The Wartime Memories Project - The Second World War

Those who Served - Surnames beginning with O.

Surnames Index


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World War 2 Two II WW2 WWII 1939 1945

Marine Edwin Olsen .     Royal Navy AA Battery Royal Marines   from Shaftesbury




Gordon Olsen. .     78 Sqd




EGA Olslow .     British Army 3rd Hussars

EGA Olslow served with the 3rd Hussars British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




Pfc Archie L Olson .     (d.12th February 1945)

Held as a Prisoner in Fukuoka 3b.




Ervin E. Olson .     United States Army E Coy 406th Infantry Rgt.   from Corsica, SD, USA




Olszewski .     Royal Air Force 300 Sqdn.

My dad was with 300 Sqdn working as an airframe fitter on Wellingtons. He was also at Ingham and finished at Faldingworth on Lancasters. In between, he worked with other Polish units on Hurricanes and Spitfires (his favourite). He went to Blackpool on arrival in the UK for RAF training and learning the language. He met my mum at the Tower Ballroom.




P Omalley .     British Army Royal Artillery

P Omalley served with the Royal Artillery British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




J Omally .     British Army Royal Armoured Corps

J Omally served with the Royal Armoured Corps British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




H Omeara .     British Army Kings Liverpool Regiment

H Omeara served with the Kings Liverpool Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




H Omeara .     British Army Loyal North Lancashire Regiment

H Omeara served with the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




JL Oneil .     British Army Border Regiment

JL Oneil served with the Border Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




LAC. John ONeill .     Royal Air Force

John ONeill served at RAF Halton.




MJ Oneill .     British Army Royal Engineers

MJ Oneill served with the Royal Engineers British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




Sgt. Dennis George Oney .     Royal Air Force 150 Squadron   from Parkstone, Dorsetshire

(d.8th July 1943)




Sgt. Lynn Sarrell Ongley .    




Sgt. Lynn Sarrell Ongley .     South African Army

Sergeant Lynn Ongley was held in P.O.W. Camp, Derna, Libya. P.O.W. Camp, Benghazi, Libya. PG 54, Fara Sabina. PM 3300, Rome, Italy. Stalag 4B Mühlberg-on-Elbe, Dresden, Germany and Stalag 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany. Whilst held captive he wrote a number of poems:

Red Cross Parcel by L.S. Ongley, 7 October 1942

  • The Red Cross keep us fit and well
  • With many a tasty dish
  • No sooner is the issue made
  • We fry up spuds and fish
  • The chocolate lasts a little spell
  • Our prunes we soak and stand
  • Twelve biscuits spread with butter thick
  • My word they do taste grand
  • The meat roll fried in margarine
  • With Yorkshire salt and milk
  • While toast and butter heaped with jam
  • Slides down like folds of silk
  • The bully smeared with mustard
  • Between two hunks of bread
  • Can be described as having
  • All powers to turn the head
  • The oatmeal mixed with rasins
  • Makes porridge sweet and stiff
  • Our breakfast cheese warmed on the toast
  • Gives a savoury niff
  • Pork sausages baked in eggs
  • Mixed veg with Irish stew
  • Sweet custard smoothed o'er apple duff
  • At last we rest and sip our brew
  • The creamed rice sweets and apricots
  • We hold for yet a while
  • While cocoa in the evening hours
  • Completes the welcome pile
  • Maybe I've missed the honey sweet
  • The golden syrup two
  • But if their are some missing tins
  • I leave the rest to you
  • Without the Red Cross helping us
  • Our lives we might have lost
  • So when the war has passed us by
  • We help what e'er the cost
  • The cigarettes we cherish most
  • Their help is great indeed
  • When food is short we pull the belt
  • For nicotine is feed
  • My text to you is finnished
  • No more there is to be
  • The weekly Red Cross parcel gift
  • To you I bend my knee.

Campo Concentranamento 54. P.M. 3300. Fara Sabina. Rome. Italy.

My Wife by L.S. Ongley 30 May 1943

  • You are my own, my very tower
  • My work, my play, my trial, my power
  • Your truthful lips, and gliding grace
  • Those ways, those acts, my thoughts embrace
  • All you I love, my hearts refrain
  • My hope, my fear, my joy, my pain
  • Your thoughtful eyes and redgold crown
  • Those pools, those strands, my sorrows drown
  • In you I find my whole domain
  • My left, my right, my quest, my claim
  • Your simple faith and girlish pride
  • Those aims, those traits, with me abide

Concentration Camp 54. Fara Sabina. PM 3300. Rome. Italy.

Stalag Exercise by L.S. Ongley 15 April 1944

  • Twenty times a day I walk
  • Around the compound square
  • Twice to a mile is ten of the best
  • Quite a fair jaunt without any rest
  • A deed not common but rare.
  • Rainy days I do the same
  • The lads just stand and smile
  • On the third time round they point and nod
  • While I race faster across the sod
  • A picture of ease and style.

Mühlberg P.O.W. Camp Dresden. Germany.

I Would Like by L.S. Ongley 16 August 1944

  • I would like to have a four pound loaf
  • Of steaming snow white bread
  • A vat of butter rich and fresh
  • Enough to turn my head
  • A china plate piled high with steak
  • Six soft fried eggs on toast
  • Tomatoes in their dozens
  • With a chunk of fatty roast.

Stammlager 4B, Mühlberg-on-Elbe. Dresden. Germany.

Prison Bread by L.S. Ongley 22 Feb 1945

  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread

  • An oblong lump of sawdust and rye
  • Cut into sixths by an expert eye
  • A slip of the knife and we moan and we cry

  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread
  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread

  • A choicer food can never be found
  • With a basic content of wood and ground
  • We wonder they don't make them square or round

  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread
  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread

  • A four pound loaf at two pound size
  • Always too heavy, it never will rise
  • Yet we never complain for it pays to be wise

  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread
  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread

  • Crusts make a cake for the afternoon brew
  • While slices we have with our evening stew
  • The only complaint is the loaves are so few

  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread
  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread

  • It may be hard and heavy as lead
  • But no bread at all would cause tears to be shed
  • So though it may be ersatz we have to be fed

  • Six to a loaf of bread we are
  • Six to a loaf of bread

Concentration Camp 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany.

Sidelight by L.S. Ongley 24 Feb 1945

  • Patience is a virtue to prisoners its true
  • But four long years of waiting
  • Leaves them feeling awful blue
  • What with grumbling and bickering
  • There's nothing left to chew
  • The age long days of hardship
  • And the never ending queue

Concentration Camp 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany.

Mind Over Matter by L.S. Ongley 3 March 1945

  • He placed a plate upon the table
  • Just in front of where I sat
  • Boiled potatoes, pork and onions
  • With a great big chunk of roasted fat.
  • The steam rose up, I could but simper
  • Streams of gravy, brown and hot
  • Lay there piping with the onions
  • Still I sat a drunken sot.
  • Heaps of bread strewn on a napkin
  • Inch thick slices, white and fresh
  • Mounds of butter, lay there gloating
  • Underneath the oval mesh.
  • Then the vision slipped and wavered
  • Up and past, the screen slid by
  • Now my eyes could see those turnips
  • All that passed was just a lie.

Stalag 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany.

Our Bungalow by L.S. Ongley 13 March 1945

  • Bare brick walls all cold and damp
  • With freezing stony floor
  • A tiny closet wet and foul
  • The lighting system poor
  • Shaky beds of nails and plank
  • No mattress can be seen
  • A draughty roof of timber logs
  • The dripping rafters green
  • A smoky stove burns twice a day
  • The atmosphere is dead
  • One table is the furniture
  • Reprisal it is said
  • Some window panes are missing
  • The door wont fit the frame
  • Two heaters never operate
  • For coal is just a name
  • Fifteen feet by twenty
  • Is the length of our prison hut
  • Eighty men packed sardine tight
  • With every window shut

Stalag 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany.

Starvation

  • Theres nothing left in the larder
  • Not even a crumb of dry bread
  • The knock in my stomach grows louder
  • Repeating the throb in my head
  • The coffee is tasteless and bitter
  • No breakfast of hot eggs and ham
  • Meat is a dish quite unheard of
  • Including the butter and jam
  • One parcel is all that is needed
  • Canadian or British will do
  • I would finish the lot in an hour
  • Excepting the milk and brew

Concentration Camp 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany.

Good Friday by L.S. Ongley 30 March 1945

  • (Five weeks of starvation rations)
  • To-day is Good Friday the Day of our Lord
  • At home the hot cross buns are eaten
  • Out there they strive with gun and sword
  • Until the foe is surely beaten
  • Last night I prayed to the one above
  • To send us help in bread and meat
  • My prayer was held how great his love
  • I kneel in silence before his feet
  • Day by day they said there was none
  • Our hunger made us droop and sag
  • We join you with your hot cross bun
  • Each one with his red cross bag.

During the days of hunger, trial and tribulation, parcels arrived to-day, after weeks of gradual starvation. Half a parcel per man.

Stalag 357. Fallingbostel. Hanover. Germany.




D Oniel .     British Army

D Oniel served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




H Onions .     British Army Royal Army Pay Corps

H Onions served with the Royal Army Pay Corps British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




Gnr. Ronald Onions .     British Army 121st Medium Regiment Royal Artillery   from 11 Leighton Rd, Grangetown, Middlesbrough

(d.8th February 1945)

Ronald Onions served with 121st Medium Regiment, Royal Artillery.




E Openshaw .     British Army Loyal North Lancashire Regiment

E Openshaw served with the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




Sgt. Roy Openshaw .     Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve 44 Squadron   from Hull, Yorkshire East Riding

(d.25th Feb 1944)

Roy was my maternal grandmother's brother who was only 18 when he lost his life on a bombing mission. He was Air Gunner on 7 man Crew of Avro Lancaster Bomber ND525 KM-Q on a mission to bomb the ball bearing factories of Schweinfurt, Germany when they were shot down over the target area. All 7 lost their lives and were buried by the Germans in Avricourt Military Cemetery and later re-buried in Choloy War Cemetery after the war had ended.

The crew were:

  • Victor Bennett. Sgt (Flight Engineer) No 1581863
  • George Robert Shield Halliday. Flight Sgt (Navigator) No 1485099
  • George Andrew Weddle. Sgt (W.Op/Air Gunner) No 1502961
  • Roy Openshaw. Sgt (Air Gunner) No 1590386
  • George Pierrie Nicholson. Sgt (Air Gunner)No 1555268

    All were from Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve except Bergland who was from the Royal Canadian Air Force.




  • Pte. William Openshaw .     British Army 2nd Battalion Cameronian Scottish Rifles   from Hamilton

    Bill Openshaw was initially in India in the mid 1930's. He left the Army in 1938 and was called back into service in 1939. He was deployed with BEF to Belgium and was evacuated from Dunkirk.

    He sailed for Madagascar but was diverted to Sicily. He fought on through Italy and then the lowlands of Europe. He was demobbed in 1946 and lived in Liverpool until his death in 1985.




    AC Opie .     British Army

    AC Opie served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

    Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




    PO. James Opie .     Royal Navy HMS Europa

    My father Jim Opie served or trained on HMS Europa.




    John Raymond "Jack" Opie .     Royal Air Force   from Altofts, West Yorks




    Spr. E. Oppenheimer .     British Army Royal Engineers (d.25th May 1946)

    Sapper E. Oppenheimer is buried in the Tel Youssef Cemetery in Israel.




    LG Oppitz .     British Army

    LG Oppitz served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

    Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




    Cpl. DF Oram .     British Army 44th Btn. Royal Tank Regiment

    Cpl.DF Oram served with the 44th Btn. Royal Tank Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

    Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.




    Pte. Edwin Arthur Oram .     British Army 4th Battalion Royal Norfolk Regiment   from Dagenham, Essex

    Ted Oram was my father. He never spoke about the horrors he had seen and been involved with. Although I do remember him having nightmares. In the latter part of his life he had dementia and this is when he would talk a little about what had happened in the camps. Prior to his dementia he suffered a number of small strokes. Scans showed some older damage. When asked if he had ever suffered head injuries, he recalled being struck in the eye with a rifle butt by a Japanese solider. We were told this was the injury they could see after all those years.

    He died in 2000, never wanting to go back to the Death Railway, which held too many memories for him. On his return to the UK after the war the first job he was given believe it or not was on the Railway! A lovely gentle man forever in my thoughts of whom I am very proud to say was my father.




    ER Oram .     British Army 9th Btn. A Sqd. Royal Tank Regiment

    ER Oram served with the 9th Btn. A Sqd. Royal Tank Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch.

    Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project are no longer in touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.





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