Robot Bomb

Hopedale History

November 15, 2006

No. 72

Robot Bomb

Hopedale

Pond

- a

recent picture of

the fireplace area at Fishermen’s Island

. And, in the

Parklands,

geocaching.

Would you like to support the Friends of Historic Hopedale’s Crystal Ball by buying an ad in the ad

book? Business or personal. Prices are: quarter page, $25; half page, $50; full page, $100. If

interested, you can email me, or call. (508 473 2779)

Recent deaths

John D. Boomer, 89, October 19, HHS 1935, Mendon.

Ruth M. (Downey) Ambrogi, 70, October 29, Hopedale.

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I don’t want to get stuck in the forties, but there are so many interesting World War II stories in the

library scrapbooks that I’m sending another. While I was reading through them last week, I decided to

add a new section to my Hopedale history website. It’s called War Stories. So far it includes articles on

most of the Hopedale men who were killed during World War II, and a few other stories about and

from servicemen of that time. I’ll add more over the next few weeks. The war story below, however, is

about a couple of civilians. For an introduction, I’ll revive Edward R. Murrow and his radio broadcasts

during the blitz for an introduction. “This (sound of bombs exploding in the background)…..is London.”

Blown Up By Robot

Hopedale Couple’s Son

Lives to Tell of His

Terrifying Experience

Being blown up by a German robot bomb, and living, is the experience of Harry Midgley, Jr., of London,

son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Midgley of Hopedale, who has written to his father and mother of his

terrifying experience.

The younger Mr. Midgley’s wife had her ankle broken, a heel bone split and is suffering from shock in

a London hospital. He received only a minor case of shock, although both were thrown into the water

and all their night clothing blown off by the bomb blast.

The experience of watching the bomb descend and being unable to do to save themselves, is vividly

described in the following letter from Mr. Midgley, Jr.

Mr. Midgley is foreman of a factory employing 400 hands engaged in the manufacture of airplane

parts. His brother, Sgt. Wilfred Midgley, is a prisoner of the Japanese, having been taken during the

battle on Malay, two years ago, last January. His family hears from him about twice each year, his

letters stating that he is well and working for his captors.

Grove Park Rd.

No. 7 Isis Court

Chiswick, London

Dear Mother and Dad:

You’ll have received my telegram a long time ago. So I will tell you all about it.

We had had two nights and a day of robot bombs and had got totally fed up with them, so on Saturday

night, June 17th, we were in bed in the saloon of the yacht, tired out before the sirens went and we

never heard them.

Well, we slept all night, never hearing a thing, though the gunfire and the number of bombs were the

worst night we had had.

At about 4:15 a.m. Sherry woke me up saying one was coming down, and believe it or not, we could

see it (the flames coming out of the exhaust) through the port hole without moving; anyway we were

too paralyzed to move.

I cannot describe the fear that went through me. The bomb came down and cleared y cockpit with

about a foot to spare and it hit the firefloat to which my yacht was moored and we used for a landing

quay. The bomb exploded in the firefloat (which is a barge with a fire pump on it for fighting fires),

exactly seven feet from where we were laying, blowing both my yacht and the firefloat to matchwood

and Sherry and found ourselves 10 feet down in the water with the debris from both ships holding us

down.

How we got to the surface is something which we will never know; Sherry was unconscious and I

brought her up by her hair.

Sherry came to in a few minutes on the surface and somehow I put her on some wood that was

floating. By this time people from other boats had come round and only one fellow noticed us, as it

was half dark and the others had seen the bomb hit direct, so took it that it was impossible for us to

live and therefore concentrated on the other yachts to see if there were any other casualties. The man

that saw us got hold of a dingy and was only able to get Sherry to the first aid post first as her ankle

was broken. So I was left swimming around in a six foot circle for half an hour until the others noticed

me.

I could not possibly get out of this circle, as the wreckage was too thick for me to get away from it and

swim to shore.

Sherry and I had all our pajamas blown off us with the blast and found ourselves in the nude.

Anyway, Sherry is now in the hospital suffering from shock, a broken ankle, and a split heel bone.

I came out of it with only a few cuts and a mild case of shock. I was out of the hospital the next day.

As you probably have gathered by this time our clothes and everything are a total loss, but we have

both got our lives, which is the main thing.

When Sherry comes out of the hospital I am going to send her into the country to rest her nerves, as

she seems to have had them thoroughly wrecked.

I am living with a friend who has evacuated his wife and child after that episode and we are living like

two bachelors.

Ken’s mother (by the way, his name is Kenneth Frisby) comes in every morning and tidies the place

up for us and takes care of us.

I sure will be glad to get back over there when this is all over.

Sherry and I were going to sail the yacht over as it was a deep sea yacht, but that is impossible now.

I was fully insured, so I have not had a financial loss.

If any silk stockings are going homeless over there you know what to do with them as Sherry has lost

her little hoard.

Well, I have so many forms to fill out that I will have to close now.

Milford Daily News, July 14, 1944

PS The bombing of England during the war resulted in more than 43,000 deaths and the destruction

of more than a million homes. The “robot bomb” referred to above must have been the German V-1.

(The first V-2s to be used against London were launched in September 1944.) According to Wikipedia,

10,000 V-1s were fired at England, with 2,419 reaching metropolitan London. The V-1 attacks resulted

in almost 6,000 deaths and 18,000 injuries in the London area.