A new exhibition at the National Memorial Arboretum is shining a light on the past.
The Year Was 1944 explores a key year during the Second World War, both on the battlefield and the home front.
The exhibition takes visitors on a journey down memory lane to 29 Cherry Tree Road to explore life inside Mr and Mrs Ball’s 1944 family home, complete with a replica Anderson shelter.
Rachel Smith, head of participation and learning at the arboretum, said:
“The Year Was 1944 exhibition transports visitors on an interactive and sensory journey back to 1944, telling real people’s stories of what life was like at home and away during that momentous year, through photos, artefacts and music.
“Following our call out for stories, people, organisations, and businesses from across the UK got in touch to share experiences or memories that have been passed down through generations, and these have been used in the curation of the exhibition, allowing visitors to put themselves in the shoes of those who lived through this year of momentous change.”
Rachel Smith
Grace Marie Osbourne from Long Eaton in Derbyshire was among those to get in touch with the arboretum.
She was 18 years old in 1944 and supported the war effort by working at a munitions factory. With rationing in full effect and planning her wedding ahead of her future husband’s deployment to the Far East with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, she remembers preparing for her special day:
“My dress was white satin, seven clothing coupons and cost £3 and 15 shillings, and my veil cost one guinea.
“I made all my bridesmaids’ dresses, and baked our wedding cake using rations. The flowers were from my brother’s greenhouse and the florist picked the best ones for my bouquet and kept the rest to sell in her shop.
“After the ceremony we went on our honeymoon to Bristol with family.”
Grace Marie Osbourne
Grace, now 98 shared a photo of her wedding day which now features as part of the exhibition.
This year marks the 80th anniversaries of many landmark moments of the Second World War, including the D-Day landings of 6th June 1944 – the largest seaborne invasion in history – which heralded the beginning of the liberation of western Europe.
Rachel said:
“The year was undoubtedly a turning point of the Second World War.
“On the home front, continued food rationing, evacuations, and the new terrifying threat of missile attacks were having a huge impact on daily life at the same time as families worried about fathers, sons, and brothers involved in conflict overseas.”
Rachel Smith
For more details on the exhibition, visit thenma.org.uk/1944.