Victims of Yate aircraft factory bombing remembered

Following the Remembrance Sunday service at St Mary’s, and the laying of wreaths at the Lych Gate, a smaller group then moved onto the Parnall Grave Memorial in the churchyard.

The Parnall Grave bears the names of the 55 people who died in two bomb attacks on Parnall Aircraft Ltd, now the Whirlpool factory on Station Road, on February 27 and March 7, 1941.

A special prayer was said next to the memorial and wreaths were laid in memory of those who died.

During World War Two, Parnall Aircraft Works saw hundreds of staff making and repairing vital aircraft components as part of the country’s war effort.

The factory specialised in making gun turrets and other parts for aeroplanes.

Its location alongside the main railway and a main road eased distribution for people and goods, but also made it an easy target for a German bomber to find.

And at 1.30pm, on February 27, 1941, enemy Luftwaffe pilots did find and attack the factory, killing 51 people.

A week later, on March 7, a further four people died when the factory was bombed in a second raid.

David Hardill, from Yate Heritage Centre (YHC), has co-ordinated a project to record the social history of the bombings, including collecting survivors’ accounts, and collating related photographs and artefacts.

One of the most interesting artefacts is a charred works pass, which belonged to 18-year-old Thelma Barlow.

Thelma Barlow survived, but this pass was all that was left of her personal belongings at the factory.

Two years ago, the pass, which has been on display at YHC since 2012, was named 93rd in the British Museum’s ‘Teaching History with 100 Objects’ initiative.

The project is the result of a partnership between museums across the UK and the British Museum, funded by the Department for Education to help equip teachers to teach the national history curriculum through high quality resources, up to date subject expertise and stimulating teaching ideas.