Abbey Road Depot ARP Memorial - West Ham, London, UK - World War II Memorials / Monuments on Waymarking.com

This memorial is an oval plaque fixed to the gates of the depot. It is green in colour, with the arms of the London Borough of Newham appearing at the top and the bottom. Text on the plaque reads as follows:

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In memory of 13 members of
the Air Raid Precautions and the Fire Service
killed at Abbey Road Depot
on the 7th September 1940

Alf Bridgeman - ARP Rescue Squad Leader
Fred Chilvers - ARP Rescue Squad
Ted Dunn - ARP Demolition Squad
Matthew Fenwick - ARP Warden
Fred Jones - ARP Warden
Sid Lowings - ARP Light Rescue Squad Leader
George Odell - ARP Rescue Squad
Wally Porter - ARP Rescue Squad
Frank Swift - ARP Messenger
Bill Willis - ARP Stretcher Bearer

Hugh Dicken - Auxiliary Fireman
Bill Long - Auxiliary Fireman
Wally Turley - Sub Officer West Ham Fire Brigade

At the start of World War II, part of
Abbey Road Depot was in use as an Air Raid, Precautions Cleansing and Ambulance Station.
On 7 September 1940, known as Black Saturday, the Blitz on London began. At 7.15pm the depot
received a direct hit, thereby becoming one of
the first places in West Ham to be bombed
Lest We Forget

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7 September 1940 saw the beginning of an enemy bombing campaign that became known as the Blitz. One of the first bombs to hit Newham landed at 7:15pm on the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) depot here at Abbey Road. The building subsequently collapsed and the dead were a mix of ARP personnel and fire service personnel who had come to rescue them. This plaque was placed in 2005 to mark the 65th anniversary of the disaster.

The location was a Council depot that was being used in wartime as an ambulance station and an ARP site concerned with cleansing operations in the event of a gas attack. The site continues to be a Council depot to this day, completely rebuilt, and is situated in a residential and light industrial area close to Abbey Road Dockland Light Railway Station.

Date of Dedication: 05/08/2005 Property Permission: Public Access instructions: Open access from the pavement at all times. The memorial is on the north side of Bakers Row, close to the junction with Abbey Road. Website for Waymark: [Web Link] Location of waymark: Bridge Road Depot Abbey Road Newham, London United Kingdom E15 3LX Commemoration: Loss of civilian lives during a bombing raid on the first day of the Blitz. Access times: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   03/01/2021 Master Mariner visited it