Staff-Sergeant J.W. Filby News has been received that Staff-Sergeant J. W. Filby, eldest son of Mr and Mrs J. Filby, 11 Turpington Lane, Bromley Common is among the missing in Singapore. A native of Bromley, he was educated at the Church School, Bromley Common, afterwards going to the Beckenham Trade School. He joined the East Surrey Regiment in April, 1933, and went to the Far East in 1938, going first to Singapore and then to Shanghai with the British troops, he returned to Singapore, and later went to Malaya. The…
Year: 2022
Women to Help Home guard
Women to Help Home Guard Casualty Service Training More volunteers wanted in Bromley Arrangements have now been completed for the training of women to assist with the Casualty Services of the Home Guard in the Bromley area. It is not intended that these women shall go out to attend to casualties in the fighting positions, but that they shall staff shelter points in selected houses to which casualties will be brought to await removal by ambulance to hospital. As, under invasion conditions there may be delays in procuring evacuation by…
The First Boys of Bromley Who Went Away to War
The First Boys of Bromley Who Went Away to War Busy scenes in Bromley (BDT 7th August 1914) After weeks of speculation and mounting tensions, on Tuesday 4th August 1914, at 8am, the German Army invaded Belgium. Britain leapt to defend their little ally and an ultimatum was immediately sent to Germany to withdraw its troops. When no response was received by 11pm that evening, Britain declared war on Germany. The men of Bromley were ready to play their part in the forthcoming war. Many were already trained for battle…
William Morris
William Morris: Architecture, Design & Wallpaper Written by Pam Preedy. We know William Morris from the many wonderful objects that are found on sale in our museums and galleries including carrier bags, handbag mirrors, gift wrap, mugs and tiles, but William was so much more than this. He was born into an upper-middleclass family and spent his whole adult life in revolt against its values. He lived in a mansion set within a 50-acre park adjacent to Epping Forest. He was one of nine children and was free to explore…
The 1944 Education Act & Bromley Technical High School for Girls
The 1944 Education Act & Bromley Technical High School for Girls Written by Pam Preedy. The 1944 Education Act was groundbreaking. It replaced the previous education system with three separate stages that we would recognise today: primary, secondary and further education. It also introduced a three-tiered system to secondary education: grammar, technical and secondary modern schools. The dreaded 11+ test was introduced to decide which type of secondary school a child should enter. The Act also provided for the raising of the school leaving age from 14 to 15; this…
The Tale of three pillar boxes
The Tale of three pillar boxes Written by Pam Preedy. Sometimes big changes to our lives come from solving simple problems. Letters were at the heart of a revolution in communications. In 1840, Sir Rowland Hill proposed an adhesive stamp indicating the pre-payment of postage – the Penny Black. He thought this would double the number of letters sent – which it did. At first correspondents had to take their stamped letters to the Post Office or collection point. The next change was to introduce post boxes or pillar boxes.…
Handling the Volume of Mail – 1914-1918
Handling the Volume of Mail – 1914-1918 Written by Pam Preedy. In the first half of the 20th century the Royal Mail and the Post Office counter service, which provided essential services such as dealing with stamps, and paying the old age pensions, were all incorporated and came under the title of the General Post Office. Even before the First World War, the Post Office employed over 250,000 people, handling 5.9 billion items of post. At that time there were up to four deliveries a day. A letter posted in…
Basham Brothers Missing, 1942
Basham Brothers Missing in Action It must have been bad enough having one son go missing in action, but it must have been almost unbearable having two. This article featured in the Bromley & District Times local newspaper, reporting on two brothers who were reported missing after the fall of Singapore in 1942. The brothers were the sons of Benjamin and Rose Basham of Bromley. Bennett Thomas Basham was married to Constance Elsie (of Thorpe Abbotts, Norfolk) who was living with his mother during the war. Both brothers were members…
Cross Country Run, 1942
Air Training Corps take part in Cross Country Run A.T.C. in Hard Test Forty-two members of the Bromley Squadron of the Air Training Corps took part in a cross-country run at Hayes [Bromley] on Sunday morning. It was organised by Flying Officer W.M. Ogden, who is in charge of the sports side. The course was a four-mile one, starting from the top of Station Hill by the fountain, then going across the Common to Croydon Road. along to the Fox at Keston and Leafy Grove then down the hill to…
Mr David Waite in Singapore
Missing in Singapore David Stanley Waite was the son of Harold & Margaret Waite of 22 Woodlands Way, West Wickham. He married Margaret Greenhalgh in Bromley in 1934. After studying at the London University School of Journalism, he worked for several years in Fleet Street, and was for some years on the staff at the Kentish Times. In 1935 David left England for Japan where he joined the Straits Times as a sub-editor. He was then only 25 years old. He wife Margaret, joined him in Singapore and they had…