Doll brings back sad memories of the war

8:30pm Friday 4th July 2008

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It was feared lost amid the wreckage of a house which had been struck by a plane in World War II.

But an incredible 63 years later, Alice, a much-loved, albeit very much bedraggled doll, was finally re-united with its original owner.

�The poor doll wasn�t a pretty sight but the fact that some dear lady had kept her for 63 years is what touched me, that she wanted to get it back to its rightful owner. I felt quite overcome.�

Margaret Dyson

The hairless, eyeless doll, which is also missing an arm, was returned to 75-year-old Margaret Dyson on Saturday thanks to detective work by the Epsom and Ewell Local and Family History Centre.

In February 1945, an experimental aircraft crashed on 14 Ruxley Lane, Ewell, after the pilot was forced to bale out.

It demolished the house and killed the owner Anne Swan, and her neighbour.

Fortunately none of the rest of Anne's family was at home - her husband was serving in the forces, her son Alan was at school and her daughter Margaret (now Dyson) was an evacuee in Scotland.

Shortly after the crash, Edith Barratt walked past the ruins of the house and saw the doll on top of the rubbish.

The poignant image so touched Edith Barratt that she took the doll home with her, but without any real idea what she would do with it.

In 2007, Peter Barratt, Edith's son, was surfing the web and saw a story about the Ruxley Lane air crash on the Epsom and Ewell Local and Family History Centre website and made contact with the centre.

The Epsom Guardian published the story of the plane crash and a young relative of Margaret Dyson, who was delivering the paper spotted the dramatic tale.

It led to a very special occasion on Saturday at Bourne Hall when Alice was handed back to Mrs Dyson by Edith Barratt, who will be 90-years-old next month, and the Mayor of Epsom and Ewell Councillor Alan Winkworth.

"The poor doll wasn't a pretty sight but the fact that some dear lady had kept her for 63 years is what touched me, that she wanted to get it back to its rightful owner. I felt quite overcome," said Mrs Dyson.

"It brought back sad memories of a very hard time. We had thought we had got through the war - it was 1945 but it wasn't to be."

Alice has one more adventure in front of her - a visit to a dolls' hospital for some restoration work.