WHEN Ken Rickard as a 12-year-old boy in 1944 was on his way to his grandmother’s cottage he encountered a scene that has stayed with him throughout his long life.

Ken, now 93, was pushing his two-year-old brother in a pram along the old narrow A30 road across Goss Moor in mid-Cornwall.

As he headed towards his grandmother’s home, he was met with a thunderous procession of American tanks.

He was fearful the enormous tracked vehicles wouldn’t see him and his tiny brother, and that there would be a terrible accident.

However, thankfully, he was spotted by the Americans in the impressive, if somewhat terrifying, convoy and he and his brother eventually arrived at the cottage shaken but unscathed.

At the time, Ken was growing up in wartime Britain, and Cornwall had witnessed a huge influx of American soldiers preparing for the pivotal stage of Operation Overlord, the invasion of occupied Europe on the D-Day beaches in France.

Through his young eyes, Ken took in scenes from those tumultuous times and now, eight decades later, he has researched and written a book looking back at one of the most eventful periods in Cornwall’s history.

Ken, who worked in the china clay industry for most of his career, has penned a number of books over the years and his latest is entitled “Operation Overlord (1943-1944) And Cornwall’s Contribution”.

The book, printed by Palace Printers in Lostwithiel, has been published in recognition of the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings in Normandy in 1944.

In the book, Ken, a keen historian and Gorsedh Kernow bard who lives at St Dennis, looks at various aspects of the landings, and delves into the role Cornwall played in the operation to liberate Europe. He includes personal recollections, like the encounter with the tanks, and other related stories.

Ken, having spent two years researching and writing the book, said: “I’ve really enjoyed doing it. I was assisted in my research by my grand-daughter Dr Emily Rickard who also did the design and carried out the final edit. Our source information, apart from my own personal memories, came from the D-Day Museum, Portsmouth, US Army divisional records and local historian Phil Hadley, along with numerous people throughout the county who helped with local information who are mentioned in my acknowledgements.”

In the book, Ken, who lived at St Dennis Junction on the railway branchline between Newquay and Par during the war, says: “Operation Overlord brought a scale of preparation never seen before in Cornwall. In my experience, the people of Cornwall played their part admirably – keeping all aspects of the home front working while simultaneously contributing significantly to the war effort during those very difficult times.

“Cornwall’s coastal and inland environmental features proved to be ‘jewels in the crown’ for the Overlord planners as they were ideal for a cross-section of military operations preparing for combat.”

For example, extensive exercises took place on the beaches and cliffs around Bude, with the sea pool there being used for rigorous training. On the south coast, St Austell Bay saw amphibious exercises.

In 1942, men of the US 29th Infantry Division were among the first US troops to arrive in Britain and they later moved to Cornwall and Devon for training before eventually embarking for Normandy. Meanwhile, the men of the 35th Infantry Division arrived in Cornwall in May 1944 and embarked, as reinforcements, for Europe in July of that year. The personnel were stationed and quartered at numerous locations across the county including Penzance, St Ives, Camborne, Truro, Newquay, St Austell, Bodmin, Liskeard, Bake, near Trerulefoot, and Launceston.

US camps were well-camouflaged to avoid detection from the air and were mainly self-sufficient, also having their own anti-aircraft defences.

In the book, Ken says: “The presence of US troops in Cornwall in 1943 and 1944 brought new energy and unique experiences to local communities, where free-spending GIs provided financial and other positive benefits to local businesses and services.

“Luxuries like nylon stockings and specialty foods were often distributed as gifts or in exchange for various favours. Children were introduced to fruits, sweets, chocolate and chewing gum that they had never tasted or seen before.”

Ken provides a wide-ranging and fascinating alphabetical breakdown of locations in the county, from Bissoe and the Boconnoc estate to St Tudy and Trago Mills and on to Wadebridge and Winnards Perch, summarising the contribution of each to Operation Overlord. He also details the airfields used by the RAF and RNAS in Cornwall during the war.

In late May 1944, local people woke up to discover the men of the US 29th Infantry Division had moved out of their camps, most transferring to marshalling areas nearer purpose-built embarkation points known as hards.

Trebah on the Helford River, Turnaware, Tolverne and Messack on the Roseland Peninsula, Grove Place and Harvey’s Yard at Falmouth, and Barn Pool and Jupiter Point on the Rame Peninsula in South East Cornwall were the locations of the hards.

Over several days, vessels were loaded with masses of equipment and supplies, with troops going aboard last.

Thousands of US troops embarked for Normandy from these hards. Their convoys with an assumed total of around 26,000 men, including troops who had sailed from Wales, joined the invasion force, many giving the ultimate sacrifice.

Ken says in the book: “We must, and we will, remember them.”

The A4 hardback, which has 150 pages and more than 100 photographs, some in colour, is on sale at the Wheal Martyn China Clay Museum, near St Austell, and Trewoon Post Office for £20. Copies (plus £5 postage and packaging, if posting required) are also available direct from Ken (tel 01726 822636 or email [email protected]).

Profits from sales will be donated to Mount Edgcumbe Hospice in St Austell.

At the end of the book, Ken includes a tribute to his wife of 67 years, June, who passed away last year.

Ken said: “I was well-supported by June in this project and it was her wish that the profits go to Mount Edgcumbe Hospice.”