Taiwan Camp: When the West meet the East

During the Second World War, in May 1943, the Derby Evening Telegraph carried reports of several local men who had been taken prisoner by the Japanese at the fall of Singapore, the first news that they were still alive. Some returned home but many did not survive the rigours of a Japanese war camp.

Signaller J. E. Saunders (23), of the Royal Corps of Signals, only son of Mr. and Mrs. J. Saunders of 39, Mansfield-street, Derby, is also in Taiwan Camp. He enlisted in June, 1938, and was drafted to India in July, 1939, transferred to Malaya in 1941, and taken prisoner at Singapore.

There were more than 16 Japanese prisoner of war camps on the island of Taiwan (Formosa) during the Second World War, and almost 30,000 allied prisoners of war who travelled to and from the Taiwan camps or stopped here en route to Japan, Korea and Manchuria during WWII.

To be a Far East Prisoner of War meant:

• 25% of FEPOWs captured by the Japanese were killed or died in captivity, compared with 5% of those captured by the Germans and Italians.
  
• Prisoner's deaths as a precentage were the highest rate of all the World War II battle fronts involving British troops.
  
• Prisoners suffered trauma 24 hours a day, with the constant threat of death, disease, beatings, torture, starvation, seeing their comrades dying around them, burying them and even being forced to dig their own graves.
  

This site contains descriptions of the former camps, as well as an honour roll of the prisoners of war.

The earliest bus was a horse drawn bus

There were all manner of improvements to make daily life easier. The first bus service to Little Chester from the centre of Derby to the Coach and Horse had begun in 1903 as Derby Corporation route no. 3; the earlier Derby Omnibus Company came only as far as the Bridge Inn en-route to the Nottingham Road. It was a horse drawn bus. Clifford Burton wrote,

We can recall the driver, Mr. Whittaker, with his magnificent white beard, sitting aloft in the driving seat. It was a rare thrill to be lifted up to share his high seat on a trip to town. The 'bus' had a rear entrance and passengers sat facing each other on each side. Signals to stop and start were from a whistle blown by the conductor. The horse responded quickly to the signals. Local imps soon became aware of this and many an unscheduled stop  was caused by the lads running alongside and blowing a whistle, much to the fury of the man in charge of the vehicle.

No tramways were laid to Little Chester so the horse drawn bus service lasted until May 1917 .

[A City Within a City, Little Chester Derby, AD80 - AD2000, by Joan D'Arcy, P.36]

Typical 19th Century Terraced House

Typical terraced house has cellar under the front room. To the rear were gardens and out houses. 

Typical dwelling had two downstairs rooms, the front one for 'best' and living room at the rear, off which a steep staircase ascended to three bedrooms. The larger houses had two attic rooms above. 

Heating was by open coal fires and they were gas lit. 

In the kitchen cold water was piped to a hand pump at the side of a stone sink and in one corner stood the wash day copper. 

Built in cupboards and a walk-in pantry with a stone thrall provided storage space. 

Running behind the houses was a lane for the night soil men who came round after dark with horse and cart to empty the cess pits. These were later replaced by an outhouse toilet attached to the coal house. 

There was a yard for hanging out washing and enough space for a vegetable plot.

My Little Handprints

I miss you when we're not together
I'm growing up so fast
See how big I've gotten
Since you saw me last.

The years will fly right by
You'll wonder how I grew so quick
When and where and why?
So look upon these handprints

That are hanging on your wall
And memories will come back
When I was very small.

The New Poor Law 1834

When hard times came, obtaining support under the New Poor Law of 1834 was not an easy option.

In 1834 the New Poor Law was enacted which joined together about six Parishes into a Union for the administration of the measures to deal with the poor under the national leadership of the Poor Law Commissioners. Several citizens in the Parish, usually the well to do, were appointed to run them, the Guardians.

The Guardians normally served ratepayers interests not the paupers, they might regard poverty as the fault of the poor, and they supported and carried out harsh treatment of the poor.

Every Union had a Workhouse. Homes were broken up and people moved into the Workhouse it they had no relatives to look after them.

The applicant for relief had to go before the Board of Guardians who would decide whether to offer support in the home or in the new 'deterrent' workhouse. The board of Guardian's Minute Books contain many snapshots of personal tragedies, such as 'bastard' children whose mother had been sent to prison for debt, so an order was made for them to be sent into the workhouse.

In the Workhouse, couples were separated, families also. In 1842, a year of wide spread industrial depression, a weaver applied for relief as he was unemployed, he, his wife and their six children were sent to the workhouse and lived separately.

Life in the Workhouse was harsh, with hard work and poor food. Workhouse dwellers were given a uniform in exchange for their clothes, usually a coarse gown or cotton shirt. These would have letters sewn on to them, `P' for Pauper, followed by the letter of the Parish.

The old seem to be supported in their own homes. The standard assistance might be 4lb. of bread, sugar and half an ounce of tea, the total cost amounting to 1s. 6d. It is easy to see they were on the border line of starvation. When sickness was the problem, medical relief was given, which might also include extra rations; malt rice, even beef. If a member of the family died an application was often made for a coffin and it was usually provided.

1929 End of Boards of Guardians, the new poor assistance system has been gradually replaced by Old Age Pensions scheme or National Insurance scheme.

Guess who might be the owner of this Villa Residence

This is an auction advertise on the Derby Mercury, on 1 October,1851: 

A handsome Modern Villa Residence, and finished in the most substantial and complete manner for his own  residence, situate at Little Chester, near Derby, containing spacious entrance hall and staircase with lobby, dining, drawing, and breakfast rooms, large kitchen with excellent fittings, five bedrooms, five dry arched cellars, bath-room, and pantry. Also a coach-house, and stable for two horses, with chambers over, back kitchen, summer house with three sashed windows, pleasure and kitchen gardens and orchard, containing with the site of the buildings, 7,130 square yards.  The premises are walled round, and have a never failing supply of excellent hard and soft water.

This house was  built by the proprietor, and "now in the occupation of Misses Harrison". Mr. Harrison advertised himself as 'Engineer, steam and kitchen apparatus, all kinds of buildings warmed by hot water, steam, or hot air, and smith's work in general'. and as a manufacturer of steam engine boilers, iron boats, barges and ferries, weighing machines, 'Baths constructed of copper, enamelled, and other materials', gas tanks and gas holders and 'Gas works erected complete'. He also catered for all the latest gardening crazes, 'Vineries, Peach Houses, Pine Pits, Conservatories, and Green Houses, erected of iron and heated on the best known principle'.

Extremes of weather in Derby history

Extremes of weather were a notable feature in seventeenth Century. The Chronicle records 'a great snow' in 1614, followed by 'a great drought which continued four months'. In 1634, during another great fall of snow, four people froze to death while travelling between Chaddesden and Derby. In contrast, in 1661 'The River Derwent wonderfully dried up so that people might go over unshod'. In 1674, the Markeaton Brook flooded the centre of Derby so that 'St. James Bridge was landed at the pump in St. Peter's parish.' Even more dramatic was the extreme weather of 1676. The Chronicle records,

A very dry summer, and a hard frost this winter. - Derwent frozen over so as persons went up to Darley, and waggons loaded went over the ice upon the Brook at Tenant Bridge, and lasted from the end of October and until the latter end of January.

The Chronicle finishes its comments on the seventeenth century with words which presage the problems which later faced Little Chester, '1698, November 5 a great Flood which occasioned part of St. Werburgh's Church to fall.'

In 1895 the Derwent froze yet again and people went skating out of doors.

In the early hours of Sunday 21 May 1932, as before, the Derwent burst its banks. Five and half inches of rain had fallen in less than eight hours, swelling the Markeaton Brook to three times its normal size and it overflowed, pouring its waters into Derby town centre. The rain fell so heavily that by morning the lower areas of the town were flooded to a depth of eight feet. Over 900 properties were affected. In Derby, the plaques which had been placed at certain spots in the town to mark the height of the 1842 flood were covered and a new record height was recorded. In Duffield, it was by fa the worst flood they had ever expeirienced, the River Ecclesbourne having burst its banks and carried away bridges, fowl, sheep, dogs, cats and all manner of farm implements.

[A City Within a City, Little Chester Derby, AD80 - AD2000, by Joan D'Arcy, P.36]

Accident Report

Date 24-3-09

Dear Parent,

You child ................................. has had a bump on the head today at school.

Details:

Accidentally hit on her right cheek with a bat. 

Cold compress applied

(Bruise on cheek)

He/She has been observed and seems to have suffered no obvious ill effects. However, I would be grateful if you could keep a special eye on your child this evening just to make sure.

Many thanks.

Your sincerely

Signed  ........................................................ on behalf of

xxx

Headteacher.

Derby: From Saxon Settlers to Domesday Book

In this post, I mentioned the book A City Within a City, Little Chester Derby, AD80 - AD2000, by Joan D'Arcy, and Derby local history during Roman Occupation period. 

In the early fifth century the Roman legions were withdrawn from Britain to defend Rome from barbarian attacks and Angles and Saxons from northern Europe began to colonise the land. Small bands of Anglian peoples began to penetrate the Midlands.

As the various groups of Angles and Saxons tightened their hold on the land, kingdoms were formed and boundaries drawn. The midlands became part of a large kingdom of Mercia. King Penda ruled in the early seventh century. 

Derby began to develop to the south of Little Chester, in defensible area between the River Derwent and a brook known today as Markeaton Brook. The name Northworthy (which the Danes called Derby) has been given to this Saxon phase of Derby's history.

Saxon occupation was disrupted by the arrival of Vikings, or Danes, who made their first recorded appearance in England in 793 when they raided a monastery at Lindisfarne in Northumbria. In 868 they made their first recorded incursion into Derbyshire, via the Trent.

Evidence for Viking occupation of Derby relies much upon the place name Derby ( the suffix 'by' being Scandinavian for settlement) and the use of the word 'gate' (Scandinavian for street) in street names.

It is often said that the Saxons avoid Roman sites out of superstition or dislike of such walled places. This is a fallacy. Not only is there evidence that at Little Chester they chose to bury their dead immediately adjacent to and even within the Roman walls and buildings, but many towns grew up on Roman sites. Why Little Chester declined and a new site at Derby, only half a mile distant, was preferred is problematic and unusual. One reason that has been put forward is the deterioration of the Roman bridge or bridges across the Derwent and the greater ease of crossing the river further down stream.

Bank incentives: a funny story

First Direct promotion said get £25 for opening an account. Yet the terms stated opening an account simply meant putting in a penny. The angry bank closed the loophole within hours after 10,000 plus MoneySavers came from the weekly email, opened accounts, grabbed the cash then closed it.

Happy Easter

School closes for Easter, and will be re-open for summer term on Monday 20th April.

Brenda made a card, a tiara with a yellow chick on the front,  a paper basket full of chocolate eggs, and a little yellow chick.

Her teacher Mrs. Roome wears an pair rabbit ears, looks really funny.

What is Chinese Cloth Powder?

 I noticed that there were many advertisements on 19th Century newspaper Derby Mercury selling Chinese cloth powder, and I am wondering what this thing is.