Around half past two on the 15th September 1940, a Dornier 17 bomber of 4/KG3 crashed on Barnehurst Golf Course, Kent, right on what was then the border between London & Kent. It had been shot down by Squadron Leader John Sample of No 504 Sqn, having been damaged by AA fire, a mile from where I’m sitting now.
The first official news of what became ‘Incident No 50’ in the Crayford Urban District ‘Raid Incident Book’ came at 14.34 hrs, and the local police were alerted at 14.36 hrs. The LDV (Home Guard) was reported as being on guard at 14.57 hrs.
It was reported in the local newspapers of the time that the Fire Brigade & Civil Defence personnel had great trouble in keeping members of the public away from the burning Dornier, seemingly they were intent on collecting souvineers or getting a close look at the bomber. At 15.00 hrs, some of the burning Dornier’s bombload exploded with the inevitable results.
One civilian, a Special Constable, & an Air Raid warden are known to have lost their lives as a result of this incident. Another ARP warden & a civilian are thought also to have died as a result of the explosion. A ‘Summing up’ dated 6th November 1944 in the Crayford Raid Incident Book reports that 6 Civil Defence were killed & three people were injured. Not until the 1st October 1940 was the area reported cleared of unexploded bombs.
The four man crew of the Dornier all baled out, but two of them did not survive. One was killed outright possibly due to parachute failure, the other was fatally injured, and died in a local hospital two days later.
A few relics from the Dornier are on display in our museum. Please note that the museum will only be open for the next three Sundays before closing for the winter. Don’t forget the two signing events at the museum on the 26th & 3rd October, details of which are on a separate thread.
In Memory of
LEONARD FRANCIS CLARKE
(Kent Special Constabulary)
Monday 16 September 1940. Age 28.
JOHN FRANK O’CONNELL
(Air Raid Warden)
Sunday 15 September 1940. Age 33.
WILLIAM CHARLES DANIELS
Sunday 15 September 1940. Age 37.
SAMUEL ERNEST SOLE
(A.R.P.)
Tuesday 17 September 1940. Age 39.
THOMAS READ
Sunday 15 September 1940 . Age 31.
Unteroffizier Kurt Hausburg
24.08.1912 to 15.09.1940
Unteroffizier Wilhelm Burbulla
23.01.1917 to 17.09.1940
By: allan125 - 16th September 2004 at 16:37
John Sample
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Hi Geoff – as well as your bump we might as well have this website about John Sample to go with your excellent piece on his target. 🙂
http://www.johnsample.50megs.com/ – cheers – Allan
By: von Perthes - 15th September 2004 at 19:04
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By: von Perthes - 15th September 2004 at 14:09
Dave,
We only have a few small pieces that were donated to us by someone who lived in a neaby road to the golf course at the time, nothing major, but a poignant reminder in any event.
Geoff.
By: Dave Homewood - 15th September 2004 at 11:20
Interesting story Geoff, and rather sad.
It is interesting that the reports mention the LDV. They were renamed the Home Guard as far back as August 23rd 1940. I guess the new armbands hadn’t yet reached the area, or old habits die hard (though as they only formed on May 14th it were hardly an old habit.)
What sort of remains of the Do17 does your museum have?
By: tonyd - 15th September 2004 at 11:01
Thanx for posting it Geoff…sober stuff and reminder of the total debt we owe
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September 15, 2004 at 9:47 am