Falmouth Bombing ~ Tuesday 30th May 1944

Falmouth Cemetery has two military headstones for 30 May 1944.

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The US 3516th Ordnance Medium Automotive Maintenance Company report in their War Diary that they had 5 killed and 3 wounded (all named) and had to travel to Truro to replace supplies that had been destroyed in the bombing.
The USS Kiowa, moored at the King's Dock in Falmouth harbour states in her War Diary "0035 sounded General Quarters to repel bombing attack from three ME-110's. Aircraft meeting little opposition from shore AA batteries, proceeded to make several runs over a wel-lit target. The ships at King's Dock effectively inhibited bombing of the dock area with 3"/50 and 20/mm gun fire. This vessel expended 17 rounds of 3"/50 and 1020 rounds of 20/mm ammunition. Observers witnessed one plane fall into the sea in flames. 0127 all clear sounded, secured from General Quarters."
LST Flotilla Four, moored up the River Fal by the King Harry Ferry reports "Bomb blasts shivered the night as German planes flew overhead twice at very high altitudes. Ack-ack from shore batteries sent a steady stream of glowing red pellets into the air that seemed pathetically ineffectual at the required heights... The garishness of the attack was enhanced by the sputtering green flares that were dropped and bathed everything in the area with their ghastly luminescence. Almost as a finale came the last crashing crescendo as a direct hit was scored close to the West at a bearing of 220 true from the Flagship. Flames spurted into the blackness and great clouds of smoke belched forth as if in indignation."

cornwallphil ~ In the Friday January 8th 1965 on page THREE of the Falmouth Packet it records the bombing and states that 5 people were killed and 22 were taken to Hospital.

The previous post shows the ' Holmlea ' hotel before it was connected the old guest house on the west side that then became the Pentargan.

My relatives were involved with the W.V.S. Meals on Wheels service and opened their hotel for the elderly, spastics & cripples according to this edition of the Falmouth Packet.

I'm assuming that the three photographs had been taken around the same time as I found via a previous link on another Cornwall thread a post card print of Gyllyngvase beach before the Queen Mary gardens and the hotel houses had been constructed.

The Packet also reports that an official ' Mebyon Kernow ' candidate may be put forward in the next elections to resist government intentions of managing Kernow by civil servants in Bristol.

I'm sure news of the deaths was hushed up in the fear that the D-Day secret had been revealed, adding to the confusion over the numbers involved. News of the raid didn't break in the national press until 4 September 1944 when Morrison commended three local fire officers and the Daily Express picked up on the story. Acton & Carter in "Operation Cornwall" quote the Police Diary as recording "About 20 HEs were dropped in Falmouth Town in area of Docks and Sea Front... 2 residential hotels extensively damaged. 4 casualties in one, 2 naval officers, 1 security sergeant and 1 civilian. 18 seriously injured. A member of the US Service killed in the other hotel." Rowe & Labey in "When Bombs Fell" based on the Police Diaries state "only three civilians were killed and seventeen injured."

CornwallPhil;141841 wrote:

Have read the speculation on this thread with interest and amusement. The photos below are a hopefully larger version of the hotel damage posted earlier in the thread, the Luftwaffe's view of Falmouth for the 1940 invasion planning, and a pre-war postcard showing the Gardens referred to earlier.

CornwallPhil ~ thanks for the additional pictures and I found a reference to the first aircraft landing on Gyllynvase beach during 1914 by a Mr Henri Salmet in a two seater Bleriot.

I've assumed that this would have been before the garden and road development reduced the overall size of the beach.

Apparently he then had some floats fitted at a Falmouth Boat Yard before flying on to stay in the Penzance floating dock.

Pleased to hear that you've followed the thread with I&A.

Dave.

CornwallPhil;141862 wrote:

I'm sure news of the deaths was hushed up in the fear that the D-Day secret had been revealed, adding to the confusion over the numbers involved. News of the raid didn't break in the national press until 4 September 1944 when Morrison commended three local fire officers and the Daily Express picked up on the story. Acton & Carter in "Operation Cornwall" quote the Police Diary as recording "About 20 HEs were dropped in Falmouth Town in area of Docks and Sea Front... 2 residential hotels extensively damaged. 4 casualties in one, 2 naval officers, 1 security sergeant and 1 civilian. 18 seriously injured. A member of the US Service killed in the other hotel." Rowe & Labey in "When Bombs Fell" based on the Police Diaries state "only three civilians were killed and seventeen injured."

My 91 year young Mother recalled yesterday a conversation she had in 1947 with my Fathers step sister who had owned the hotel.

Mrs Price told her that the bomb had been intended for the Falmouth ( ? ) and that it had over shot the target and hit her hotel.

I now believe that the family had added Dry Dock for ( ? ) in the telling of the story over the next five decades.

I've also located a photo from the Reg Watkiss collection that shows these hotels looking west over Castle Beach in the direction of the Swanpool petrol dump target.

Located on the eastern side of Mrs Prices two story hotel was a five story building that the Francis Frieth collection identifies as the Falmouth Hotel.

The next beach going west in the Swanpool direction would be Gyllngvase Beach where Henri Salmet landed his Bleriot in 1914.

I now suspect that the Falmouth Hotel may have been their intended target as it appears to be the most prominent building visible from photographs taken at the time and it is in line with the Swanpool petrol dump.

[IMG]/community/142632=16001-Falmouth Hotels from Pendennis.jpg[/img]
[IMG]/community/142632=16002-Gyllingvase Beach from Pendennis.jpg[/img]
Two views taken from Pendennis Castle last weekend. One shows the hotels along Cliff Road and the other Gyllingvase Beach.

CornwallPhil ~ Two views taken from Pendennis Castle last weekend. One shows the hotels along Cliff Road and the other Gyllingvase Beach.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the updated views and things have changed since my last visit.

Pleased to see that they have at last rebuilt the old hotel next to the Gyllingvase bus park looking east towards Pendennis and there appears to be an access ramp down on to Castle Beach now which must be for a beach cafe ?

I read today in the Sunday Times that Falmouth is the forth best place to live in the UK.

Latest information received on May 29th 2014.

The civilians killed in the Pentargan Hotel may have been a retired Major CHARLES EDWARD ETCHES along with Miss VIOLET MARY FOX and Miss LOUISE FANNY HARLAND. ( Possibly Wrens but not confirmed )

A poor copy of a book seen about a group identified as KG 6 (?) indicates that there should have been 51 bombers used in an attack which started on the night of 29 May 1944.

Its believed that 30 of these bombers were to attack the general Falmouth area and possibly 2 others targeting the general St. Austell area.

The remaining bombers may have just been laying sea mines.

The KG6 JU88's would have taken off around 23:00 hrs from an airfield in the Bretigny area.

Bomb loading reported as either two SC 1000 bombs (or ) one SC 1000 and one SC 500 with up to six SC 50 bombs.

Possible flight from the Bretigny area may have been over Morlaix to Falmouth.

One report indicates that the bombs were dropped in a glide attack.

They may have returned via markers at locations recorded as Planquadraten 5027 and 5057 then Morlaix back to to Bretigny where landing would have been after 3:30 hours local time.

Another book on KG 2 states that about 30 tonnes of bombs were dropped in the attack on Falmouth.

Light bomb damage to Silley Cox & Co Ltd in the dock area plus the Oil Installation.

Its possible that the KG 6 flight may have lost one JU88 in the Falmouth raid with the crew believed to be a Mr Niemeyer, Mai, Bensch & Schwarz.

Some one has seen a Police Diary dated at this time that records two residential hotels extensively damaged.

It indicated that four casualties in one hotel made up of two Naval ( Wrens ? ) officers, One security sergeant and One civilian ( Rt Major ) we have assumed that this was the Pentargan.

The seriously injured were listed as Eighteen.

It notes that a member of the Intelligence Service had been found dead in the other hotel along with another possible US Service Person ?

Interesting detail from the German sources.
My research from local, British and American sources would indicate the following fatalities:

PENTARGON HOTEL:
Charles Edward Etches, Maj Rtd.
Violet Mary Fox, wife of a Service Officer.
Louise Fanny Harland.
H. Spier, age 61, 7685648, Corporal in the Intelligence Corps.

BOSCAWEN HOTEL:
J.B. Smyth, 30, Lt RNVR.

US CASUALTIES
3516th Ordnance Medium Automotive Maintenance Company:
M/Sgt Edward J Nimeth
Tec 4 Eugene H Bahr
Tec 5 Lewis M Hainor
Pfc Edgar B Akin
Pfc James J Mott

I have an RAF document that claims there were 8 American dead but the OMAMC document says 5 dead plus 3 wounded.

Cornwallphil ~ I believe that your records would be more accurate however the correlation is reassuring.

I'm also lead to be believe that a glide attack would have been from 6000 ft ?

Dave