At the end of October, I visited Stockport Air Raid Shelters. The air raid shelters were dug in 1938 out of the sandstone hillside in Stockport to protect civilians from falling bombs in case Manchester was attacked by German bombs. The tunnels were designed to hold over 6,000 people and contained a sick bay, sleeping bunks, toilets, kitchens, and more space for temporary living to house people in an inevitable attack. In 1940, Manchester was attacked, and the people used the shelters. The shelters are open as a museum all year for people to learn about the life during the second World War and to hear stories from real people via an audio guide.
The air raid shelter museum helps people understand the Blitz from the perspective of World War II at Stockport near to Manchester. There is a small shop, and visitors into the shelters start inside a room with projections that detail the history in brief.
There are many miles of tunnels, but only a small portion is open to visitors.
Rows of bunk beds were set up along the tunnels for people to sleep and wait until the "all clear" safety.
One area of the tunnels visited was for nurses and the sick bay. The nurses had their own toilets.
A large area was reserved for the sick.
Visitors to the tunnels had a kitchen that served tea. The tunnels were named "Chestergate Hotel" because people came down to protect themselves but ended up enjoying entertainment and the bustle. Different people had their streets written in cardboard so that neighbours could locate them, and actors from the theatre would provide entertainment. The kitchen facilities were to help children.
There were women's and men's toilets as well. Everyone was expected to clean up after themselves.
The tunnels went on for awhile, and many branches were closed off.
An Anderson-style shelter was also in part of the tunnels.
Back up to the ground level, a couple of displays in the museum detailed the life and responsibilities of air wardens and food rationing.
The air raid shelters were interesting. Other posts on this blog that feature air raid shelters are listed below:
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