Bombing and civilian deaths in World War Two.

Many Boston folk were killed in action either in the Army, Navy or the R.A.F. This small article deals only with the civilian deaths of Boston during World War Two,  if there are any I have not mentioned and you can tell me about them I will update it immediately.

Most of Boston's bombings in World War Two occured between August 1940 and June 1942. On nine nights during this period bombs actually fell in the town but there were a few false alarms where people had to sit up, in their air raid shelters or under the stairs, sometimes for hours, because the siren had gone off. On the days after any bombs had fallen the boys of the town turned up to look for fragments of the bombs or the fins of the incendiary bombs. There was rarely more than one enemy bomber involved in each raid and often the bombs were delayed action or duds and the bomb disposal squads had to be called in. One such bomb, outside Cammack's shop in Wide Bargate, took several days to get out and two more, in open fields, are still there to this day.

 

The unexploded bomb outside Cammack's shop in Wide Bargate.

 

On the night of 12th. June 1941, a single heavy bomb burst behind West Street, near James Street. The Royal George pub, several houses and Lovely's Commercial Hotel were destroyed and when the ruins were cleared the next day it was found that there was a tragic death toll. Mr. John Faulkner, an old man in his seventies, Mrs. Nancy Harris and her three little children and two well known teenage girls, Kathleen and Audrey Loveley had all been killed. In all nine people died in what was Boston's worst air-raid incident of the war.
There was a lull of more than a year without any serious air-raids on Boston, but the town had two more serious raids to come, one in July and one in August of 1942.

Above : A Dornier 217, one of which flew across Boston in July 1942,  machine-gunning and dropping four bombs on the town.

 

The first of these was in broad daylight when a Dornier 217 dived out of thick cloud, flew across the town machine-gunning as it went, and then dropped four bombs aimed at the railway goods yard in High Street. Three of the bombs hit the railway yard and caused some damage but one bomb fell short and burst near houses in the Liquorpond Street - High Street - Bedford Place area. One old lady, Mrs. Harriet Gee was killed, several people were injured, and over 100 were bombed out of their homes.
One month later on a Saturday evening, a German bomber dropped a line of white flares near the dock and a few minutes later four bombs exploded between Main Ridge, Silver Street and Threadneedle Street. Many of the surrounding houses were destroyed and four people were killed, five injured and 150 bombed out. Among the dead were an 18 year old young man William Taylor, and his girlfriend, 15 year old Gertrude Creasey. He and his young lady were the last civilians to be buried in the war plot in Boston Cemetery. May they all rest in peace.
Fifty seven high explosive bombs, and also four oil bombs, fell between the town's boundaries, and around 500 incendiaries were also dropped. Sixty four homes were either destroyed or so badly damaged that they had to be demolished.

The Royal George

In 1951 an old green wooden structure in West Street that for a number of years had represented the Royal George, was pulled down. It had never looked Royal but it served its purpose until better days came along.
Its predecessor was a fine well-conceived inn, the destruction of which, with nearby property and the lives of those unfortunate people dwelling therein, made one of the grimmest of many evil nights when Boston was the target of the Luftwaffe.
West Street altered that night and we lost a part of Boston now forgotten and one never to exist again. Loveley’s Temperance Hotel on the corner of James Street was swept away and the Royal George, Mr. Lingard’s music shop, Mr. John Goodacre’s baker’s shop, and much other property in the neighbourhood was turned into so much rubble. So a great square of waste land was created, then came back Mr. Loveley’s temporary premises and the green wooden structure that was representative of the Royal George.
The Royal George that was bombed was one of the old-world inns, there was the popular old bar on the left of the door that faced West Street, and on the right the cosy old “snug”, the Landlord and Landlady were Mr. and Mrs. W. Dennis. The illumination was never very bright, but after shops had closed in the evenings dominoes, darts and all the other things you associate with a pub went on inside.
William looked after his house well, he was a smart little man, with mutton chop whiskers and his wife commanded such respect that never was anything said out of place. It was a hostelry of the old school with its wide open doors and ample stabling accommodation for Mr. Dennis’s horses and four wheeled cabs (called growlers) which would take people to the ball at the Assembly Rooms or the station to catch the early train to London.
So we come back to the 1950’s when it was decided to build some permanent buildings on the bombed site, a new Royal George included. It continued as The Royal George until well into the 1990’s and then changed its name to “Spatz” for a while.
Finally, it ceased to be a public house and is now an Indian Restaurant.

The site of the bombings and the new buildings erected in the 1950's.