The Frontier Closure 50 Years On : Part 2 - Supplies
”I remember the little boats coming full of fruit and vegetables and they would tie up at the quay” – Aileen Gordon
On 8th June 1969, Spain’s General Franco closed the land border between Spain and Gibraltar. Overnight supply lines were cut, families were separated and telecommunications ceased. This week, in Part 2 – Supplies, I look back at the impact the frontier closure had on all the provisions coming into Gibraltar, from fruit and vegetables to medical oxygen and building materials. How the community coped, the help which came from further afield and the ingenuity of the Gibraltarian people which helped sustain them during the years of the closure.
My thanks to all those who contributed to Part 2 : Sylvia Ballantine, David Bentata, Paula Galliano, Dr Joseph Garcia, Clive Golt, Aileen Gordon, Manuel Perez, Henry Smart, Annette Tunbridge, Tito Vallejo Smith & Louis Wood.
The photograph used to illustrate this mini series is reproduced by kind permission of the Gibraltar National Archives.
This episode features ‘Going South’ performed by Philip Valverde, my thanks to him for allowing me to use this recording for this purpose.
Other music on this podcast is by DP Music on www.melodyloops.com mixed with Gibraltar atmospheric sounds
Gibraltar Stories is produced, edited and presented by Lindsay Weston.
The Closed Frontier
(Photo: courtesy of the Gibraltar National Archives)
The original Spanish border gates, now on display at Closure! an exhibition about the Frontier Closure in Gibraltar.