![]() ![]() Other Army units occupied Lord Leverhulme's empty bungalow and were seen carrying Bren Gun Carriers up and down Rivington Pike as part of their training.ĭavid Owen, Scottish soldier Jock, & John Owen outside the Vicarage Our family befriended one of the soldiers, a Scot named Jock (perhaps because my parents were Scottish themselves). Another unit then set up searchlight battery emplacements between the Barn and the Village School. The Pioneer Corps moved in and erected a string of Nissen huts on each side of the road leading directly from the Barn to Rivington Hall followed by a barbed wire perimeter fence all around the Hall Estate (this stayed in place until the early 1950s). Early in 1940, the authorities decided to utilise Rivington Hall Barn as a storehouse for sugar and flour. ![]() Instead, we young boys were treated to a military build up on our doorstep. I can only marvel at the providence that enabled us to avoid the devastation that took place in such a prime target area for enemy bombing raids. David Owen vividly recalled the activities that took place: "My family were fortunate to have left Trafford Park, Manchester, for Rivington only a month before war was declared. Large parts of Rivington became 'no go areas' for civilians as troops trained for combat on foot and in tanks and the barns became food and munition stores. Horwich and Rivington transformed during the War. Looking Back Second World War: Rivington, A Military Zone ![]()
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