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A family tribute to our Uncle, Sgt F Alan Nelson RAFVR 1915-1941

7/11/2020

6 Comments

 
In August this year I visited and stayed with my brother John and his wife Christine in East Sussex.  John is our family historian and archivist, so we looked through family photo albums, and realised that, for our Uncle we never knew, we needed to try and piece together more about his short life for perpetuity, and for Remembrance Day.
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Earlier this year I had been to our local Beeston library to search on UK census records for our Nelson family history and it was fascinating.  

Frederick Alan Nelson was born on 13 February 1915 to his parents Frederick and Lilian Nelson.  They lived at 31 Trent Boulevard, Lady Bay, Nottingham. His sister Sonia (our mother) was born four years later on 31 December 1919.  
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Here’s some lovely photographs (above) of them together at Wilford Farm (right) (now No. 110 &112 Wilford Lane, West Bridgford) with their mother Lilian.  Wilford Farm was lived in and run by Lilian’s parents, Emily and William Thompson.  William was also a horse dealer and you can still see the site of the Victorian stable building now converted to semi-detached houses (behind Nos 110 & 112).  From 1901 Census records, Emily & William Thompson lived at 4 Woodland Road (off Trent Blvd) before they moved to Wilford Farm.   
On the left you can see Alan and Sonia with their Dad Fred very smartly dressed up for their trip to Skegness c. 1923.  I love Fred’s flat cap and stripey socks!   Click on the photos to enlarge.
Here’s some more photos above of the family on that special Skegness outing c. 1923. 
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​My Facebook post link below of 12 August telling a short story about Fred and Lily Nelson (seen left).


https://www.facebook.com/marysia.zipser.7/posts/1194543337595360  

Both Alan and Sonia went to Lady Bay School, Trent Boulevard, and then progressed to West Bridgford County Secondary School on Musters Road.  The school moved to its present site in 1938 and became The West Bridgford Grammar School in 1944.  

After leaving school, Alan studied for a Diploma in Textiles at Nottingham College (below) and then went on to be a Textile Technician at the Khaki factory (1939 Census states).  We don’t know where this Khaki factory was in Nottingham.  
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Alan - 4th from right - as a Textiles Diploma student at Nottingham College c.1930
Alan excelled at hockey at school and joined the West Bridgford Old Boys Hockey Club and here’s a group photo below taken c. 1937. Spot him on back row, 2nd from left.
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West Bridgford Old Boys Hockey Club c. 1937
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Above is Alan with Sonia & Mietek Zipser (my Dad) with Fred and Lily, we think taken before he left to join RAFVR before May 1940. My parents were married on 23 June, 1942.
He enlisted with RAFVR (Volunteer Reserve) on 16th May 1940 at RAF Cardington, Bedfordshire.  He then moved to RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire, 14th June 1940.  He completed his pilot Spitfire Mark IIA training on 10th April 1941.  

On 21st July 1941 Alan was killed on active service, aged 26.
We always wanted to find out more about his fatal crash, as Mum had said that he lost control and went into a fatal dive during a training flight near Bognor Regis.  In September and October 2020 our family obtained his service record on which was written “Killed in active service 21.7.41”. We corresponded with RAF Squadron 616 and also with Tangmere Military Aviation Museum who wrote back the following...  

21 Jul. NELSON, FREDERICK ALAN . Sgt. He was killed whilst flying in Spitfire IIA, P8434 of No 616 Sqn, which was shot down by a Bf 109 (Messerschmitt) off Worthing during an escort mission.   So a mystery...  

National Archives at Kew sent us the report:  Sergeant F A Nelson: killed; aircraft accident north west of Bognor Regis, Sussex; Spitfire P8434, 616 Squadron, 21 July 1941. Date: 1941 Jan 1 - 1941 Dec 31 Held by: The National Archives, Kew.
Uncle Alan is buried at Wilford South Nottingham Cemetery grave together with his parents and our Mum Sonia Zipser.  We will remember you.  #Lestweforget 

Marysia Zipser
marysia@artculturetourism.co.uk  
Three Group photographs below of Alan’s squadrons with his comments written on the back of them.  Below them are old Trent Boulevard photos and more of our family.
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June 1940 or 1941? D flight. Alan has written on the back “NB. Keith Hutt has been with me since I was at Cardington and Hutt & Guiton (10th from right at back) and I went up to Catterick together and came down here together. The 4th boy on the back row from the left is Dick Carrol. This fellow lived in Ennis (County Clare, Ireland) and I saw quite a bit of him while I was over there. At the moment he is in hospital with sunstroke.”
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65 E India Sqdn 616 Squadron Hullavington. Alan has written on the back “Ernie Pollard (3rd row back 2nd from left; Ernie Philipps (3rd row back 3rd from left). All the best, Alan” Alan is top right.
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Some old photos below of Trent Boulevard courtesy of http://bridgfordhistory.org/gallery-trent_boulevard.html   Click on each to enlarge and hover over over to see captions. 
​And below them of my great aunt Minnie Thompson at Wilford Church with her father William Thompson.  My Mum & Dad c. 1941.  Lady Bay School 2011.
6 Comments
John Kamil Zipser
8/11/2020 12:50:26

An intriguing compendium of our family memoirs, well put together with photos resurfacing appropriately for this Remembrance season. Well done, Marysia

Reply
Marysia Zipser link
9/11/2020 08:07:49

Thank you so much John for your kind complimentary words and for all your help in searching out all the photographs needed to make this tribute together for Uncle Alan. It was an intriguing journey indeed for you and I, together with Peter, and I'm so glad I managed to publish it all in time for this Remembrance season.

My shared post on FB brought this comment from Chris Bournes (granddaughter of Mabel Nelson) "Sharing this posted about the only member of our family who I heard of dying in action. Alan was a cousin of my dad, 8 years older than dad. He mentioned him often on remembrance day..." and her brother Richard Peters has since been in touch via FB saying "It brought back many memories and answered a few questions relating to the family tree I have started for my grandsons."

Thank you again John, we make a good family history archiving team! X

Reply
Marysia Zipser link
9/11/2020 11:04:51

Comments received from Pam Miller, Nottingham....

"A really emotional read and the attention to detail, with regard to your late Uncle Alan’s life, your family, his life in service, comments he made on the back of his war photographs and the your description of his sad demise, all bear testimony to all the hard work you Marysia and your brother, John, carried out, to pay such a moving tribute to your Uncle, who lost his life so very tragically, at such a young age. It is right and just that respects should be paid to him on this Remembrance Sunday. May he RIP."

Reply
Marysia Zipser link
9/11/2020 11:41:11

Comments received from Julia Matcham, London...

"Very sad. I looked at it all. It was a nice thing to do Marysia. So many young men sacrificed before they had a chance. I was lucky not to lose any relations in that war. And old enough to remember being bombed. One of the reasons I feel so strongly about staying in Europe. But people can't believe in the reality of war."

Reply
Marysia Zipser link
10/11/2020 09:35:10

Comments received from Rosemary Penrose, NSW, Australia:

"We will remember him! Sgt F Alan Nelson RAFVR - R.I.P"

Reply
Marysia Zipser link
10/11/2020 09:37:00

Comments received from Ann Simpson, Houston, Texas, USA:

"Thank you for sharing your uncle Alan with us. I feel as if I too lost a hero after reading the family’s story about Uncle Alan. There were several 1 & 3 s in the dates and house numbers. Seems number four was the most prominent. I wonder what his tail numbers were on the date of his last flight.... "

Reply



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