Occupation doctor's Soviet watch donated to War Tunnels
- Published
The tunnel museum was used as an underground hospital during the occupation
A gift presented to the family of a Jersey doctor who helped Russian slaves escape during WWII has been donated to the war museum.
Dr Noel McKinstry's gift from the Soviet government was given to Jersey War Tunnels by his grandchildren.
During the German occupation, Dr McKinstry provided identity and ration cards to Russian escapees.
The Medical Officer for Health also ran a safe house while slave workers learned English to avoid being caught.
The dress watch with a brown leather strap and solid gold casing was presented by the Soviet government to his family after Dr McKinstry's death in 1961 at the age of 69.
Underground hospital
The War Tunnels curator Chris Addy said it would be put on display to remind people of the sacrifices people made to help others during the island's occupation.
The museum - a former underground hospital used by the Germans during the war - is a tunnel complex which hosts a series of galleries detailing the occupation.
The Channel Island's were the only part of the British Isles to come under Nazi occupation during WWII.
They were occupied from July 1940 until being liberated in May 1945.