This mobile canteen looks to be British and most likely . The building behind it still stands today in Brussels. It was a canteen/club/leave centre late in WW2. I zoomed and cropped on the markings on the truck because it is so unusual to see that on these vehicles. Can anyone help me to identify those?

Thanks
Matt

I would say this is a Morris Commercial CV, going my window shape and molding line on the cab door, also the wheels.

regards, Richard

A British built Fordson 7V

Richard,

Thanks. Even I can at this point figure out a Fordson 7V. Or at least I think I can... Always good to get confirmation. I should have been more clear. I was interested in what appear to be unit markings on the cowl.

Edit: I asked this question on Facebook and apparently it's many units. It seems this canteen was "zapped" to use one gentleman's parlance with the various units it was associated with or supported, presumably from Normandy to Brussels.

Matt

Great pictures again, Matt.

It does indeed seem to show several small markings....what looks to me like the bull from the 79th Armoured division, but also the Polar bear from the 49th Infantry division.
The poor Fordson did get a nose job sadly....

Here's another photo. The canteen in question is a left hand drive Vanette, probably built on a Ford Chassis exported to Britain from the United States, a gift of the British War Relief Society, USA. Couple of military trucks to the left, one appears to be an ambulance? Looks like a cross painted on the canvas. Interesting hood cover blankets. Also two of the soldiers have M-1938 US leggings. Looks to be US uniforms?

Matt

Allied Vehicles
 

This is an interesting photograph, thanks for posting. The vehicles to the left are British Bedfords and most of the troops in the photograph are also British although there are two Americans in the foreground.

So I recently visited The Salvation Army archives in London again. This time one of my focuses was on a couple of "unpublished manuscripts". One was a sort of memoir type paper about 20 pages long written by a Salvation Army Officer who was in Arras at the War Graves Hostel at the outbreak of war and gives some details of the time from September 39 through evacuating at Saint Malo.

But the other manuscript was about 8 pages and written by nephew of a Red Shield Worker who was in Italy. Alan Clawley has since passed away himself. But his research into his Aunt Elsie brings us these three photographs of a Dodge in service with the British Forces in Italy.

Matt

Welfare Vehicles, Canadian style
 

Attachment 110417 Attachment 110418 Attachment 110419

Welcome back, Steve! :)

Hanno

Looks like a number of British Divisional markings, including Airborne, 49th Infantry and 79th Armoured. Could represent the units the vehicle visited

The picture with Austin inst war time, but from ree event ;-)

Steve,

I wonder where/when that Canadian Red Cross vehicle served and in what role? During WW2 the four agencies providing welfare to the troops were Salvation Army, YMCA, Knights of Columbus and Canadian Legion.

Thanks for the vote of those were units that Canteen served. That seems the likely consensus so far.

Matt

That Canadian Legion canteen photo was most likely in England. The first many canteens by the services I listed above in England were local trucks, the very first were donated from a tea company. It was several months before Canadian trucks caught up with their Welfare services in Great Britain.

Matt

Food Flying Squad
 

Any interest in the Queen’s Messengers food convoy trucks?

This one was pictured in Rotterdam, early May 1945. Courtesy of Alex.

Attachment 110463

Hanno,

That's a Bedford OXC correct? Somewhere I have reference to these canteen body Bedfords and it's my understanding the UK War Office was trying to standardize the chassis used because so many different ones were being donated it was hard to maintain them in good running shape. Here's a few more from the very late war, post war period. The first picture is captioned as being in Lengerick Germany and in the same series one of the gentleman at the canteen is a German officer POW stripped of rank and title conversing with a British Sergeant. The second of the cargo box is captioned as Brussels headed to Germany and the last is missing it's captions. No dates were given, but the circumstances and locations can give us a pretty good idea of when these photos were taken. There's also a series of pictures I've found from an air field in England with POWs being re-patriated. A Bedford chassis canteen and trailer feature prominently. I'll try to post them up later.

Matt

Matt,
All three photos show Bedford OYC 3 tonners.

Matt, indeed OYC's, as Richard already noted.

Here's another example of the myriad of vehicle types the British government had a hard time supporting the myriad of vehicles bought and donated by civilian organizations. This Commer Q2 is one of only two identified in pictures so far. Both were donated by Jamaican organisations.

NAAFI Tokens
 

I understand that the troops wanted a cuppa they gave their money to the NAAFI cashier and received a token which they then passed to the tea lady.

Recently our Museum received some NAAFI Tokens which are abut the size of an English/Australian shilling or 1/2pence.

Attachment 110502 Attachment 110503 Attachment 110498

I am not sure what is printed on the round token. It looks to me to be for the value of 1/2pence for the "British, British, Armed, Armed, Forces Forces.1/2d.1/2d.1/2d."

Attachment 110499

Regards Rick.

YMCA to RNZAF in Pacific
 

No expense spared.

Attachment 110505
http://photos.kiwimodeller.com/image...a-1024x741.jpg

Hanno it wasn't supplied by the UNRRA it would have been gifted to the UNRRA post war to provide relief in Europe manned by British volunteers. See this article on http://hmvf.co.uk/topic/14010-guy-vi...comment-261757

Ted

Richard and Hanno thanks for the correction. I'm not at all well versed in Commonwealth vehicles, but that's where my interests lay so I'm learning.

lynx42 here's a website with a bunch more of those tokens: https://sites.google.com/site/malstokens/naafi

dcrfan, that's an interesting photo. Although I've read about it in several locations I haven't seen many photos of standard issue cargo trucks being used as canteens by the welfare services. The other I can think of is also YMCA in fact.

Matt

Hello,

Could this Ford 7V in Holland 1945 be considered as a welfare vehicle ?

Attachment 110506
https://i.imgur.com/YhIWQRw.jpg

Cheers,
Patrice.

YMCA to RNZAF in Pacific
 

dcrfan, re post #110, thanks for that picture. It's nice to see a rare C8AX in service.

Brian

Patrice,

You bring up a good topic. At least in the United States many who study World War II history end their study of Europe when the Allies entered Berlin. The millions of refugees, displaced persons and the programs to repatriate, relocate, feed, clothe and house the victims of the war are not even thought of by many. But of course welfare agencies already in theater with the Forces then turned to civilian relief. The Salvation Army had their Overseas Relief program, it is well documented in their archives and I'd like to study it in the future.

There is the aforementioned UNRRA. The Wikipedia page for it being all of nine paragraphs long. Contrast that with the Wikipedia entry for the Normandy Landings that has around 60 paragraphs! We come along and take an interest because of the vehicles. But then I see just the staggering size of the tasks these post-war relief agencies faced. From the Wiki on UNRRA "By 1947, UNRRA was running nearly 800 resettlement camps, housing seven million people.[10] Forty-four nations contributed to funding, supplying, and staffing the agency...". Then there were all the non-governmental ones.

It is a topic I feel as big as the war itself and deserving it's own study. Lacking that, it is my opinion that all of these should stay in this thread. Many of the vehicles are the same types if not actually the same vehicles in some cases and the motives behind their operators and drivers are the same. The only difference being serving civilians impacted by the war instead of the forces.

Matt

Hello Ted, you’re right, I should have written supplied to UNRRA instead of by.

From that fascinating thread on HMVF I learned that two Queen’s Messengers Convoys (22 vehicles) were gifted to the Netherlands, which led to the subsequent discovery of pictures of the being in use here.

The Hague, 25/05/1945

Attachment 110518
source: https://beeldbankwo2.nl/en/imagebank...b-b8bec7e49620

Matt, you're right. The fighting may have ended in May 1945, but the war certainly wasn't over.

Here is a link to a page with interesting info about Mobile Canteens: Kent at War - Life During Wartime

Also make sure to read the thread Ted Angus mentions over at HMVF: Guy vix-ants - queens messengers

HTH,
Hanno

There were some excellent files on HMVF but I lost my copies in a PC crash; However one of the members has very kindly given me some info on the Commer : There were 15 of them in the CUN reg block they came into service in 1942 a year after the OXDs. The bulk of the Queens messenger vehicles went to Europe as soon as areas were liberated, the bulk being to the Nederlands , Belgium and France. The vehicle in the UNRRA lineup is CUN351, it had served in the Dundee convoy and is on its way to Belgium in the photo. TED

Ted, "Runflat" has just reposted some of these files on HMVF - excellent stuff!

Hanno

Here's a better picture taken at the hand-over on Saturday, December 16, 1944. Quote from The Times on that day: "FOR HOLLAND: The Queen with Princess Juliana standing by one of the mobile canteens she has given for service in Holland. Altogether she handed over two "Queen's Messenger" convoys, 22 vehicles, to the Princess for the use of the Dutch Government"

Attachment 110529

Source: http://proxy.handle.net/10648/ad99f9...8-003048976d84