| Original caption: “Injured by German bomb, Margaret Curtis, age two, is about to die. When a lone German bomber came over, Margaret’s mother tried covering her little daughter with her own body but was herself killed instantly. Margaret’s brother, five-year-old Roy, survived with serious injuries. Also killed were Margaret’s father and grandmother. The cruelest and perhaps most effective plan of the German bombers is to rattle, terrorize and keep awake the working population of Great Britain.With that in mind, a single German bomber flew over the little Welsh town shown on this page late at night and dropped nine small bombs. He succeeded in waking the entire population and killing five civilians, including [this] child. He brought the war to these Welshmen of the hills, but there was not a military objective in sight. The Curtis family who lived in the one house destroyed did not own one of the Anderson steel shelters which have saved civilians from everything except a direct hit. Instead, the mother used her own body in vain trying to save her two small children.” A heavily bandaged Welsh infant, Margaret Curtis (1938 – Still living as of March 2024), badly injured in a German Blitzkrieg attack during the Battle of Britain. At 2300 Hours, August 12, 1940, a German Luftwaffe aircraft attacking the Llandarcy Refinery in Wales dropped a bomb which hit 248 Old Road, Briton Ferry, Neath Port Talbot. The bomb passed through the back roof of the house, leaving a small hole, and detonated in the front of the home. 248 Old Road was occupied by the Curtis Family. Samuel J. Curtis (August 28, 1870 – January 1949), pensioner, was asleep in the upstairs back bedroom and thus survived the tragedy, as did his daughter-in-law, homemaker Edith W. “Winnie” Curtis (neé Richards; November 8, 1912 – July 1987). His wife, homemaker Mary B. Curtis (September 18, 1871 – August 13, 1940) and son, Winnie’s husband, also Samuel H. Curtis (February 8, 1906 – August 13, 1940), sheet mill worker, died in the blast, as they were taking care of the children, Royston H. Curtis (April 1933 – Still living as of March 2024) and Margaret. Mary gave her life sheltering the children. Also killed was Air Raid Warden Harold L. Cockwell (September 12, 1902 – August 13, 1940), who lived at 197 Old Road, but responded to the blast and was killed trying to enter the building. Samuel J., Samuel H., Winnie, Margaret, and Royston were admitted to the hospital with serious injuries. Margaret had cuts to her face, eyes, and swelling around her head. A photograph of her in the hospital was published in the September 9, 1940, issue of LIFE Magazine and elicited enormous sympathy in the United States and Canada and other Allied nations. Gertrude Hearn (February 16, 1890 – November 29, 1940) died of cancer in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. She was related to the Curtis family as their aunt. Fearing that the shock of the deaths, and fearing at the time that Margaret had severe brain damage (“struck dumb” in the language of the time) her husband, Thomas Hearn (1890 – ????) forbade any copies of LIFE Magazine in her hospital room. She passed not knowing of the tragedy. Hamilton Spectator reporter Gordon V. Kinsdon (???? – ????) brought the story to the attention of LIFE Magazine readers in the February 24, 1941, Letters to the Editors column. But it wasn’t Margaret who was “struck dumb” – it was her older brother Royston. He appeared dead to rescuers at the scene of the bombing. He was in a coma for 4 weeks in hospital. A fractured skull had caused blood clots in his brain, especially in the part that regulates speech. The September 22, 1941, issue contained pictures of a recovered Margaret, growing fast, and detailed the procedure that American doctor Henry L. Heyl (October 2, 1906 – March 1, 1975) used to remove the pressure on Royston’s brain. Calling the clot the size of “a lemon,” Dr. Heyl used a “trap door” technique of leaving a hinge of bone and flesh to remove 2 clots. Royston was able to speak after the procedure. Hey had read about Margaret, and convinced he could help her, came to the United Kingdom to operate. When he arrived, he discovered it was her brother, not Margaret, and performed the operation. The Australian magazine Pix recorded the family’s recovery in a November 21, 1942, photo essay – “Normal Childhood For Two War Casualties,” revealing a 2nd operation was done to drain excess spinal fluid. The children seem to be recovering, playing in a garden. The January 11, 1944, Evening Chronicle recorded that Doctor Heyl had trained surgeons to perform 2,000 major operations similar to Royston’s. William Vandivert (August 16, 1912 – December 1, 1989) took this photo in hospital. He stated he hated to interrupt Curtis’s recovery, but felt it was important to show the suffering of the British civilians. As of March 2024, Margaret and Royston are living in Wales. The house was repaired and was still standing as of March 2024. | |
| Image Filename | wwii2083.jpg |
| Image Size | 215.42 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 1139 x 1439 |
| Photographer | William Vandivert |
| Photographer Title | |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | August 14, 1940 |
| Location | Neath |
| City | Port Talbot |
| State or Province | Wales |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Archive | |
| Record Number | |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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