence. Catches up with news of friends and Alex's activities. Mentions going into town and poor weather. Writes of intention of going into Barrow next day and continues with description of visit to local town.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
M Adder
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-02-08
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Six page handwritten letter and printed explanatory note
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Text. Personal research
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SAdderM175073v10056, SAdderM175073v10055
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Cumbria
England--Barrow-in-Furness
England--Lancashire
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-02-08
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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.
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending text-based transcription. Under review
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
military living conditions
military service conditions
RAF Millom
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1816/32136/EMonksMAMonksH431031-0001.2.jpg
7cf4d06dc9b5ad61b22bb91970c0cc12
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1816/32136/EMonksMAMonksH431031-0002.2.jpg
4b47f4fd666ffc403de5915105007bfc
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Monks, Maurice Arnold
M A Monks
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-03-23
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Monks, MA
Description
An account of the resource
39 items and a subcollection of eighty-one items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Maurice Arnold Monks (152996 Royal Air Force) and contains documents and photographs. Sub-collection contains photographs taken while he was training in Canada. He flew operations as a bomb aimer with 166 Squadron and was killed 13 June 1944.<br /><br /> <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2023">Monks, Maurice Arnold. Photograph album</a><br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Hilary Megget and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br />
<p><span data-contrast="none">Additional information on Maurice Arnold Monks</span><span data-contrast="none"> is available via the</span><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":200,"335559740":276}"> <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/116453/">IBCC Losses Database.</a></span></p>
<p><span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559739":200,"335559740":276}"> </span></p>
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
31/10/43.
Dear Herbert,
Well here I am kid and about time too I suppose your saying, did you get my letter saying I’ve got a commission? You’ll see from the address that I’m back in dear old England, this place is so out of the way though that I might just as well be overseas, however I don’t expect to be here much longer so will you send your letters home for me then I’ll be more certain of receiving them. It was good to see the folks at home and the exitement [sic] when I produced stockings etc. When I arrived back from Canada, I hadn’t told them I was an officer either so of course there was more exitement [sic] over that. I was given a fortnights leave & then at the end of the second week received a notice giving me a weeks extention, [sic] arn’t [sic] I lucky? Edna got leave too so we were both able to do our stuff at
[page break]
Margaret’s wedding which was wizard, it drew the biggest crowd Newland has drawn for years, everyone was very sorry you were not in a position to attend. Sheila was invited but unable to come so I still havn’t [sic] had the pleasure of meeting her. Arthur Taylor was home too and we had one very good night out to-gether, [sic] by the way he has been grounded because of ear trouble. I was pleased that Edith was out of hospital when I got back she appears to have fully recovered and has started to work again, mornings only for a start, on my leave she used to go down with me in the afternoons sometimes to Les’s allottment [sic] & we did quite a bit of work there. By the way I dont [sic] know if Mother has told you but Alice has lost poor old Gyp, they had to have him destroyed. Jud is just about as lively as ever though. Hows [sic] things over there now? I hope the jolly old famine hasn’t effected [sic] you too much, the food on this station is wizard (for officers anyway)
[page break]
The war seems to be progressing favourably doesnt [sic] it, heres [sic] looking forward to that celebration we are going to have at the end of it. Lincoln looked a lot the same as when I left it, its funny how many people I know didn’t recognise me, it must have been the officers uniform. At present I’m getting 14/6d a day which although it sounds quite a lot is not really a terrific amount when you realise the expense we have to go to to live up to the commission, however I’m managing quite well and saving. I’m not on opps yet so dont [sic] worry about me old chap & in any case I’m exceptionally lucky in lots of things. There isn’t much room on these darned things so I suppose I’ll have to dry up up [sic] now, I bet theres [sic] something I’ve forgotten to tell you but anyway I’ll write again very soon so cheerio for now kid, look after yourself. you’re the best pal & brother I ever had
Your loving brother
Maurice
[page break]
BY AIR MAIL
AIR LETTER
[postmark] [postage stamp]
922558 L.A.C. MONKS. H.
ROYAL AIR FORCE,
INDIA COMMAND.
Sender’s name and address:
152996 P/O M.A. MONKS,
OFFICERS’ MESS,
RAF STATION,
MILLOM, CUMBERLAND,
ENGLAND.
[postmark]
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Maurice Monks to Herbert Monks
Description
An account of the resource
Mentions that he has been commissioned and describes his current location. Catches up with news from home on his arrival back from Canada. Writes of leave and more family/friends gossip and of his activities. Asks how things are where Herbert was is and mentions that food was good on his station. Writes of war news and how Lincoln looked when he was on leave. Writes of pay and cost of living.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Maurice Monks
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-10-31
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four sided handwritten airmail letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EMonksMAMonksH431031
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Cumbria
India
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-10-31
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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.
promotion
RAF Millom
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1415/26838/SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0001.1.jpg
e2f00c3797cbeed5cb72214994604f79
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1415/26838/SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0002.1.jpg
bfe377d481adce5b7712901d4b188d38
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1415/26838/SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0003.1.jpg
9a0efcd552e98730f0130c5a2c555558
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/1415/26838/SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0004.1.jpg
8da55cac1baabe9abed81e5d03967228
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Warren, George
George Clarence Warren
G C Warren
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2019-08-13
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Warren, GC
Description
An account of the resource
47 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer George Warren (162041 Royal Air Force) he flew operations as a navigator with 626 Squadron until he was killed <span>16 March 1945 on an operation to Nürnberg. The collection contains his log book, correspondence and photographs.</span><br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Harris and Vanessa Hibbert and catalogued by Barry Hunter. <br /><br />Additional information on George Warren is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/124450/ ">IBCC Losses Database.</a>
Access Rights
Information about who can access the resource or an indication of its security status. Access Rights may include information regarding access or restrictions based on privacy, security, or other policies.
Permission granted for commercial projects
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
F/O G. C. Warren
OFFICERS’ MESS (GREEN)
ROYAL AIR FORCE
WICKENBY
Nr. LINCOLN
1.1.45.
Dear Mother,
I’ve been intending to write you such a letter as this for some weeks, & yet I don’t seem to have been able to get around to it…………… & after all it’s not a pleasant letter to write. The strange part about it is that in my first few operations, when I had so little confidence & anything could have happened, there was no letter for you – but now, with the experience of 5 operations behind me, I feel that I ought to get started. I suppose the reason is that so many of the boys are getting lost on operations, and it would be foolish of me to dismiss the dangers as
[page break]
Insignificant.
I suppose you’ll be glad to know that I am happier here at Wickenby than I was when I first arrived. The fellows here are a fine lot & and the boys that fly along with me are six of the best. In addition, I like my job very much. The navigation we knew at Port Elizabeth, Millom & Peplow was nothing compared with that which we know here, & these long trips into the enemy frontiers give one a feeling of achievement and satisfaction. In addition, we know we know that we are contributing in a most direct manner to the defeat of the enemy & the saving of thousands of lives. The methods are unpleasant, as we know from our own experience, but the end must justify the means.
If anything should occur to make it impossible for me to come home again, I hope you will
[page break]
remember your faith in God’s unfailing judgement, & bear the blow as a brave mother should. You will know that you, at least, did everything you could to make my life enjoyable, worthwhile & successful – and you can never doubt how I appreciate you[sic] help and your continued sacrifice under the greatest difficulties. I might have missed the benefits which God has bestowed on me, had it not been for your endeavours & example, & thank God & you for all I have and am at this moment. Don’t forget this … ever.
Please give my love to Ken & Beryl (Long Liv Viv). I hope Ken will soon be back with you & wish him every success & good
[page break]
Fortune - & my own share too.
To Beryl I can only say that she has made a good start in life &, following her mother’s example, she can’t go wrong. I am sure she will be a great comfort to you & help make you happy, as I want you to be.
I hope you’ll write to my friends again – as you used to so often when I was busy- & please send Jeanie a few lines. She’s no ordinary girl, but a splendid type that the difficulties & hardships of this life have knocked into splendid shape. Your worries were entirely groundless & she was nothing to me but a grand girl I could not help admiring. We got on very well together.
Here's to them all, & my love to you and all at home
Your loving son,
George
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter to Mrs Warren from George Warren
Description
An account of the resource
George apologises for not writing because of his sadness on losing so many of his colleagues. It is a sad letter expressing his feeling if he was lost on an operation.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
George Warren
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1945-01-01
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four handwritten sheets
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0001,
SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0002,
SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0003,
SWarrenGC1580687v30006-0004
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
South Africa
England--Cumbria
England--Lincolnshire
England--Shropshire
South Africa--Port Elizabeth
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1945-01-01
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
David Bloomfield
In the event of my death letter
perception of bombing war
RAF Millom
RAF Peplow
RAF Wickenby
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/660/9130/EGortonHGortonLCM430909.1.pdf
59d61425f825524c3a5402464779f72f
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Gorton, Harold
Description
An account of the resource
136 items. The collection concerns Squadron Leader Harold Gorton (1914 - 1944, 120984, Royal Air Force) and contains eight photographs and 126 letters to his wife and family. Harold Gorton studied at Oxford, and throughout his time in the RAF he continued studying law. He completed a tour of operations as a pilot in 1941 and was then posted as an instructor to RAF Cark. He returned to operations with 49 Squadron stationed at RAF Fulbeck in 1944. He was killed 11/12 November 1944 during an operation to Harburg.<br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Mair Gorton and Ian Gorton, and catalogued by Barry Hunter. <br /><br />Additional information on Harold Gorton is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/108964/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-05-30
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Gorton, H
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
OFFICERS’ MESS,
ROYAL AIR FORCE,
CARK,
NORTH LANCASHIRE.
TELEPHONE GRANGE 390.
9/9/43
Dearest,
I’m in a state today when I don’t know whether to have a good row with the C.O. or not. This morning he asked for an aircraft, & I told him he could have mine. When he came back from his trip, he said the plane was a wreck, & not safe to fly, & he later told the C.F.O. & his assistant that I ought to be under arrest for sending a pupil solo in it. At least, that’s what the assistant told me, but when I tackled the C.F.O. about it, he smoothed it down and said the C.O. merely stated that anyone who sent someone up in a u/s aircraft ought to
[page break]
2
be under arrest.
The fact of the matter is that the aircraft was not u/s, and the C.F.O. & I think that the C.O. did a bad landing at Millom and is blaming it on the plane. There was nothing wrong with the plane apart from being dirty, but it had some technical imperfections (connected with the synchronisation & the slow running) which did not affect its airworthiness.
I take a dim view of the C.O. saying that I sent a pupil up in a u/s aircraft, & if he thinks I’m no good as an instructor, the [deleted] last [/deleted] sooner he posts me the better I shall be pleased.
I was going to ask for an interview with him this afternoon, but have decided
[page break]
3
to see if I can have a friendly (?) talk with him in the Mess.
The C.F.I. will be back from leave on Friday, & I shall certainly ask him for a posting.
I trust you were as pleased with the Italian surrender as I was. They’ve waited a good time, but they’ve certainly done the thing properly now.
Thanks for getting the torch darling. Tuesday, in Lancaster, was the first chance I’d had to do any shopping, but it wasn’t necessary by then.
We’ve got a new instructor now, from Fraserburgh. He tells me that Cawker, Worthy & Webster are all F/Lts now! Makes
[page break]
4
you think doesn’t it?
I spent six shillings yesterday on having myself drawn by a cartoonist. It’s a good, but not a flattering likeness. I’ll bring it along next week to see what you think about it.
I’m taking the 48 with my leave, as things are so unsettled here that I may miss it otherwise. I shall therefore be free after duties on the 15th, & return on the 27th. If I’m going to Newhouse, I think I’ll call at Farnworth to collect some flannels, and then catch the 9.25 from M/c on Thursday morning.
All my love, darling,
Harold
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
He writes of issues with his commanding officer, the Italian surrender and his leave arrangements.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Harold Gorton
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1943-09-09
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four handwritten sheets
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EGortonHGortonLCM430909
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Royal Air Force
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
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.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Harold Gorton to his wife
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Cumbria
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943-09
aircrew
military discipline
RAF Cark
RAF Millom
training