This blog is designed to record the findings of our family history, mainly for the benefit of the family, and to document the dead ends, the breakthroughs and the journey.
I’ll post the family stories as I’ve written them to now, and I’ll be grateful to anyone who can add further information or pictures, or point out errors.
Particular thanks to my sister Julia and my cousin Mandy who between them have done much more of the work than I have.

Friday 29 March 2013

War's end

Dad's story of the end of World War 2

MY VERSION OF THE END OF THE BURMA CAMPAIGN

By JS. Hamilton who took the salute at the War Memorial for VJ +50
My Regiment , the 4th Field Regiment Royal Artillery, a Regiment of 25 pounder field guns, was part of the famous 5th Indian Division, who fought the Japanese from Imphal/ Kohima to the outskirts of Rangoon, collecting 4 VCs on the way,
The Japanese at this point were virtually beaten and the Division was put on stand-by for the retaking of Malaya and Singapore, but for some reason we were never told , the Regiment was taken out of the project and sent back north and east to the Shan States to support a Brigade of the 19th Division who were still meeting some resistance.
Whilst operating near to Taungyii, the capital of the Shan States news came through that an atom bomb had been dropped on Japan, and we were told that this could bring about the end of the war. Whether it was right to use this terrible weapon never crossed our minds, there was great elation everywhere, we had survived, a short time later on 15th August it was finally over and we could go home.
A signal was sent from Brigade HQ to fire a Victory Salute at 10.00 hrs the following morning. Several high ranking officers appeared from nowhere, they wanted the used brass cartridge cases for souvenirs.
The guns that fired the Victory Salute in that far-off place near the Indo-China border was accepted to be the last the last rounds fired in the Burma Campaign

Starting Work

Dad's teenage years

So we go into the 1930’s and things were much better, for us anyway. The Carriage Works had opened up and were busy, Father , Arthur and Alf went back , Fred went to K&J’s the printers and as said earlier I was at the Cronehills Central school, and it was my intension not to work at the Carriage Works I took the Commercial course ,and when I left school I got a job as office boy at Chance Bros. The glass works down Spon Lane, the first rung of the ladder for my ultimate success. But alas it was not to be. After about six months Father said the job was not suitable for me, and I was to go to the Carriage Works with the others. I think he had the best motives, and to be fair to him I started he the best department which did the fitting out of the interiors of the coaches, a clean job, we wore a white apron and a collar and tie. And when we were lads you were expected to have a clean apron on a Monday morning, sometimes sent home to get one if you lived near enough which most did in those days, but I soon settled in and was reasonably content, with my pocket money and my golf money my teenage were pretty good. Except for one thing, The political and the diplomatic scene was pretty dire and everyone expected that there would be a war, which there was in September 1939. Fred was called up very early in the war, Arthur and Alf were in reserved occupations, and I not quite old enough. I was not very happy with my job in the early part of the war, So I left the Carriage Works an got a job at Harris and Sheldons a firm of shop fitters in Birmingham, nobody would believe that a Hamilton was leaving. The word went round, ’young Hamilton is leaving, and when Father knew when I got home with my tool-box, the heavens opened up, I had committed the gravest sin. But time is a great healer, and I settled in to my new job very well making parts for aircraft, which was a reserved occupation, for now I was military age.
About this time A young lady from Stourbridge named Betty Billingham, did the same as me, left her job against her parents wishes, went to the Ministry of Labour in Birmingham and they sent her to Harris and Sheldons and that is where we met. Although quite young twenty two, I was put in charge of a section making disposable petrol tanks for spitfires fighter planes, really content. That was until I got home from work one teatime and Mother handed me a buff envelope with my calling up papers inside. Ha well I had had a good run, it did not bother me greatly everyone else of my age had gone, so be it. Next morning I had a lie in and got to work late, when I arrived the foreman came over pointing to his watch where have you been etc, and I handed him my calling up papers. He was not pleased saying I was not going in the xxxxxx army, and rushed of to the office to get someone to clear it with At the Labour exchange to cancel it. But it was not to be. I reported to Norton Barracks Worcester for training, and irrespective of my experience in industry, I was assessed to be a wireless operator driver in the Royal Artillery and I was posted to Whitby in Yorkshire for training

A brush with Royalty

More from my father Joseph Sydney Hamilton

When we were young we were quite hard up as most people were who lived in the street, in spite of living in a very affluent middle class area, Birmingham Rd. and Beeches Rd., but we never went short thanks to our mother’s house keeping management, but we had to try and earn money even when we were quite young. One was taking dinners to the carriage works, our father always had his dinner took to the factory every day, and we had to take Uncle Joe’s and Uncle Ernie’s, in a basin ina wicker basket. Three baskets that meant two of us. I started when I was ten helped by Stan who was three years younger Uncle Joe lived down Trinity Rd. and I left school early Beeches Rd. and then Cronehills, run all the way to Uncle Joe’s run through Kenricks Park pick up Uncle Ernie’s Dinner down Roebuck St, then to our house pick up Father’s and we half run half walked to the works. If we were late or spilled the gravy, we were in trouble. To-day this would be considered child cruelty. One day taking the dinners I had my brush with Royalty. We had to pass the Albion ground to get to the works. And that year the Albion had won the cup, an when we approached the main entrance, men in bowler hats and police inspectors lined the pavement, and we barged through only to be pushed back has the Prince of Wales who later became the Duke of Windsor, came out and the men raised their bowler hats and cheered, and very nearly walked in to him. From there they went on to the Carriage Works for a conducted tour and father and uncles did not get their dinner till past two, their dinners were cold but could not blame us. We used to get a shilling a week for taking the dinners which mother had. One other thing we had to do was to fetch coal from the pit a Saturday morning, we had this big wooden trolley , home made which held as cwt of coal. it was quite awkward to cope with as well as the fact we had to pull it over the railway bridge. There were other lads fetching coal we left the trolleys at the bottom and we all helped to pull the trolleys over the bridge one at a time. When we unloaded we went back, to get coal for neighbours for money of course. And then when we were twelve we went golf caddying at Sandwell Park Golf Club
The rules were you had to be twelve before you could be a caddy till you were sixteen. The fee was one and sixpence a round (seven and a half pence in to-days money, sometimes you got a bit extra, mother had that and you got a penny back. We went Saturday and Sunday and evenings in the summer, that is after the dinner and coal run. When we started work we still went caddying but had sixpence back. As time went on into the thirty’s and more of us were working we came reasonably better off, than quite a lot, we were the first to have a car. Arthur bought a Austin Seven for twenty pounds in 1934,He got married about that time, and we had better cars which brother Alf used to drive and look after, A natural mechanic was Alfred. Mother had certain rules. When you started work at fourteen mother had your wages and gave you a shilling (5p). When you got to sixteen you kept your wages and paid board an looked after yourself, bought your own clothes etc. So life was not so bad compared with others

Dad's childhood story

My father wrote down his early memories when Mandy first strated the family history. In memory of him here they are

Joseph Sydney Hamilton.
Some notes on my childhood and life!


There were nine of us in the family plus Mother and Father.
This was my family in chronological order.
Father :-Walter Hamilton
Mother :-Lily Gertrude
Arthur married Minnie Bates,Children Brian and Alan
Dorrie (Dorothy) married Arthur Hawthorn one child Ann
Alfred, married Cathy Shelton one child Graham
Fredrick married Molly,no children
Syd (Joseph Sydney) married Betty Billingham, children Diana and Julia
Stanley married Irene White,children Nigel and Kerry
Norman married Olive, children Paul and Geoffrey.
Betty married Don Walklem.children Deborah Beverley and Donna
Donald married Beryl,one child Lynne.
We all attended Beeches Road Junior School, l was the first to pass for Cronhills senior school, l think some of the others went later.

We were all born and were brought up at 17 Roebuck St , number 17 was a two up and two down end of terrace house, it had an outside washouse (the brewus) the brewhouse as it was called, there was also the coal place (the coal hole) the outside toilet and a very long narrow garden.
We had a cellar which was sometimes used for coal but this always had a couple of feet of water,the top of the cellar steps was the pantry, there was no light so you had to take a candle and when you lent in to get something off the shelf there was always a danger of falling down the cellar steps.
There house had two gas lights downstairs but everywhere else you used a candle. Of course we had a coal-fire, Mother did all her cooking on the fire or in the oven that the fire heated.
Many years later we had a gas stove put in the brewus, which meant that the food had to be carried from the brewus  across the yard in all weather into the house, later when we were older we did build a veranda for cover and to link the two buildings.


                                                      1.

We were told that when our parents moved into number 17 the row of five houses were empty and they had their pick. Father picked the end one ,a prime site for his pigeon pen, the pigeons were his main interest in life that and the pub on the corner”Three Mile Oak” The upside of keeping the pigeons were the eggs which we sometimes had for breakfast, Father would kill the pigeon that were no longer useful and we would have pigeon pie. The pigeon manure which was a good fertilizer father had a very productive garden.

When we were young we were quite hard up as most people were who lived in the street in spite of living in the very affluent middle class area of Birmingham Rd and Beeches Rd in West Bromwich.

We never went short of anything thanks to our mother’s good
housekeeping management. We were expected to try and earn money even when we were quite young. Our lunch time job was taking dinners to the carriage works, our father always had his dinner delivered to the factory every day, and we also had to take Uncle Joe’s and Uncle Ernie’s in a basin inside a wicker basket. Three baskets meant two of us needed to go. I started the lunch run when I was ten helped by my brother Stan who was three years younger.

Uncle Joe lived along Trinity Rd. and I needed to leave my junior school at lunch time early (Beeches Road School.) and then later the secondary school (Cronehills) and run all the way to Uncle Joe’s, running through Kendricks Park to pick up Uncle Ernie’s dinner then down Roebuck St to our house to pick up Father’s dinner, we really had to half run half walked to get to dinners the works on time.
If we were late or spilled the gravy, we were in big trouble. Today l think this would be considered child cruelty.



Dad's letter from Burma

My cousin Ann recently showed me a letter that my father wrote to her parents from Burma when she was born. It's language and tone show that these soldiers were really just boys.

This is actual size

To Mr & Mrs A Hawthorne
19 Poplar Grove
Burlington Road
West Bromwich
Staffs
England                                                                                                26-6-44
5523158 Gnr Hamilton J                                                 7/4th Field Rgt RA
                                                                                                c/o SEAC
Dear Arthur and Dorrie
CONGRATULATIONS. Although my regards have to travel from a remote spot of our great(?) empire, nevertheless they mean just the same. I hope the event was celebrated in the traditional manner, you know “Gulp!, guzzle! Fill ‘em up again” it really was a surprise to me, nobody tells me these things. Am I really too young? I hope the baby isn’t too old before I can see it ---she of course. If it is not too old I shall be out of this place “pretty quickly”. And if you don’t give your first daughter a name I don’t approve of, expect a nasty letter. (Don’t get me wrong, I never mentioned Betty). Speaking of Betty she tells me she is going to your place to take the baby out. I hope she hasn’t got any ideas. How do you like my future mother-in-law. Alright isn’t she. Wait till you meet the old man> he is a good old stick too, but for God’s sake don’t come in contact with the other prospective son-in-law of the Billingham family. He stinks. Set my two mad young brothers on him for me.
That’s the lot. Best of luck. Syd.