Newly unearthed documents reveal how towns rallied round for blitz-hit Hackney
New documents have been unearthed that show how the residents of Shropshire's market towns rallied round during the war to support a bombed-out London borough.
Like many areas of the East End of London, Hackney was targeted by The German Luftwaffe during the blitz.
Many Hackney residents were killed, injured or bombed out of their homes in the air raids. Others had to move in with relatives or into temporary shared accommodation. Food shortages led to rationing and queues.
Now newly unearthed documents and archive images show how residents of towns such as Bridgnorth and Shrewsbury rallied round to help the people of Hackney following the Blitz.
Whilst researching his book, World War II in Bridgnorth, Shropshire historian Clive Gwilt found 12 documents in Hackney's archives that tell how on January 17, 1945, The Local Shropshire Women’s Voluntary Service (WVS) adopted the London Borough to help it recover from the blitz.
