Recollections – Ray Elliot

I stayed in Norfolk during the war because I was in a reserved occupation, as I was farm worker.

At the beginning of the war in 1939 I was age 23 and I worked in the Fens around Feltwell, reclaiming land for agriculture.  My health was not good so I later came back to South Norfolk to work for the Norfolk War Agricultural Committee.  I lived in the village of Wattlefield, on a farm.  Every day I used the motorcycle lent to me by the Committee to travel the 10 miles to the Isolation Hospital at Wicklewood, where I had my base.

My job was to collect a group of men and drive them to various farms in the area where help was needed.  I had to supervise them doing various tasks on the land.  Some of the men had never worked on a farm before.  The men were mainly older or were unfit for the services.  We did get some youngsters from the “Naughty Boys Home”, although they never were any trouble.

I seem to remember it always being noisy in Wattlefield, as there were several American air bases nearby.  One day I remember standing and watching a doodlebug come over.

BBC WW2 Peoples War

Reginald Elliott 04/04/2005

Mr Elliott died on 8th May 2009 aged 93