Churchill letter to Dorman Long

There are also Dorman Long beams rather closer to home - in the old engine shed at Shildon NRM, I noticed some when I was last there.
 
And in return, in your hour of need, we the government, will sell you out, without a seconds thought, to whom, or whoever, can make as much money for people of our own ilk, high standing and good breeding, f&ck the working class and the poor x
 
And in return, in your hour of need, we the government, will sell you out, without a seconds thought, to whom, or whoever, can make as much money for people of our own ilk, high standing and good breeding, f&ck the working class and the poor x
Bye
 
And in return, in your hour of need, we the government, will sell you out, without a seconds thought, to whom, or whoever, can make as much money for people of our own ilk, high standing and good breeding, f&ck the working class and the poor x
Much as I might normally be inclined to agree, I also recall that immediately after the war was won, a Labour government duly delivered the NHS and social security system for the people.
Anyway, enough political diversions...
 
Much as I might normally be inclined to agree, I also recall that immediately after the war was won, a Labour government duly delivered the NHS and social security system for the people.
Anyway, enough political diversions...
I take your point, I was just pointing out the contrast between the reliance upon heavy industry and manufacturing in times of needs and the way it has been viewed as unnecessary in recent times.
I only hope we don’t see a return to such madness in the future, particularly as our economy now relies heavily In the service industry.
 
I wonder what the ratio of lads that joined up was to those in reserved occupations on Teesside.
As I imagine many on here like my family, were all steelworkers (only my Uncle Dîck joined.. And then it was the catering corps 😁)... They were all Home Guard, ARP or firewatchers when off shift.
Spot on. My grandad worked in the boiler yard at Cleveland Works and was a firewatcher in the wardens. My mother's uncle worked at Smiths Dock and was killed when the Bastiaise was mined during sea trials off the Tees in June 1940.
 
I had started undertaking a photographic project showing buildings and structures that were built by Teesside steel and was going to contrast them as they are today with the archive photographs of the Steelworks and the steelworkers of the time, also a last chance to photograph the blast furnace before potential demolition, Where Alchemist’s Were Born’ is the tentative working title....Covid has kind of put a bit of a pause on it at the mo.
 
AM

Dorman Long was on one of the older bridges across the Danube in Budapest. All the Budapest bridges were blown up by the Waffen SS and their Allies (Hungarian (Arrow) Fascists etc to try and top the Red Army in the winter of 1944/45. I read somewhere Budapest was the second biggest battle in Europe in WW2 (Stalingrad number 1)

I think Dorman Long is on Hammersmith Bridge in West London and DL had offices in Battersea in the 1950s.

You may already now there is a Dorman Long Corporate book at the Python Properties building at the old Cargo Fleet Offices, it has some good photos of DL works in the 1920s and 30s and some their bridges. The cafe there has Henry Bolckow's desk that customers can play with.

Ref - reserved occupation for one of my grandad avoided the forces in ww2 because he worked as a crane operator at Cargo Fleet. He was also a Firewatcher when not working. The other grandad worked at LNER offices at Middlesbrough Dock - he was 42 in 1939 and joined Home Guard/Local Defence Volunteers, but in late 1940 he joined the DLI and stayed with them until 1945. He was wounded twice in WW1, once nearly losing his leg. I never met him but he was very much "King and Country" I am told. When his country called he left 6 young children behind and a seventh one (a baby) was given away.
 
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And in return, in your hour of need, we the government, will sell you out, without a seconds thought, to whom, or whoever, can make as much money for people of our own ilk, high standing and good breeding, f&ck the working class and the poor x

Was really enjoying this thread until I read this.
Years later and I still don't get it.
Winston Churchill considered our steel to be a decisive factor in the defeat of Hitler.
Yet this industry that was the heart of our area was ripped out and thrown away like rubbish by the heartless.
 
If you look at the spelling of Middlesbrough it looks like they were going to spell it with an o first and then it was corrected.
 
Was really enjoying this thread until I read this.
Years later and I still don't get it.
Winston Churchill considered our steel to be a decisive factor in the defeat of Hitler.
Yet this industry that was the heart of our area was ripped out and thrown away like rubbish by the heartless.

I can only apologise for ruining your enjoyment.
 
Not pointing to WW2 but my great grandad served in WW1. Never met him. My mam recalls he could hardly speak due to his lungs being gassed, never spoke about it. Her nanna never spoke about it apart from she hated any elected officials from then. Take everything they want and dont care
 
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