Wartime Evacuees Remembered at Lowestoft
Members from the Lowestoft Evacuees Association, the Friends of Glossop Station along with the High Peak and Hope Valley Community Rail Partnership and Greater Anglia staff in front of the new panel.
A special panel has been unveiled at Lowestoft station detailing the evacuation of children during the second world war. A similar panel installed at Glossop station earlier this year marks the destination in Derbyshire where children arrived to escape the threat of bombing and invasion along England’s eastern coast.
On 2 June 1940 an evacuation special carrying hundreds of children departed Lowestoft for Derbyshire, a journey which left an indelible memory for many who today still maintain links with those who greeted them at Glossop.
On Saturday 29 September, representatives from the Friends of Glossop Station and the High Peak and Hope Valley Community Rail Partnership visited Lowestoft to join with some of the original evacuees for the unveiling, along with station staff and representatives from the Wherry Lines and East Suffolk Lines Community Rail Partnerships. Greater Anglia worked with both CRPs to install the panel inside the station booking hall.
Chris Brooks from the Lowestoft Evacuees Association, who was originally presented with the plaque at the evacuees annual Summer reunion by Neil Williams, chair of the Friends of Glossop Station, were both were present on the day.
Chris said, “This display represents a tangible public reminder of the links between our two towns and two counties which have been forged since World War Two. We thank the Friends of Glossop Station for their kind gesture and are delighted to now see this on display at Lowestoft Station.”
Neil Williams, Chair of the Friends of Glossop Station added, “The links between the two towns since the war have been maintained through many families and friendships, we were delighted to present a replica of the board we had previously installed at Glossop to the Lowestoft Evacuees and thrilled to be present at the station on Saturday for the official unveiling.”
Community Rail Norfolk Development Officer, Martin Halliday said, “It was a privilege to be present at the unveiling on Saturday and to meet both representatives from Glossop and former evacuees from the Lowestoft area. It is a credit to both Neil and Chris that the strong links between the two towns continue to be celebrated and the memories preserved for generations to come.”