~ Chapter Twenty-Four ~
A Better Life in “Hithee”
In May 1940, after responding to an advertisement in the newspaper, Charlie successfully applied for the post of Chief Fire Officer for a factory in Hythe, near Southampton. The factory was the British Power Boat Company Limited, a company which was owned by Hubert Scott-Paine and which manufactured torpedo boats, motor gun boats and RAF rescue launches. Charlie took up the post and went to live in Hythe village, but it wasn't until the following September, after the Dunkirk evacuation, that his family was able to travel there to join him. By that time, he had rented a small flat at Pylewell Cottages. As Ken explains:
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Some six months after Charlie moved to Hythe, the Head of Security for the factory resigned and Charlie was asked to take on the additional role of Head of Security, a promotion that almost doubled his wages. He then looked for better accommodation for his family and found a bungalow to rent called “Four Hedges” at Jones Lane, Hythe. Ken tells us more about the new home and the family’s life there:
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Ken also tells us that, despite Charlie’s strict demeanour, he told many stories against himself:
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In 1945, Charlie was asked to design a new Fire Station at Hythe for the Auxiliary Fire Service, a part-time service. The station was built in New Road in Hythe, and Charlie became the Station Officer in charge. Ken recalls a couple of stories from that time, which serve to illustrate the immense dangers that Charlie and his colleagues were often exposed to:
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In 1948, when the responsibility for the fire services was returned to local authorities, Charlie became a Station Officer in the Hampshire Fire Service. During his time there, because of his experience dealing with fires where there were no fire hydrant systems, he was asked to design a water tender fire vehicle. The new fire appliance became known as the “Hythe” Water Tender, the first twenty-eight of which were sold to Brazil and many others to Fire Authorities throughout the UK.
Meantime, because the War had ended and no-one wanted to buy military service boats, the British Power Boat Company had ceased operations in 1946 and Charlie had needed to look for a new “day job”. He became the Chief Fire Officer for an American owned engineering and construction company called Foster Wheeler Limited, which at that time was building the very large new Esso Oil Refinery at Fawley, near Southampton. But he would not remain long with Foster Wheeler. By 1953, he had been headhunted by the International Synthetic Rubber Company at Fawley to become their Chief Fire Officer. His association with that company would last for almost a quarter of a century.
Meantime, because the War had ended and no-one wanted to buy military service boats, the British Power Boat Company had ceased operations in 1946 and Charlie had needed to look for a new “day job”. He became the Chief Fire Officer for an American owned engineering and construction company called Foster Wheeler Limited, which at that time was building the very large new Esso Oil Refinery at Fawley, near Southampton. But he would not remain long with Foster Wheeler. By 1953, he had been headhunted by the International Synthetic Rubber Company at Fawley to become their Chief Fire Officer. His association with that company would last for almost a quarter of a century.