A.B. Able Seaman. An experienced sailor, superior to an "Ordinary Seaman".
A.C. / ACW Aircraftman / woman. Basic rank in the Royal Air Force, separated into first class "1" and second class: "2".
Abington Street Northampton's main shopping street and location of the "Bunny Run" where young people paraded to see and be seen.
A.G. / Airgraph. A means of reducing the weight and bulk of mail carried by air. The airgraph forms, upon which the letter was written, were photographed and then sent as negatives on rolls of microfilm. At their destination the negatives were printed on photographic paper and delivered as airgraph letters through the normal Royal Engineers (Postal Section), also known as the Army Postal Services (APS)
(El) Agheila Battle in Libya in December 1942 where the Germans were defeated and fell back..
A.K.S. Army Kinematograph Service
A.L.G. Advanced Landing Ground
AMGOT Allied Military Government for Occupied Territories
APO 1810 Army Post Office number. In this case relating to
Durban, South Africa. APO numbers were used so as not to disclose
locations and were strictly controlled at Army Post Office Headquarters
in Nottingham.
A.R.P. Air Raid Precautions
A.T.S. Auxiliary Territorial Service. The women's branch of the Army in WW2
Bahdin “later” in Arabic
Baksheesh / Bucksheesh Tip or bribe or money.
Balance of (Civil) Pay - The system balancing service pay and Post Office pay. Additionally complicated by allowances allocated for wives etc, this caused many staff to end up owing back monies received and caused much correspondence, through Needham Smith, with the central accounting authority in Harrogate.
B.A.O.R. British Army of the Rhine
Barratt, W. & Co Shoe manufacturer in Kingsthorpe Road, Northampton.
Becket's Park. Also known as "Cow Meadow", a park near the centre of Northampton alongside the river Nene.
Bibies Young women. Bibi is Urdu equivalent of title Miss.
Big Bang Reference in 1942 to the Battle of El Alamein or in 1944 the biggest explosion in Britain when an underground bomb store at R.A.F. Fauld, Staffordshire, went up.
Billing Road Probably a reference to Needham Smith's house in Cyril Street off Billing Road.
B.L.A. British Liberation Army
Black Boy Northampton pub in Woodhill, now a bank.
Blanco A compound used by troops to clean and colour equipment.
Blighty, (Dear Old) Term for England or Britain
Blue, The / Up the Blue - The desert / in the desert.
Blue pencil: expletive deleted, literally. “Blue pencil” was used in place of an obscenity and derived from the writing utensil used to censor soldiers’ mail.
B.N.A.F. British North African Forces
Bofor Regt Believed that this refers to a Regiment of 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns.
Britannia, The The name of 2 Northampton Pubs. Probably that in Bedford Road is the one mentioned.
Beetle Squasher (B.S.) W.W. 1 slang for an army boot.
B.S.M. Battery Sergeant Major.
B & T Benghazi and Tripoli
Bully Tinned corned beef.
Butterfly Bomb A predecessor of modern cluster bombs. Each bomblet contained only 225 gms of TNT. Fuses varied leaving some bomblets as booby traps.
Buzz Bomb V1 Flying Bomb
B.W.E.F. British Western European Forces
CAPT. Captain. Army rank of commissioned officer.
Castle Station Northampton Railway Station
C.B. Confined (to) Barracks - a standard punishment.
Chron. and Echo or Chron Chronicle and Echo local newspaper in Northampton
Clifford Hill Surviving motte of a castle at Little Houghton, on the banks of the River Nene outside Northampton. Once a favoured bathing spot.
CL.SGT. Colour Sergeant. A senior sergeant in the Army or Royal Marines.
C.M.F. Central Mediterranean Forces
C.M.P. Corps of Military Police - the "Redcaps".
Cobblers, The - Northampton Town Football Club's nickname.
Cow Meadow Colloquial name for Becket's Park which is near the centre of Northampton alongside the river Nene.
County Ground, The Home of Northamptonshire County Cricket Club, and until recent years, Northampton Town F.C. too.
C.P.O. Chief Petty Officer. Senior non-commissioned rank in the Royal Navy.
Crusader a cruiser tank, and the name of the 8th Army newspaper
C.S.M. Company Sergeant Major. The senior non-commissioned Officer in a Company
C.T.O. The Central Telegraph Office (CTO) was located on the corner of Newgate Street and St Martin’s Le Grand.
Cullis, Stan 1916-2001, English footballer for Wolverhampton Wanderers, & Army PTI serving in Italy. Dropped from England team for refusing to follow order to give Hitler salute before playing Germany in 1938.
C.V. Coventry
C.W.S. Co-operative Wholesale Society
D.I.s Daily Inspections of aircraft
Derngate Northampton street onto which faced the back yard of the Post Office, which fronted onto St Giles Street. There was a bus station with a canteen in Derngate.
Dhobeying Laundry
Doodle-bug V1 flying bomb
DVR. Driver. Equivalent rank to Private in the R.A.S.C.
E.A. Enemy Action
E.F.M. (2/6 cable) Expeditionary Forces Message - a telegram.
88mm Gun German anti-aircraft and anti-tank cannon. Often just called eighty-eights, their effectiveness led to their fearsome reputation amongst the Allies.
ENSA Entertainments National Service Association (or "Every night something awful!)
Facing-up Table - part of the mail sorting / preparation process.
F.D.S. Field Dressing Station
F.F.I. French Forces of the Interior - what had been called the Maquis until the Liberation. OR
F.F.I. "Free From Infection". Acronym for medical examination also known as short arm inspection!
15th (Scottish) General Hospital (R.A.M.C.) was in Cairo on the bank of the Nile opposite Gezira Island.
Fish, The A pub in Northampton town centre.
FL. LIEUT. or FLT. LT. Flight Lieutenant. Junior commissioned rank in the R.A.F. above Flying Officer and below Squadron Leader.
Formby, George Toothy Lancastrian star of stage and screen famous for his banjolele playing and comic songs.
4 Base Situated at Cairo. "Stalag Sharia Mesper" is perhaps 8th Army speak reflecting its lack of popularity & location,
Sharia Al Mu'izz Li-Din Allah being a main thoroughfare.
Frame / Sorting Frame Structure in which to place sorted mail
Friendlies, The Working Men's Club in Earl Street, Northampton
FUS. Fusilier. Army rank equivalent to Private in Regiments titled Fusiliers. Though normally an infantry role some were converted and joined the Royal Armoured Corps and thus a Fusilier could be a tank crewman.
G.F. Bayonet George Flavell's Bayonet. After tales from postman George about his exploits in World War 1, the lads all joked that they wanted the fabled weapon capable of impaling multiple enemies at once.
Glarry (as in "I was reported missing, believed POW and my glarry burnt out"). Should be Gharry / Garry: an Egyptian horse drawn carriage, but used to denote any fairly primitive vehicle including military ones.
GNR. Gunner. Artillery rank equivalent to Private.
Gobstick Clarinet.
Goffa (or Goffer) Bar Bar for selling non-alcoholic drinks.
Gothic Line The German Army's last major line of defence in northern Italy.
Gold Street Street in Northampton leading from the direction of the railway station to All Saints Church in the centre. Scene of a Stirling bomber crash on 15th July 1941.
Greens and pinks. Tags once attached to labels on mailbags to indicate the contents.
Groppe's. Should be Groppi's - a store and cafe in Cairo set up by an Italian, famous for ice-cream. Said to be equivalent to Fortnum & Mason.
(Release) Group Number Part of the demobilisation plan. Most service personnel were to be released according to their "age and service number", calculated from their age and months served.
Gyppos, The Concert Party group presumably named from G.P.O.s with performers such as FA Smith and FC Addington.
Harrogate Reference to the Post Office Accountant General’s Department . Transferred there from the London Blitz.
Headlands An area in Northampton, then on the eastern edge of the town.
Hedy Lamarr Famous American actress of the time.
Hellfire Corner Dover
Hellfire Pass Halfaya Pass, North Africa
Hibbs... ("...started young") A reference to Henry Edward Hibbs (27 May 1906 – 23 April 1984) was an English footballer who played in goal for Birmingham & England in the 1920s and 1930s.
Hopalong Cassidy Popular sarsparilla drinking cowboy character in books and films
Hospital Parade A charity parade that evolved into Northampton Carnival.
HVPs High Value Packets
Imperial Service Medal (ISM) was awarded to selected long standing Post Office employees on retirement.
(Northampton) Independent Weekly magazine which finished in the 1980s
"In Town Tonight" A BBC radio program broadcast on Saturday evenings, in which Billy Allen was featured.
ITMA / It's that Man Again Popular radio comedy with numerous catch-phrases.
K.D. Khaki Drill (clothing)
'Keep on Dancing' Perhaps a reference to lyrics of a popular song: "Yes, My Darling Daughter", original singer Dinah Shore.
King Edward Building The main Post Office in London for many years in King Edward Street.
Kingsthorpe An area around a village in the north of Northampton
Knightsbridge A.K.A. "The Devil's Cauldron" Scene of fighting in Libya.
JIMMY / JIMMY-THE-ONE Naval nickname for the First Lieutenant of a ship.
L.A.C. / L.A.C.W Leading Aircraftman / Woman. Second most basic rank in the Royal Air Force.
L/BDR. Lance Bombardier. Royal Artillery equivalent to Lance Corporal.
L/CPL. or L/C Lance Corporal. The lowest non-commissioned officer rank in the Army.
Ldg. TEL. Leading Telegraphist, Royal Navy
L.D.V.s Local Defence Volunteers - later termed the Home Guard.
Lever, pulling the Firing artillery rounds.
L.F.A. Land Forces Adriatic
Littlewoods a reference to heavy loads of football pools coupons to deliver.
L.S.A. Leading Supply Assistant. Royal Navy non-commissioned rank.
L/SGT. Lance Sergeant. Probably here refers to a Corporal acting in the rank of Sergeant. In Guards Regiments Corporals automatically become Lance Sergeants.
LT. Lieutenant
L.T.R. London Telephone Region (from 1936)
Lyle, The Great Renowned magician of the time.
M & B tablets Probably M & B 693 tablets, from the manufacturer May and Baker, were used to treat many infections before penicillin and anti-biotic drugs were widely available.
Macaness's Lido or Billing Lido. A leisure park outside Northampton now called Billing Aquadrome.
Mahleesh / Maleesh “I couldn’t care less / give a damn!” From the Arabic word meaning “indifferent”
Marble Arch A monument constructed by the Italians in Libya at the boundaries of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica. Destroyed by Gadaffi in the 1970s
Mareth Line German and Italian defensive line in Tunisia making use of former French fortifications.
Matilda type of Tank (Infantry Mk ii)
M.E.s Messerschmitts - German fighter aircraft.
M.E.F. Middle East Forces
M.L. Motor Launch, small Royal Navy vessel used by Coastal Forces
Monastery, The Reference to Monte Cassino, scene of repeated bitter battles.
Moonrakers Believed to be the Post Office Darts Team.
Moran (Festival) Moran tribe in Assam, India.
Mother Rileys Old Mother Riley was an old Irish washerwoman character who wore a bonnet, played by Arthur Lucan on stage and in films.
Mount Pleasant. Large sorting office in London
M.T. Motor Transport
Much Binding A reference to a wireless comedy by Richard Murdoch & Kenneth Horne featuring a bureaucratic RAF Station, Much Binding in the Marsh. Binding was RAF slang for grumbling / complaining
New Theatre Variety Theatre which once stood in Abington Street, Northampton.
N.F.S. National Fire Service: the wartime UK Fire Service
N.G. Nottingham. Home Depot of the Army Post Office or H.P.C. - Home Postal Centre - from May 1941 after a move from Mount Pleasant via Reading and Bournemouth.
Nineteen Duty Jobs were all called duties. It is not yet known what Nineteen Duty involved, and whether it was popular or not. It may have been a particular delivery round.
No. 30 - Cyril Street, Northampton. Needham Smith's home where NN was produced
Nuffield Club A London club provided for servicemen and women by a trust fund set up by Lord Nuffield of Morris Motors. This probably refers to the Nuffield Centre, for non-commissioned ranks, which was near Piccadilly Circus rather than the Nuffield Club in Halkin Street for Junior Officers.
O.C. Officer Commanding.
"Old Nasty" A term for Hitler. Ceramic ash-trays in the shape of miniature chamber pots invited smokers to flip their ash on Old Nasty, a caricature of Hitler inside the bottom with obvious symbolism, from the time Poland was invaded.
Old Warden Was a Red Cross Convalescent Hospital. Now the Shuttleworth Collection Museum and hotel / conference centre. See "Squire".
Onion / Onions, The - A reference to the Union / Unions. Possibly also a reference to Alec Illingworth.
O.P. Observation Post
O.T. Overtime - pay.
Paiforce or P&I Force Force in Persia (Iran) and Iraq
Panther Ferret Strongpoint - Should be Panther Turret Strong Point - a German tank turret demounted and dug in to provide a formidable defensive weapon.
Parker Grays Parker, Gray & Co, College Street, Northampton, were fellmongers and dealers in hides etc. Presumably not a fragrant location.
P.B.I. Poor Bloody Infantry
Phipps / P.Phipps & Co Gold Street. A brewery in Bridge Street Northampton at the time with head office in Gold Street.
Pizzo In Calabria, Italy. Operation Baytown landings were a support / diversion to the main landings at Salerno, Operation Avalanche, in the invasion of Italy.
P.O. Post Office or Royal Navy non-commissioned officer rank: Petty Officer or Pilot Officer, the most junior commissioned rank in the R.A.F.
Preparation Table - Where mail is prepared for delivery
Primary / Primary Table - Part of the mail sorting process
Princess Buildings Offices occupied by the Head Postmaster and clerical staff in Wood Street. They were demolished and the Grosvenor Centre was built on top.
P&TO Postal and Telegraph Officer
"Pusserness." A made up word meaning an unwelcome requirement to comply with Regulations and strict routines.
"Quebec" Army barracks in Wootton, Northampton. Later renamed Simpson Barracks. The other barracks in Northampton were "Gibraltar" Barracks.
R.A.C. Royal Armoured Corps
Racecourse, The. A racecourse turned park in Northampton, popular for football, cricket etc.
R.A.S.C. Royal Army Service Corps
(Desert) Rats Members of 7th Armoured Division , Divisional emblem a jerboa - a desert rat.
R.C.A.F. Royal Canadian Air Force
R.D.F. Radio Direction Finder
R.E.P.S. Royal Engineers Postal Section.
R.H.U. Replacement Holding Unit.
R.L.S. Returned Letter Section
Robot V.1 Flying bomb.
RX Hospital Red Cross Hospital
R.T.R. Royal Tank Regiment
Salop The postal abbreviation for Shropshire probably relates to a wireless transmitting station GBZ at Criggion. A V.L.F. station for transmitting to ships was brought on line in a rush in 1942 as a reserve to the station at Rugby. 3 Northampton men were wireless Telegraphists in Salop. VLF required very tall masts but the site on a hill allowed use of shorter ones.
"Sardine(-tin)" Slang for torpedo carrying aircraft
Savoy - Cinema, Abington Street, Northampton. Later the "ABC", now the Jesus Centre.
SC&T An entry grade into the Post Office - Sorting Clerk and Telegraphist.
SGM or SGMN or SIG. Signalman. Royal Signals rank equivalent to Private.
SGT. Sergeant. Non-commissioned rank.
SHEW The archaic form of "show" was still in use at the time.
SPR. Sapper. Royal Engineers equivalent to Private.
S.E.A.A.F. South East Asia Air Forces
S.E.A.C. South East Asia Command
Semilong District of Northampton with some steep streets.
Senoussi Arabs of Libya had remained pro British despite Italian propaganda and were formed into the Cyrenaican Defence Force, complete with Scots Guards trained pipe band.
Sidney Street Siege In 1911 in London when the Scots Guards assisted the Police at a siege involving armed criminals. Famous for the attendance of Winston Churchill, the then Home Secretary.
680 Squadron An RAF Photographic Reconnaissance Unit operating in North Africa and the Mediterranean.
Skin, Post Office. A form P18 sent to individuals asking them to explain an error or misdemeanour, which began "You are required to furnish an explanation...".
S.O. (Co-op at) Southampton. Also Sorting Office.
"Sobbing Sisters" another term for "moaning minnies" - German nebelwerfers - multiple rocket artillery pieces.
Spandan should be Spandau - generic term for German machine guns with high rate of fire.
S.P. Gun - Self-propelled gun, an artillery piece mounted on a tank chassis.
Splice the mainbrace - an order to issue an extra tot of rum to sailors to celebrate victory or other important events.
Spinney Hill, The A Northampton Pub.
Sprue Debilitating tropical disease. Coeliac disease is non-tropical sprue.
Squire, The Referred to by Olly Sherry was P.O. Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth, RAFVR, of Old Warden, Bedfordshire who was killed on 2/8/1940 aged 31. The Mansion House was a Red Cross Convalescent Home during WW 2. See "Old Warden".
STALAG XVII A was a POW Camp at Kaisersteinbruch, Austria, towards the border with Hungary and had previously been barracks which were much extended to form 2 camps. In January 1941, the camp reached a maximum capacity of 73,583 soldiers, 970 officers and 220 civilians after a brief period. In the years thereafter, the number of occupants is between 25,500 and 53,000. In February 1945, a total of 26,470 prisoners were registered through the review report of the IRCR. POWs initially were mainly French, followed in late 1941 by Soviet POWs. Further represented nationalities were Americans, Belgians, Dutch, English, Greeks, Poles and Czechs. The main share of French prisoners of war at that time meant that the French, through an autonomous self-administration, had a dominant influence on camp life by cooperating in various workshops and typing rooms. In camp I, the British formed a subdivision separated from the rest by barbed wire. The Soviet POWs took the lowest position of the camp hierarchy; there is an IWM oral history recorded by a British POW, a Conscientious Objector turned medic, & poet, Stephen Hubert Peet, in which he talks of Russians dying daily and being carted off and a postwar visit when he saw their mass graves some distance from the Camps..
Swaddy Soldier (not a typo.)
Swan Pub near to the office. Later called The Mailcoach.
"Standard" 20 Pre-war motor vehicle made by the Standard company of Coventry
St Andrew's Hospital Private hospital in Billing Road, Northampton.
St Edmund's Hospital AKA Northampton Workhouse, Wellingborough Road. Now been re-developed as housing.
Sup. Asst. Supply Assistant. Non-commissioned Royal Navy rank.
Talavera - Barracks in Aldershot named after a battle.
Tapes Stripes of rank.
Tedesci (Should be Tedeschi) - Italian for Germans.
TEL. (Wireless) Telegraphist. Seniority varying between Ordinary Telegraphist, Telegraphist and Leading Telegraphist amongst other ranks.
Tempest A British fighter aircraft manufactured by Hawker.
10/- Ten Bob / Ten shillings = 50p today
Thin Socials Biscuits
30th Corps Usually written as XXX Corps. A British Army Corp prominent in the North Africa, Sicily and Western Europe fighting.
Threepenny Piece AKA Thruppeny Bit =1.25p , and the 6d stamp = 2.5p today.
Thunderbolts American Fighter Bombers
"Tidley" Suits (Should be Tiddly Suits) Royal Navy Ratings' best uniforms.
Tiffies Typhoon ground attack aircraft
TPR. Trooper. Army rank equivalent to Private in Regiments with a cavalry tradition including armoured ones.
TSCT Temporary sorting clerk and telegraphist.
TTC or Tea Time Chat.
The name given to the meetings held between 3 and 5pm on the last Thursday of each month at Unity Hall, Newlands, Northampton, attended by staff and families and servicemen on leave. First met on 28th May 1942. Name coined by Bert Hillyard.
Twenty-five Pounders Standard British Army Field Guns which fired a shell of that weight.
2/LT. Second lieutenant. Junior Officer rank of the Army and Royal Marines. A "one-pip".
Two Ton Tessie. Tessie O'Shea) was a banjolele playing music hall artiste who capitalised on her size with her signature tune "Two Ton Tessie from Tennessee." One of the sorting office ladies presumably adopted it as a nom de plume.
United Counties Cafe Derngate Bus Station whence ran United Counties buses was in Derngate near to the sorting office.
U.N.R.R.A. United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
U.P.W. Union of Postal Workers
U/S Unserviceable ie not good.
VAD Voluntary Aid Detachment - Wartime mix of Red Cross and St John Ambulance became synonymous with nurse
(Victory) Vs Cigarettes (not of the finest quality).
W.A.A.F. Women's Auxilliary Air Force, a "Waaf" being a member of that Force.
Wakey-wakey. The Royal Navy call to hands to wake up following the bosun's pipe.
Weissmuller, Johnny Olympic swimmer turned Tarzan actor.
Woolton, Lord Minister of Food hence name used to mock the more heavily built staff.
W.R.N.S. Women's Royal Naval Service - "The Wrens"
WJ Wisbech Post Office.
Yankee 'Gobs'. Sailors of the United States Navy. Gob is roughly equivalent to Tar.
"You Lucky People" Catchphrase of Tommy Trinder, stage, screen & radio comedian.
Please inform David of any omissions or errors.
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