Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2009 | Page 49

THE ISLAND AT WAR 1939 - 1945

life

Christine and Peter Ferguson's wedding, 10 February 1945
Photo supplied by Tony & Rodney Key: A street party outside the nurses home in Adelaide Place, Ryde

down and it was rumoured that an
ARP post had raffled its kettle with the
proceeds going to the Red Cross. At
Cowes, the French Chasseur Base at
Marvin’s Yard for the Free French sailors
and their ships since 1941 was finally
closed down. Some of the French had
married local girls and six of their men
who had been killed in action were buried
in Northwood Cemetary. In his address
after the farewell parade, Sir Godfrey
Baring said many of the Island people
would be sad to lose the good friends they
had made among the French. “It’s not
goodbye,” he said, “but au revoir.”
For security reasons few people were
aware of the work carried out by the
Missions to Seamen during the war when
Cowes was a naval base and the Admiralty
provided a hostel for seamen, first at
the Pavilion Hotel on the Parade and
later at Busigny in Castle Road. There
was accommodation for 44 seamen and
month after month the Solent station of
the mission took in a mixture of British,

American Greek, French, Swedish,
Norwegian and Polish seamen and on one
occasion 90 shipwrecked men were catered
for by the staff and voluntary workers.
In addition, the Mission’s motor launch
went out to the ships anchored in Cowes
Roads with books and papers and during
the six years of war, 3,073 vessels had
been visited by the chaplain. The mission
launch continued its work when the
war ended but the mission was closed
because of the many commitments at their
overseas stations.
As the euphoria over victory in Europe
died down, the Island welcomed home
the fighting men from abroad and those
from prisoner-of-war camps. But on the
H