A Zeppelin airship dropped bombs on a Merseyside town before going on to kill eight people just a few miles away.
In 1918, while the continent was ravaged by the World War I, Britain was under constant threat of attack by air, in the form of massive balloon-like airships called Zeppelins,with industrial towns such as St Helens were specifically targeted. The target on this occasion was believed to be a munitions factory, on Lancoats Lane.
There were no casualties, however the same ship went on to bomb nearby Wigan, killing eight people. In his book The Hidden History of St Helens, local historian Stephen Wainwright wrote: "Elizabeth Mercer referenced the airship in her winning entry in the St Helens Reporter's writing contest for the over 60s in 1972.
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"The competition was called 'St Helens As I Knew It' and it was an opportunity for elderly people to reminisce about the very different days of their youth.
"These extracts from Elizabeth's essay (and the reporter's own subheadings ) were published in the Whalley's World column of the paper on October 27, 1972 under the headline 'Zeppelin Overhead: But Bomb Misses Target!' :
"Days of abject squalor, of national pride and sunny barefoot days have been colourfully revived by the ‘senior scribes’ of St. Helens who entered our special essay competition for the over-sixties.
"There were only three cash awards – but all who entered deserved a bouquet for their accounts on “St. Helens As I Knew It”, which gave much pleasure to our judges."
St Helens was heavily involved in the war efforts during WWI, and was even classed as a "prohibited area" due to the number of works involved in the production of weapons and ammunition. This meant that non-British nationals were not allowed to enter the town without permission.
Elizabeth's account of the Zeppelin attack added: "One of the big moments was the night we were aroused from our sleep by the steady drone of a German Zeppelin. Target for that night appeared to be Sutton Bond Munitions works.
"A bomb was found in a field nearby – otherwise there was no damage done."
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