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    WW2 Era Letter Written by British Wife To Her Husband During The Blitz. She writes of bombs dropping nearby. 1940. Details in comments.
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    WW2 Era Letter Written by British Wife To Her Husband During The Blitz. She writes of bombs dropping nearby. 1940. Details in comments.

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    1. Heartfeltzero on

      This letter was written by a woman named Mary to her husband, Charlie Tingley. It is postmarked September 27th 1940, and was written during the early months of the Blitz, the German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom that lasted from September 7th 1940 to May 11th 1941. At that time, Charlie was serving with the 337th Anti Aircraft Battery, Royal Artillery, stationed in Kent.

      The letter reads:

      >“ 29 Underwood Rd
      High Wycombe
      Bucks

      >Dear Charlie.

      >Let’s hope this letter finds you well, sorry they have stopped your dawn till dusk leave but maybe it will start again soon. I haven’t given your mother a photo yet but I will. She said they were nice. I’m staying at home now. You must be fed up being up all night till dawn. They dropped bombs down the marsh Wed night, about nine of them, some time bombs too, some of the people have had to move out I think. The planes were flying round all night and now and again they dropped bombs. The sirens went just after the 9 o’clock news and the all clear at 3 the next morning. It’s the longest warning we’ve had yet.

      >Wish you had brought Jerry down the other day with your Lewis gun. I would have been very proud of you. Sorry to hear you have lost your married mates because I know you got on well with them. I liked the cutting out of the paper, it pleased me very much, it was very nice. I wish I had seen it first. I will get your shoes mended while you can’t get your leave, ready for when you come home. The ones I am telling you about are those people from London you know, they all sit and watch with open mouths, there not to bad though. I went down and told your mother you were alright. Tonight she had been to see Arthur Askey at the Palace. Did you get the hankies I sent? Being up at night, I thought you might get a runny nose. Did you find the six pence too?

      >That’s all the silver I had got. I thought it would buy you some cigs. Well dear if you want anything just write and say and I will get it for you. From your loving wife,

      >Mary.

      >P.S. I think I’ll get off to bed before Jerry comes again. I’ll bet Sid and Bertha heard them last night. Lots of love till I see you again.

      >Jerry’s over now
      Goodnight. “

    2. lonesome_okapi_314 on

      Not sure why reading this in the proper handwriting has hit me so much. Something about the ink fading as the sentence goes on then refreshed, and repeated, whilst you know the author is probably breaking as they wrote it.

      Always considered “cigs” to be a more modern abbreviation, but should have expected that to be older, as I believe even Churchill penned ‘omg”.

      Do we know what happened to Mary?