My Cold War Dad
Whilst working on the Cold War Women project I learned that my father, Allan John Stow, born in Hull in 1936, served as a soldier during the Cold War. As part of his National Service he served with the Royal Engineers, British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). He was stationed at Assaye Barracks in Nienburg, West Germany from 1955 to 1957.
In Autumn 2018, I visited Nienburg and stood on the former parade ground, now a car park. I imagined my 19-year-old Dad who had never been away from his terraced home in East Hull, performing his drills and writing letters home to Maureen whom he married mid-way through his service.
I photographed the ruins of the barracks and the former regiment bar, its walls still marked with Cold War graffiti. I imagined Dad and his fellow young soldiers enjoying a beer, or three.