Great Ellingham Parish Church of St James
The entries in the Burial Registers for St James’s Church, Great Ellingham, includes the burials of two men from the ‘Polish Hostel’, Great Ellingham.
I decided to obtain the corresponding death certificates to try to gain more information about these men.
Jan Szalobryt
Jan Szalobryt died on the 15th May, 1949 aged 48. He passed away at the Agricultural Executive Committee Hostel, Great Ellingham, following a cerebral haemorrhage. The death certificate also tells us that Jan was a cook at the Hostel.
Franciszek Szpetnar
Franciszek Szpetnar died on the 10th July, 1949 aged 30. Although the death certificate gives his address as the Norfolk Agricultural Executive Committee Hostel, Great Ellingham, Franciszek died at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital. He had suffered with peritonitis and a ruptured appendix. Franciszek was a general farm worker.
Frederick A M Willer [also referred to as Willis] registered both deaths.
Polish Hostel
The ‘Polish Hostel’ may have been in one or more of the former USAAF Deopham Green camp buildings. Some of these buildings were in Hingham Road and Bow Street.
Following the end of WW2, there were many displaced persons around the World. Many people sought refuge in the UK. In 1947, the government passed a law to settle a large number of migrants – including 150,000 Polish people.
Norfolk Agricultural Executive Committee
The Norfolk Agricultural Executive Committee may well have co-ordinated work on local farms for the re-settlement of such persons here in Norfolk. This included Franciszek Szpetnar and Jan Szalobryt. Unfortunately, I do not know anything further about the two men or the Hostel. However, they may well have lived in basic conditions.
Do you have any Further Knowledge?
I would be pleased to hear from anyone with any knowledge of the ‘Polish Hostel’ and the people who may have lived there.
Sources:
Great Ellingham Parish Registers. Norfolk Record Office. PD 609. Also available www.ancestry.co.uk
Death Certificates obtained https://www.gov.uk/general-register-office
Our Migration Story website. Polish Soldiers and refugees in World War II Britain Accessed 06.05.2024