Figure 1.-Most of the British evacuee children were transprted out of the cities by rail. All availavle carriages were used, including the smoking cars. The younger children did not know what to make of it. Som considered it a great adventure, like the children in the central window here. Others like the boy at the left were really worried. Few understood that they would be away from home for extended periods, months and years.

Rail transport were the principal way of traveling any distance in Britain at the time of World War II. Most British families did not have cars like American families. The same was true throughout Europe. Only the well-to-do and affluent middle-class had cars. In addition, goods were also mostly moved by rail. Trucks were mostly for local transport. And the road system mostly fanned out from the cities. The motorways (interstate highways) did not exist, except in Germany which was building the futuristic Autobahns. Britain like other countries had an extensive and extremely efficient rail system. The children were thus primarily transported out of the cities by special evacuation trains. Buses may have been used in some areas to a limited extent, but we believe the great majority of children were evacuated by train. The photographic record and news reels mostly show scenes at trainl stantions and boarding trains. This had to be the case if the children were to be evacuated any distance. Despite the immense number of children involved, the actual evacuation transports went amazingly smoothly. It was at the reception point that problems developed. The same scenes were repeated in 1940. There wre no similar evacuatiins at the time in Germany. Reich Marshall Göring assured Hitler and the German people that his Luftwaffe would prevent enemy bombers from reaching German cities. He was right in 1939, but tragically the Germans would eventually experience the the same sad partings as theGerman rail system would also disperse children to the countryside.

Created: 5:58 AM 9/24/2016
Last updated: 5:58 AM 9/24/2016