This small stretch very near to The Gables, around Channels End and Colesden, yielded a wealth of history. The leader of this mornings walk was born in this house below
The house is now on the market. Anyone interested?
We continued on to the reservoir and fishing lake passing Ducks Cross where in 1942 a prisoner of war camp was built with 30 wooden huts surrounded by a barbed wire fence
Most of the POWs were Italian but latterly there were some Germans. I’m going to cut and paste a crime that took place on a neighbouring farm – the POWs mainly did local agricultural work. An older resident of Colmworth told me (some years ago when I interviewed him) that some of these POWs would have eaten lunch in our barn when they stopped for their midday meal.
“9 July 1943 – Seven Italian pows were working in a field near Tilbrook, guarded by the Pioneer Corps. One pow, Antonio Amodeo, attacked Private Charles Hands and killed him with a hedging hook. The pow escaped with a rifle and ammunition. On 10 July the pow entered a farm and shot at John Shelton, one of the occupiers; he missed and was subsequently shot and killed. Details in newspaper account following the Red Cross Report below.
Private Chrles Hands – Pioneer Corps, aged 26, married to Elsie Hands, was buried at Liverpool (Anfield) Cemetery.”
There is a link below to a website which has more on this story snd about the campsite. Some of the POWs remained in the area after the war and married local girls,
gfreedmanblog 