Tavistock Memories

by Trevor James

Published 15 May 2010
Trevor James recounts his experiences as a boy in a quiet market town in Devon. His education was basic but sound at a time when punishments for misbehaviour were swift and certain. He describes his schooldays; memories of life during wartime when the surrounding areas were occupied by the 29th Infantry Division of the American Army whose soldiers later suffered massive loss of life on Omaha beach on D Day; Tavistock Goose Fair before and after the war; aspects of everyday life as it was all those years ago when children did as they were told without argument; where boys and girls made their own amusements and treats were rare; when Sundays were sacred and bereft of any form of play or entertainment. Austerity and rationing were no hardship - they didn't know any different. More significantly it is all true.