A heroine of the Blitz

I’ve found a cigarette case awarded to a Florence Ross for ‘outstanding bravery’ by the staff at Platform 1, Paddington Station in 1941. She appears to have been a postal sorter and a nurse in Golders Green. What was her story? I would love to return it to her family.

ThE story of Florence ross is recounted in former Daily Mail journalist Collie Knox’s book The Unbeaten Track.

ross was a postal sorter working near Paddington station in april 1941. The night of Wednesday, april 16, 1941, saw an especially heavy German air raid on London, which was all the more shocking after the comparative calm of the previous few months.

During the raid, a mine (a powerful explosive suspended on a parachute) landed on some of the buildings on the south-west side of Paddington station, closest to Eastbourne Terrace, causing extensive damage.

Passengers were trapped beneath the rubble from the blast and despite the actions of the rescue services, 18 people died, including six members of staff, and a further 97 were injured.

Florence had sought refuge in a shelter underneath platform No 1 before the station was hit. all the shelter lights went out, with the rescuers working by the glow of torches and hurricane lamps.

she led the rescue effort, calling for bandages and a first-aid kit, and worked throughout the bombardment, tending to and comforting injured passengers.

The station master later said hers was one of the finest acts he had ever seen. On behalf of the platform No 1 staff, he presented Florence with a cigarette case.

It was inscribed: ‘Presented to Florence ross for outstanding bravery and courage on april 16th, 1941. From the officials and staff of No 1 Platform, Paddington.’ Florence was also subsequently awarded the George Cross.

after the war, Florence trained as a nurse and masseuse, and ran a health clinic in Golders Green. Little else is Ruins: Just some of the devastation heaped on London during the war known of her life. If a member of the family wishes to claim the cigarette case, please contact this column. Simon Christopher Smith, Redruth, Cornwall.

In the early Fifties, I was in the RAF stationed at Harpur Hill, near Buxton, Derbys. Why was Solomon’s Temple built there in the middle of a field?

ThErE has been a temple or tower on Grin Low hill for 180 years. In his book The Gem Of The Peak from 1838, William adam writes: ‘It forms a conspicuous and interesting object from Buxton.’ Croston’s guide of 1865 stated that solomon’s Temple was ‘built to resemble at a distance a ruined tower’.

The origins of this tower are often confusing. The original structure was built under the agency of the 6th Duke of Devonshire, William Cavendish, to ‘afford occupation’ to a number of poor men in a very severe winter.

On the other hand, many guidebooks suggest a wealthy publican, solomon Mycock, had commissioned the tower.

he was the landlord of the Cheshire Cheese Inn and had leased the land for grazing, so with that quaint humour characteristic of the Peak, the structure became known as solomon’s Temple.

By the end of the 19th century the tower had succumbed to the ravages of weather and became a mere heap of stones. among these remains an ancient Bronze age barrow was discovered.

In 1894, a committee was formed with the intention of building a replacement tower and attracting tourism. The new tower was designed with a telescope, stained glass windows, doors and a flagpole.

The foundation stone for the new tower was laid on June 4, 1896. Celebrations were led by the Fairfield Band, whose Col sidebottom asserted ‘it would not only be a place of shelter, but where they could partake of “the cup that cheers, but not inebriates” and provide another source of attraction for Buxton’.

During the seventies, the tower came into the ownership of the county council, but was damaged so badly by vandals that it had to be closed to the public and fenced off. By 1987, it was once again time for an appeal, and the intervention of local Buxtonians, united by the Civic association, saved solomon’s Temple and led to its current restoration.

Adam Hale, Monyash, Derbys.

How successful were North Vietnamese fighter pilots during the Vietnam War?

ThE North Vietnamese air Force or the Vietnam People’s air Force managed to defend its airspace against the U.s. air Force from 1964 to the declaration of a ceasefire in Vietnam in January 1973.

It had modern aircraft, such as the MIG 17, MIG 19 and MIG 21, and its crews and pilots underwent rigorous training in the Ussr and China.

Many UsaF planes were shot down in intense air-to-air combat, with U.s. losses increasing as Vietnamese pilots grew more confident and skilled in combat; they had studied the raF’s Battle of Britain tactics to devastating effect.

North Vietnam also managed to produce several fighter aces, the most notable being MIG 21 fighter pilot Nguyen Van Coc, who was confirmed to have downed nine U.s. fighters and probably a further three. he was decorated by ho Chi Minh in 1967 and became a national hero.

he is still alive and was a VIP at official commemorations marking the 40th anniversary of the fall of saigon/ho Chi Minh City on april 30, 1975.

Phil Brand, London SW17.

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