AMERSHAM Museum is crying out for Blitz babies to come forward and take part in a exhibition.

During the war years, expectant mothers from across the South East and London were sent to Shardeloes, the Amersham country house of the Tyrwhitt-Drake family, which was turned into a maternity hospital.

The hospital witnessed the birth of hundreds of babies, many born to women fleeing the terror of the Blitz in London's East End.

Museum curators want to track down the 'grown-up' babies themselves or people who knew them.

Monica Mullins, honorary curator at Amersham said: "I've been contacted by a number of people born at Shardeloes and spoken to some of the people who were nurses there but we still don't know too much about why some of these women came all the way from London to have their babies or indeed where they came from,"

A link with St Mary's Hospital in Paddington is also being explored.

"It's a bit of a detective story. We know that Shardeloes was linked at one time to St Mary's but when I spoke to their archivist he told me that many of their records had been destroyed- so we are still looking for new clues."

Shardeloes' role during the war is just part of a new exhibition exploring the history of the Tyrwhitt-Drake country house estate from the fourteenth century onwards.

Private family photographs and previously unseen memorabilia will also be on display at the Museum In Amersham High Street, from August 11.