The exhibition, at Harpenden's Museum in the Eric Morecambe Centre, will feature substantial additions to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the war.
![Bomb damaged house in Crabtree Lane, 20 October 1940, rebuilt in 1946.]()
Bomb damaged house in Crabtree Lane, 20 October 1940, rebuilt in 1946. (Image: Harpenden & District Local History Society) ![Salvage collection at Harpenden Hall, 1940s.]()
Salvage collection at Harpenden Hall, 1940s. (Image: Harpenden & District Local History Society) David Kendall, chairman of the museum committee, said: "Using the society’s archives, we have pulled together a fascinating collation of photos, memoirs, posters, press cuttings, and other artefacts which tell the story of Harpenden in World War II.
"The community contributed in many ways to the war effort and our exhibition will be a vivid reminder of what times were like in the 1940s."
![Prisoners of War from Batford Camp clearing snow by Thurston's studio, now Kwik Fit.]()
Prisoners of War from Batford Camp clearing snow by Thurston's studio, now Kwik Fit. (Image: Harpenden & District Local History Society) ![Women's Voluntary Service making camouflage nets 1940s.]()
Women's Voluntary Service making camouflage nets 1940s. (Image: Harpenden & District Local History Society) Pamela Doran, the museum’s curator, shared her favourite story from the exhibition, an account of a boy who survived a bombing on Crabtree Lane.
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He said: "The bomb hit us on the night of 20 October 1940.
"I owe my life to Mother’s decision for us to sleep under the stairs, following a previous landmine explosion which had taken out our windows."
![Tractor ploughing the Common, 1944.]()
Tractor ploughing the Common, 1944. (Image: Harpenden & District Local History Society) The exhibition opens on May 3 with a family activities day to celebrate the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
It will run until September, and is open from 11am to 3pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
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