Windmill Hill Church St S o u t h b u r y R o a d S o u t h b u r y R o a d N a g s H e a d

Old

Pa

rk

Ave

Ladysm

ith R

oad

Gr

ea

t

C

am

br

id

ge

Ro

ad

Willo

w R

d

Peartree R

d

Cha

se S

ide

Bro

adla

nds

Ave

The Ride

Durants Road

Cowland

Ave

Queenway

South Street

Sketty Road

Broadfield Tyberry Rd

B r i c k L a n e

Donkey

Lane

Camb

Sq

Gdns

Hig

h

Str

eet

H

ertfo

rd R

oad

Map

leto

n Rd

ENFIELDPLAYINGFIELDS

DURANTSPARK

12

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

Bus Routes121, 191, 307, 313, 317

Enfield WW2 Heritage Trail

This heritage trail was produced for the Enfield at War Project thanks to Heritage Lottery Funding. It is an easy going walk that takes between 1½ to 2½ hours to complete.

In 1946 it was estimated that the total number of bombs of all types (including incendiary devices) that fell during the war in the Enfield District was 5692. Its industrial base and proximity to other industries in Edmonton and the Lea Valley made it an obvious target for German bombers. It suffered from 22 V1 Flying Bombs and 10 V2 Rocket strikes.109 people were killed, 271 seriously injured and 419 were slightly injured. Hundreds of houses and other buildings were destroyed with many more damaged. (This walk will focus on just a few of these bombing incidents).

➊ Two Brewers Memorial Garden On the night of 30th September 1940 twelve high explosive bombs, three oil bombs and a number of incendiaries fell in Enfield. The Two Brewers public house on the corner of Ponders End High Street and South Street received a direct hit. The Order of Buffaloes (a society similar to the Freemasons) was holding a lodge

meeting in the pub and when they heard the siren they moved into the cellar thinking they would be safe. However, the bomb fell through the roof and exploded in the public bar; with the full force being felt in the cellar below. Fire fighters and rescue teams worked through the night to free the injured and recover the dead. Twenty people died and it is believed that not all the bodies were recovered. A memorial to those who died was opened on the site, 74 years after the event, in September 2014.

➋ Ponders End High StreetThe shops in the Ponders End High Street were badly damaged on the night of the Two Brewers bomb but they were to suffer further bombing in the following weeks. On the night of 1st October 1940 another bomb fell in the High Street causing major damage. The Air Raid

Wardens’ Log Book records that the buildings were in such a dangerous condition the road had to be closed between Lincoln Road and Queensway. Single lane traffic was reinstated on the following day but the High Street was not fully reopened until 3 days later

➌ Queensway/Southbury Rd – Wartime Industries

The area between Ponders End High Street and the Great Cambridge Road was full of factories built for the new electrical and wireless industries, the cutting edge technology of their day. In 1939 under Government direction many of these factories converted to war production. Belling & Lee originated in Queensway

before moving to larger premises on the Cambridge Road where they made high voltage radio components urgently needed for aircraft. Also in Queensway were the radio makers Haynes. In Lincoln Road, beside the railway bridge, Haywards made parts for the Mulberry Harbours used on D Day as well as Bailey bridges. The Co-op Furniture Factory also in Lincoln Road made parts for Mosquito aircraft and, at the junction of the Cambridge Road with Southbury Road, Express Motors switched from building motor vehicles to aircraft construction, making wing and tail sections for Halifax bombers. Belling’s in Southbury Road was taken over for the production of radar components, hand and rifle grenades and airfield landing lights. All of these factories and their buildings have now gone. The only surviving building is Ripaults, opposite Southbury Road station where electric cables for aircraft, tanks and trucks were made.

➍ Ponders End Fire Station Ponders End Fire Station stood on the site of Vincent House. In 1938 local men from all walks of life were recruited to join the newly formed Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS). These new recruits were trained to a very high standard to work alongside the established crews. Their main piece of equipment was the trailer fire pump

which was towed behind a requisitioned car or van. During the blitz the local fire brigades as well as the AFS men were called upon to deal with fires in central London. The incompatibility of the equipment between the different brigades led to the formation of the National Fire Service (NFS) in August 1941.

➎ Durants RoadLate in the afternoon of 30th August 1940, during the Battle of Britain, residents watched as a Messerschmitt 10 was shot down by a Royal Air Force between the houses in Durants Road and The Ride. The German plane crashed into greenhouses belonging to Rochford’s Nurseries. The formation of German planes was made up of approximately 14

blocks of 6 bombers with 30 fighters behind. The battle lasted 5-10 minutes and then the skies cleared. Twelve enemy aircraft were destroyed by the 9 Hawker Hurricanes which suffered no damage at all. The Squadron Leader was Douglas Bader. For security reasons no reference to the battle over Enfield was allowed to be published until the following February.

➏ Durants ParkOn 6th July 1940 the 25th Ponders End Annual Fete and Gala in Durants Park went ahead. The event had been started by a committee formed in WW1 and registered under the War Charities Act as a means of raising money to provide comfort for wounded soldiers in Edmonton Military Hospital. This annual

event became one of the most important athletic fixtures in the country with thousands of spectators and Olympic athletes like Jack Lovelock taking part. It provided aid to local charities such as the Enfield War Memorial Hospital, Enfield Children’s Care Committee and St. John’s Ambulance. There were many inter-club athletic events all followed by a variety show in the band stand, with music, dancing, ballet and dramas. In summer of 1942 the event was advertised under the banner of ‘Holidays at Home’.

Hertford Road Cemetery contains graves from both world wars. There are 22 burials from WW1 and 50 from WW2. Most of the WW2 burials are in a plot to the left of the main path; the remainder are scattered throughout the cemetery.

➐ Hertford Road Police Station/Tyberry Road railway bridge

In Hertford Road to the north of the Tyberry Road junction the old Police Station (No.120) still stands. On the roof of this building was the air raid siren known by the lighter hearted as a ‘wailing winnie’. In Tyberry Road, to the north of the railway bridge on the eastern side of the railway line, the remains of a pill box

and anti-tank blocks can be found. In the summer of 1940 when the invasion of Britain seemed imminent, defences in the form of a series of anti-tank stop lines were constructed. A stop line to cover the northern approaches to London extended between Rickmansworth and the coast of Essex

➑ Mapleton Road – V2 After the Blitz the number of air raids lessened until the summer of 1944 when the first Flying Bombs, the V1s, arrived; in September came the Long Range Rockets or V2s. These weapons were designed specifically to terrorise the population. In March 1945 a V2 Rocket fell in Mapleton Road leaving a crater 25ft

by 15ft. Mobile search lights were brought in and search dogs used to locate the casualties. Nine houses were completely destroyed, one hundred and eight seriously damaged and seven hundred and sixty seven affected by the blast. Seven people were killed and over a hundred others injured.

➒ Great Cambridge Road The line of secondary defences behind the anti-tank stop line that covered the approaches to north London crossed the Great Cambridge Road at the junction

with Carterhatch Lane. A pill box and anti-tank blocks were constructed just to the north of this junction. The Great Cambridge Road was not the busy dual carriageway it is today and there were fears, at the time, that enemy aircraft would use it as a landing strip. To prevent this cables were strung across the road between poles.

➓ Enfield Playing Fields

In August 1939 a searchlight and battery of anti-aircraft guns was established on Enfield Playing Fields. Mary Comyns recorded in her diary that at first she watched the flashes of anti-aircraft shells exploding in the night sky but later the guns were firing more shells to the minute, explosions were louder and bigger and

more shrapnel was flying about so that it was not safe to go out while the barrage was on. On the Donkey Lane car park there was a camp for Italian prisoners of war who were put to work on the railways. The camp was also used at different times by German prisoners of war and Polish and American servicemen. When the Home Guard was stood down at the end of 1944 the official parade was held at the Enfield Stadium.

Sketty RoadOn Tuesday 8th May 1945 people gathered by their radios to hear Prime Minister Winston Churchill broadcast to the nation that the war in Europe was over. The residents of Sketty Road put out their flags and celebrated.Street parties were held all over the district. The report in the Enfield Gazette of 11th May

claimed that that night the sky was lit by the glow of a thousand community bonfires all of them it said, were ‘centres of rejoicing’.

Sketty Road, George Spicer SchoolPreparations for war began in 1938. In September notices were issued informing people where and when to collect their gas masks. Among the local schools and halls identified was George Spicer School. Wardens were in charge of fitting the masks but it was a lengthy procedure. People waited in queues for

up to four hours but by the end of Sunday 25th September half the residents had had their gas masks fitted. In May 1940 the gas masks had to be upgraded to cope with a new gas, arsine, and pillar boxes were painted with a special paint which changed colour when exposed to poison gas.

Willow RoadThe bench on the corner at the junction of Willow Road and Peartree Road commemorates the work of the Civil Defence services during WW2 and the two wardens who died there. Just before 10pm on the night of 15th/16th November 1940 a parachute mine fell killing Dr Karsten, a German Jewish refugee, his wife and his

mother. A nine year old boy died at Chase Farm hospital on the following day. The two wardens who died were Frank Jones and Stanley Greenway. Two more wardens were seriously injured in the same incident

Enfield TownParades through The Town held to help raise funds for the war effort also served to boost public morale. The Home Guard were led by the Enfield Central Band during War Weapons Week in May 1941 when Enfield raised £755,319. Events held during the week included musical entertainment and folk dancing

in the vicarage gardens. There was a dramatic performance of Twelfth Night at

the Convent School and competitions for school children with entries displayed in the Post Office. During Tanks Week in October 1942 the girls of St Andrew’s School raised enough money for a tank to be given the school’s name. Another parade was held for the Wings for Victory campaign in May 1943; though Enfield had already raised enough funds for several Spitfires, one of which bore the name, Enfield. The Enfield Gazette regularly reported on the exploits of the Enfield Spitfire. The final parade was the Victory Parade held on 8th June 1946.

War MemorialOpen trench shelters were dug on the Library Green in 1938 at the time of the Munich Crisis. They were not well received; not only did they flood but they presented a hazard for people out at night. By 1939 the government insisted that local authorities must provide covered shelters for 10% of their local populations. The trenches on the Library Green were covered over and the excavated soil piled on top. Eventually these shelters were lined and fitted with duck boards and slatted seats, though they

remained damp and uncomfortable. The shelters were at first kept locked with the keys held at the nearest Air Raid Wardens’ Post; fortunately that was located nearby on the corner of Sarnesfield Road.

War Memorial Chase GreenThe dead of both World Wars are commemorated at Enfield War Memorial on Armistice Day every year. On 26th September 1943, when Enfield had yet to face the terror of the Flying Bombs and Long Range Rockets, a service of thanks giving was held. Services and parades were held all across the country to

celebrate the defeat of Hitler’s plans to invade Britain. It was known as “Battle of Britain Sunday”. The Gazette reported that Enfield had paid tribute to “The Few”.

Produced by Enfield Local Studies Library & Archive. First Floor Thomas Hardy House, Dugdale Centre, 39 London Road, Enfield EN2 6DSTelephone: 020 8379 2724 Email: local.history@enfield.gov.uk

To view images to supplement the walk please download from this QR Code or visit www.enfield.gov.uk

Two

Brew

ers,

Pon

ders

End

Sep

tem

ber 1

940

Hig

h St

reet

bom

b si

te in

195

5.

Nos

188

-196

stil

l sta

ndin

g

Tank

cre

w v

isit

Rip

aults

to m

eet

the

wor

kers

(mai

nly

wom

en) w

ho

built

thei

r tan

k Ja

nuar

y 19

43Po

nder

s En

d Fi

re C

rew

194

0

Still

from

a fi

lm o

f ath

letic

s in

Dur

ants

Par

k

Sketty Road VE D

ay party 1945

Det

ail f

rom

bom

b da

mag

e m

ap s

how

ing

cras

h si

te

Map

leto

n R

oad

Mar

ch 1

945

Hom

e Guard Stand D

own

Parade Decem

ber 1944

Pill

box

and

Anti-

Tank

blo

cks,

Ty

berr

y R

oad

railw

ay b

ridge

Mapleton R

oad March 1945

Shopping in Enfield Town w

ith gas masks

Willow

Road N

ovember 1940

Victory Parade 1946

Digging trenches on the Library G

reenThanksgiving D

ay 1943