Just in time for Christmas, a painting of a donkey named Jessie who helped deliver mail in Shrewsbury during World War II has been rediscovered. Jessie and her handler, Private Ellis, became essential helpers during the holiday rush, ensuring that soldiers received their Christmas greetings.
A painting of 'The Donkey who Saved Christmas ' in Shrewsbury during the Second World War has been rediscovered - just in time for the festive season. Dr Robert MacKinnon thought that with Christmas just around the corner, it would be the perfect time to re-tell the tale of the little donkey plodding Shrewsbury ’s dusty roads with her precious load. Sacks of greetings cards and heart-warming gifts streamed their way into the Royal Mail sorting office at Shrewsbury .
Without extra help, the sheer amount of mail threatened to overwhelm the delivery staff. Enter Jessie and Private Ellis, at the ready to lend a hoof and a hand. The painting of Jessie the donkey, which is at the Soldiers of Shropshire Museum at Shrewsbury Castle Jessie was an army donkey and Private Ellis a soldier in the King’s Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI). Both normally worked together delivering soldier’s kit bags between Shrewsbury railway station and the Flaxmill Maltings, which at the time was a military training centre. A photograph in the archives of the Soldiers of Shropshire Museum shows Jessie and Private Ellis posing for the camera whilst out delivering the 1941 Christmas mail.“Jessie is shown with her normal cart. Apparently she could pull a bit under half a tonne. “Donkeys are capable of carrying heavy loads relative to their size. This, and their ability for quick changes in speed, would have meant Jesse was an ideal Santa’s little helper on the streets of Shrewsbury! “Jessie was groomed everyday and Private Ellis, an ex-miner from the South Wales coalfields, cared a lot about her. Many years later he would talk fondly to others about Jessie. She would not leave for work until consuming a ‘grass roll’ and had ‘shaken herself into a comfortable roughness’, meaning she had prepared her body for the day ahead. “Private Ellis had trained Jessie at the outbreak of the war for her kit carrying role. She is about four years old in the pictur
World War II Shrewsbury Donkey Christmas History
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