Second World War In 1940 Anna Essinger (1879–1960), a German Jewish educator, evacuated her boarding school, Bunce Court School from Otterden, in Kent to Trench Hall, near Wem. She facilitated Kindertransport. The US created a storage facility at Aston Park estate on 14 December 1942. The facility was later converted to a prisoner of war camp, and was used for that purpose until 1948. Nineteen men of Wem are recorded to have died serving in the Second World War. After the War Wem was struck by an F1/T2 tornado on 23 November 1981, as part of the record-breaking nationwide tornado outbreak on that day. In November 1995 the town hall suffered a catastrophic fire. It reopened after repair, renewal, and redesign in 2000. 21st century From 2002 to 2019 the Morgan Library building was leased to 'Mythstories', which styles itself as the world's first museum of storytelling. Wem is a Transition Town. A "lost castle" was recently discovered near the town. In 2023 efforts began to establish a community owned pub in the district. Legends Secret tunnels There is said to have been a tunnel from the cellars under the castle mound to the building formerly known as "The Moathouse", and then on under Mill Street to Roden House, the former rectory, and there are blocked doorways in the cellars of both of these houses. Wem ghost In 1995 an amateur photographer photographed a blaze which destroyed Wem Town Hall; the photo appeared to show the ghostly figure of a young female in a window of the burning building, dressed in 'old-fashioned' clothes. Although the photographer (who died in 2005) denied forgery, after his death it was suggested that the girl in his photo bore a 'striking similarity' with one in a postcard of the town from 1922. Treacle Mines Wem is reputed to have "treacle mines", although It is not possible to mine treacle. Two explanations have been offered for this legend: (a) that a confectioners shop, despite the rationing and food shortages of the Second World War was apparently always in stock of candy; alternatively (b) the byproduct of the tanning industry within the town was considered to resemble treacle. Coat of arms and flag The Wem Town Council use arms which are the shield of Shropshire, with a phoenix crest, with the shield laid over of an axe and a scythe. Economy The pre-modern economy of the