Warrington at War

By 1938 Warrington, like the rest of Britain, was preparing for war with Germany. From 1939 to 1945 every Warrington man, woman and child was affected by the Second World War whilst the wartime years also shaped the twenty-first-century town. Of those called up to serve in the Armed Forces, many were killed, injured or suffered in captivity as prisoners of war. Civil Defence Forces were formed to protect Warrington people and property from enemy attacks, but all lived through the terror of German air raids. Thousands worked in local factories to produce essential goods, campaigns to ‘Make Do and Mend’ and ‘Dig For Victory’ exhorted people to support the war effort and all endured rationing and shortages. Wartime Warrington was the site of key installations including Risley Ordnance Factory, Padgate Camp for training RAF recruits and HMS Blackcap, a Royal Navy Air Station. American GIs from Burtonwood USAAF Airbase became a familiar sight about the town and the noise of engines were heard day and night. VE Day and VJ Day celebrations marked the end of war but the impact on Warrington had been immense: the post-war New Town was partly created from acres of derelict land on the old wartime bases and Risley Ordnance Factory became a focus for Britain’s atomic development in the Cold War.

Warrington at War pays tribute to the people of this town who served, died and lived through the Second World War, and how they managed to endure the horrors of conflict. It features contemporary archive material from the collections of Warrington Museum, fascinating stories from the town’s official archives as well as personal history collected by public appeals for wartime memories.