Horace Leonard Pattle
British Army Royal Observer Corps
from:Stowmarket, Suffolk
I remember my Dad, Horace Pattle, going on duty atop the hill outside Stowmarket, Suffolk, binoculars slung over his shoulder, bike clips round his trouser legs, & I think he wore a navy-blue beret. We had all learned to recognize the silhouettes of the planes when they were caught in the searchlight beams. We learned them from the black bakelite models my Dad was provided with. My favourite was the shiny Spitfire. I remember the day the model planes arrived with a man and his dog, a liver-and-white spaniel named "Boofas" (Boofas made good use of the flower planter at the end of our driveway,and of his master's car tyre)
My mother might have been a bit scared and lonely on the evenings my Dad was on duty but she didn't show it to us children. We survived the air-raids and "doodlebug" bombs and when peace was declared I came downstairs the next morning stating "Well, if this is peace, it's not very exciting!!" Ungrateful child!!
