Hickton Family War Service
The contributors' father Harold Hickton served in the Navy and met his wife Catalina in Gibraltar, where she was from, while he was serving. They married in Gibraltar and then moved to Coventry together. Harold joined the Navy in 1937 and served for 12 years in Italy, Africa, and the Atlantic on a number of ships, including the HMS Victory. He volunteered for blaster and medical testing while he served as a Chief Stoker. Catalina found the move to Britain very difficult as she spoke Spanish.
The contributors' aunt Doris Hickton joined the WAAF aged 17 in June 1941. Being 'above average in intelligence' as it stated in her service book, she was posted to RAF Abingdon and then went on to Bletchley Park in October 1942, where she remained until December 1945. She worked in the station intelligence library. She never understood why she was chosen for this job. Doris befriended a Polish pilot who lodged with her parents and later wrote to her from the Stalag Luft Concentration Camp.
History
Item list and details
1. Photos of Harold Hickton and his family 2. Photos of Doris Hickton 3. Memoir of Doris Hickton 4. Harold Hickton Service Record 5. Harold Hickton MedalsPerson the story/items relate to
Catalina, Harold, and Doris HicktonPerson who shared the story/items
Jacqueline Quinn/Anthony HicktonRelationship between the subject of the story and its contributor
Contributors' Mother, Father, and AuntType of submission
Shared at Coventry Cathedral, Warwickshire on 9 September 2023.Record ID
97758 | COV016Usage metrics
