Isle of Wight school children discovered what it was like to be evacuated during World War II when they visited the Isle of Wight Steam Railway recently.
This usually annual event at Havenstreet did not run last year due to COVID-19 but by popular demand and the lifting of some restrictions, the event went ahead in 2021.
Havenstreet’s railway station was transformed to replicate a wartime station and the newly built ‘barn’ was transformed into a classroom and an area where the children could learn about rationing and shopping in wartime.
Organised by Isle of Wight Council’s Heritage Service, the event recreates the scenario that tens of thousands of school children went through at the beginning of the war when several thousand arrived on Ryde Pier ready to be evacuated across the Island. In 1939 they were transported by the Island’s rail network or buses.
Pupils and staff from the schools were able to dress up in World War II clothes and arrived at the Steam Railway complete with gas masks and a few belongings ahead of a ride on the train, mirroring the experience from the war years.
Pupils discussed wartime food, such as the lack of eggs and other food staples, learned about ‘Dig for Victory’ and experienced a schoolroom environment with lessons. As happened during the war, there was every chance the lessons were interrupted at any time by an air raid siren. As they boarded their train and were waved off from the platform, they got a real feeling for how it might have felt to be evacuated all those years ago.
These activities were put together by Estelle Baker, Heritage Education Officer at the Isle of Wight Heritage Service, and a team of volunteers to support the learning of students as part of their local history programme.
