Garage classroom lessons to beat Hitler
A television programme last week about Battle of Britain Spitfires had an echo in wartime Keswick. Places in the town came to resemble the Wiltshire city of Salisbury where an emergency method of manufacturing the planes was set up.
| Derwentwater Hotel, Portinscale...once an army driving and maintainance school . |
All the commercial garages in the city were commandeered and converted into small units manufacturing Spitfires in the story told on Channel Five, “Secret Spitfires: how Britain Won the War.”
The same thing happened at Keswick where, like Salisbury, all the commercial garages were commandeered. But not for Spitfires.. The garages were taken to become”classrooms”, places to teach soldiers how to care for army vehicles, particularly on a battlefield.
The garages became part of a driving and maintenance school set up by the Royal Army Service Corps in the Derwentwater Hotel in nearby Portinscale.
Dunbobbin`s garage in Helvellyn Street, Keswick Motor Company premises in Penrith Road, Quirk`s garage in Main Street and the Cumberland bus garage in Tithebarn Street all took on an army khaki look as they became staffed by soldier instructors.
And vehicle maintainance learned in Keswick garages kept the wheels turning on British army bren gun carriers, lorries, vans, tanks and Jeeps despite everything Hitler could throw at them.
Community Voice Carlisle is the blog of Carlisle Tenants` and Residents`Federation. Information about the Federation is available on 01228 52
