In this article I try to set out the story of the bombing of one small part of Leytonstone, the Parish of St John the Baptist, a community of around 6,000 people, during the Second World War.
The chief source of information is the records made at the time by the Civil Defence Team of the Borough of Leyton. They kept a log of every incident, with considerable precision and detail, and they plotted every incident on a "Bomb Map". The Log and Map have survived. The Log is in the Civil Defence Records of Essex, at the Essex County Records Office, Chelmsford. The Map is at the Vestry House Museum in Walthamstow.
The other sources of information are the Micro-film of local newspapers "The Leytonstone Express and Independent" and the "Guardian" 1939-1945 held at the Vestry House Museum, and the bound Parish Magazines of St John's Leytonstone 1939-1945 held at St John's Church. There are also numerous fascinating individual accounts now recorded by Ron Allen, Iris Wilson, Jean Medcalf, Pam Driscoll and others available from St John's Church and the Vestry House Museum.
The historian Keith Foster kindly produced an extract from the Log, Map and the Leyton and Leytonstone Civilian War Dead Roll of Honour published in 1954, showing the "Bomb Incidents" in the Parish of St John the Baptist Leytonstone.
What do these sources of information show?
There were two kinds of Bomb Incidents - those caused by aircraft and those caused by Flying Bombs (V1's) and Rockets (V2's). The Aircraft dropped high explosive and incendiary bombs, and in addition there were shells from the anti-aircraft that fell, exploded and unexploded, on Leytonstone.
This bombing was not continuous. Bombing from aircraft took place from August to November 1940, in April 1941, in January 1944 and in April 1944. Attacks by Flying Bombs and Rockets took place between June 1944 and February 1945, in the Parish of Leytonstone.
This bombing was serious causing loss of life, serious injuries, and considerable destruction of property. In the small parish of St John's Leytonstone 23 people died from bombs dropped by aircraft, and 26 people died from V1 and V2 attacks. But in the V1 and V2 attacks 70 people were seriously injured and 124 people were injured. 7 of those who died were under 21 years of age.
The records make clear that Civil Defence was a highly organised operation that swiftly won the respect of the whole community.
To get a glimpse of what happened you may like to follow the route of the Bomb Walk that we have developed in recent years. Copies are available from the Church.
Raymond
Draper.