For the past decade I have been documenting life in Bures during the Second World War. Although a rural village the war had a profound impact on daily life, from our brave men who left to fight the enemy to the arrival of the Americans. The Americans first task was to build the infrastructure such as airfields and roadways for their large vehicles. West Suffolk was a rural area and Bures only a remote village. Suffolk County Councils response to local Air Raid Precautions were summarised as:-
The Government takes the view that there are no worthwhile targets in West Suffolk and least of all in rural areas. Any damage from air action will therefore be sporadic and accidental.
The Home Office has recommended that warnings should only be sounded in Boroughs and Urban Districts.
Considering Bures Hamlet was the site of the largest USAAF Bomb Dump in East Anglia and we suffered the loss of five lives in Nayland Road due to enemy action, this is an understatement to say the least.

Local Defence Bures was well equipped to fight the enemy as we had our own Home Guard together with a unit of the Secret Army. These were hand picked men who were highly trained to fight the enemy covertly and try and reap havoc with their lines of communication and transport. The ladies also played a vital part keeping ther village supplied with food and plenty of moral boosting events. Land Army Girls would arrive daily by bus from their hostel at Leavenheath to keep tour local farms running.

Forward Ammunition Dump (FAD) Bures Hamlet, Pebmarsh, and the Colnes was the site of a large Ammunition Dump which stored bombs along the roadside ready for transportation to the local airfields. None of this information has ever been documented before. After 10 years of research taking me as far afield as the Military archives in the USA, you can view a summary of the research here. The full text requires registration in order to avoid infringement of my copyright.