Ivy CUMPER, John CUMPER residents 1936 to 1998 (General)

by Jefff , West London, Middlesex, Saturday, May 27, 2017, 19:56 (2730 days ago) @ Cumper

Hi Jeff,

Thank you for your help. How lucky for me to have found a mechanical engineer who could help and knew the industry I am looking for. I can see that John took his wife Ivy and returned to his roots. I wonder what made him do that? Certainly there were many bombs in Birmingham so perhaps the Forest was quieter, although I am sure it too came under attack. I wonder when he was able to do so, if the government allowed workers to move at will, if the government transferred him or if he waited until after the war.

I do live in Uk, I am in the Manchester area although my parents were from Birmingham and my dad was evacuated to Symonds Yat. I would very much like to visit the Forest of Dean, I just have to persuade my husband that he would like to :-)

Chris

Hi Chris,
you're very welcome, thanks for your kind words. Regarding WW2, yes there were a few bombs dropped on the Forest, but only very few from individual aircraft, and nothing like that suffered by cities like Birmingham, which was hugely important as a major centre for metal-working industry since the 1800s. Many Foresters did work in the munitions industry in the War, particularly aircraft factories between Gloster & Cheltenham; plus the Chepstow area & shipyards too I'm sure, although most enemy planes in that area would have been targeting Bristol or the South Wales ports like Cardiff.
So, from a viewpoint of his family's welfare, the Forest would have been a AFR quieter and safer place than Birmingham during WW2. Maybe you saw Martin Shaw's "WDYTYA"? programme ?. My lifelong interests and indeed career has been linked to the aircraft & defence industries, Shaw discusses the life of his granddad who worked the anti-aircraft guns defending the Spitfire factory at Castle Bromwich, and the bombing they endured.
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/episode/martin-shaw

I wonder if John moved to the Chepstow area because their housing was bombed-out ?. Maybe he went to live with or near his relatives, maybe elderly folk who would benefit from help at home because the local young men had gone to war (John being too old for service) ??.

I got the impression from your first post that you've traced John's whereabouts in Birmingham during the 1930s, I see the FindMyPast site has several electoral register records for Christoper John Cumper, as well as the 1939 Register, have you seen these records ? (I cannot access the Register as only have a trial subscription). The 1939 Register presumably gives his home address, I think you could deduce if his area was bombed in WW2, using the bomb maps etc.

On the subject of the Electoral Registers, thro the 20s and early 30s they refer to John and May, which confused me. However I recall thinking that John was older than his bride Ivy, I now see (from FMP) that a Christopher John Cumper (presumably our same man but ..??), had previously married May Brueton in Aston, Birmingham in early 1917, she (May Cumper) sadly died aged 49 in 1936, the same year he married Ivy. Perhaps part of this thinking for moving was to get a fresh start to his life, and get away from Ivy's home area ?