Operation Pied Piper - Northcliffe Collection

On September 1st, 1939, Operation Pied Piper began, relocating 1.5 million people across the UK, with some sent abroad, including to the USA. Evacuations continued beyond Pied Piper, eventually moving around 3 million people. In a photo published by the Daily Mail on March 17th, 1941, children are seen leaving Sussex to escape German bombers. A mother and her baby say goodbye as the daughter boards a train to Yorkshire with her schoolmates. Many evacuees didn’t return until June 1945, and the scheme officially ended in March 1946.

Photo by Frank Rust / Northcliffe Collection.