Neglected wartime heritage...
Martin Postranecky <mp-/[email protected]>
| Newsgroups | gmane.science.cryptography.bletchley-park |
|---|---|
| Message-ID | <[email protected]> |
Letters to the Editor --------------------- The Times September 13, 2006 Neglected wartime heritage Sir, The successful reconstruction from scratch of one of the electromechanical decoders that broke the German Enigma machine (report, Sept 7) sends a buzz of excitement to everyone determined to preserve Bletchley Park, the code-breaking HQ, as a vital part of our wartime heritage. Sadly, Hut No 1, where the machine was originally housed, has already fallen to the demolition gang. The transport complex is likely to follow. These buildings were needed to garage vehicles and plan the logistics of transporting the 12,000 people who worked at Bletchley. Records reveal that, in one week in 1944, there were 28,321 coach journeys covering 25,138 miles and using 115 drivers - just to ferry the workforce back and forth to billets in the Buckinghamshire countryside. Clearly, this was a transport project on the grand scale, and preserving the complex in recognition of the support services who kept the codebreaking machinery whirring is essential. Despite having other problems on her mind just now, it is to be hoped that Tessa Jowell will find some way to help. GUY THOMAS London SW13 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,59-2354792.html http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,173-2346214,00.html