These photos show the aftermath of bombing raids across Southend, Leigh, Shoebury and Westcliff during the Second World War.
Many of the air raid attacks depicted here occurred during The Blitz- the period of intense bombing of London and other cities that lasted for 57 consecutive days until May 1941.
We now know the street names in most of the images, but at the time the photographs were released with little information for obvious reasons- the British government didn’t want the enemy to know where their bombs had hit or the extent of the damage.
The roof on this bombed-out house in Oakleigh Park Drive, Leigh
One of the photos show damage to a house in Oakleigh Park Drive, Leigh, following an enemy bombing raid.
There was snow on the roof at the time but this was edited out by censors who didn’t want to give the game away to the Germans about what the weather was like in Essex.
The exact street where this decimated building was is unknown, but it was in Shoebury and was bombed in August 1940
Strict blackout laws were brought in across the country in a bid to prevent air raid attacks. In Southend, however, many people fell foul of the rules and ended up in court.
In March 1941 Henry Buckingham Cooper, of Boston Avenue, Southend, was fined £3 for permitting a light to show from his premises during the blackout.
A team arrive to work on bombed out houses in Chadwick Road, Westcliff in October of 1940
Chairman of the court Charlton Hubbard said it was “a very serious offence” because bombs might be dropped if lights were showing. They might get enemy aeroplanes over at all hours, and no lights must show, he stressed.
The chief constable of Southend added that he had received “piteous” letters from people in districts which had been bombed, and nearly all said that lights were showing at the time.
A house in Campbell Road, Westcliff, is hit by a bomb on February 4, 1941
After the war there was still the problem of unexploded bombs to deal with.
One family from Westcliff actually lived with a live Second World War bomb on their roof without knowing it - for 12 years.
The couple, who lived in Cranley Road with their daughter and maid, were told by the roofers that the bomb was nestled under the eaves. After the offending bomb was found, the unfazed occupants wrapped it up in paper, popped in cocoa tin, and took it to the police station.
A home at the junction of Pall Mall and Leigham Court Drive, Leigh, is pictured after a raid
From there it was transported to Shoebury garrison where bomb experts dealt with.
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