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"This story was submitted to the People's War site by the Barnsley Archives and Local Studies Department on behalf of Maurice Hall and has been added to the site with his/her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions."

I was only five when it started, just a schoolboy. Dad was in the 14th army in Burma he went in 1940. We used to get free school meals because Dad was in the army. I thought the meals were good, but only two of us liked them so we got plenty.

I can remember a plane coming down in the quarry at Pogmoor, I think it was a Candadian crew, they were all killed.

I can also remember two Germans bailing out in Percy Allen’s (a farmer) filed. One broke his leg and the police were there in two minutes.

When bombing in Sheffield started we went in Grandmother’s cellar under the stone shelf. We also did that when they were bombing the main line. When that happened the clothes prop fell down and Grandad shouts, “they got us, they got us”.

We all had to carry gas masks with us all the time.

We put peelings with eyes into the ground to try to grow potatoes.

The last thing to come off the rationing was spice and meat in 1956.

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