Jeep raises smile of pride (From Evesham Journal)

Jeep raises smile of pride

THERE is a small corner of

Glasbrooks Farm on the outskirts of Evesham that still dates back to the Second World War. It holds a special place in the heart of Vale of Evesham historian Michael J Barnard who told reporter Gerry Barnett about it.

It was, Mr Barnard said, the story of a group of military vehicle enthusiasts, their vehicles and the plot of land at Knowle Hill where the clock had been turned back to the Second World War.

The scene at Ashdown Camp could not have been any more exciting than the short time spent after arriving at the corner of Glasbrooks Farm near the old 'S' bend between Evesham and Badsey, a place for Mr Barnard of so many happy childhood memories.

"To arrive at the camp in a Willys 1944 Jeep with Military Police embossed just below the windscreen and a huge Union Flag fluttering proudly in the wind was quite something," he said. "Passing the wartime entrance barrier with a speed restriction of 10mph was like emerging from a time capsule."

In front of the well laid out drive, with grass lawns either side Mr Barnard saw an observation tower 25ft to 30ft high, nearby a wartime Nissen hut which serves as the group's HQ, while under construction was another Nissen hut, all constructed from World War Two material.

"The enthusiast's vehicles really do take one back to the 1940s, especially the Jeep, the vehicle that General George C Marshall described as America's greatest contribution to modern warfare," Mr Barnard said. "There are many suggestions as to where the name Jeep originated, including the 1936 Popeye comic strip Eugene the Jeep or the original letters GP, short for general purpose. No concrete answer has ever been put forward."

The Jeeps in Mr Barnard's picture are from the 1940s. The one of the left a 1942 Ford with desert paintwork as used by the Desert Rats with a 30 cal. Sub-machinegun on board and sand compass. The Jeep centre is a 1944 Willys with hood and the one on the right a Hotchkiss Military Police Jeep. Willys-Overland won the first Army contract in July 1941 for 16,000 Jeeps at 739 dollars each (£442.83).

The Heinkel flying over head on October 14, 1940 was seen by several people, first over Sands Lane, Badsey, by Reg Spiers, then over Knowle Hill and then by Mr Barnard and friends at Prince Henry's Grammar School during the dinner break. It was thought to be on its way to bomb the BBC at Wood Norton but the bombs were dropped at Chadbury injuring a man who died later in Evesham Hospital.

"After spending a most enjoyable hour or so in the 1940s at Ashdown Camp," said Mr Barnard, "I again side slipped into our Jeep, the right hand front passenger seat of course, and thanked my driver, the owner Lootenant Kelvin Hughes. I gestured Forward Yaa-oo with my right arm like they do in the films then suddenly back to reality sandwiched between two enormous continental articulated lorries on the Badsey-Bretforton road, very scary but very exhilarating.

"This year we celebrate the 60th anniversary of VE Day and VJ Day and still the little Jeep raises a smile of pride on our highways, a reminder of times past."