Pillbox at Cornsay - County Durham

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jonney

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I have been researching WW2 defenses in County Durham, as there is not a lot on the Defense of Britain database and found this pillbox (amongst others; photo's to follow as I take them). I believe that it is a searchlight because of its location, being very remote and only approx. 6-7 miles from the Consett Iron and Steel works. This was the largest industrial factory in the area and had several, well documented, searchlight sites positioned in about the same sort of radius although this one is never mentioned. Anyway me and Daddybear went and had a look today so on with the pics...

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One of the embrasures
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Internal shot - no graffiti
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Inside looking back at the door showing the ricochet wall
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The front and back "Kill Zones"
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Further down the road we spotted these..
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They are being used as gate posts but I think they were used as a road block as they both have 4 bolts embedded in the top of them and they are roughly the right size

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P.S. Thanks to Daddybear for doing the driving although the music left a lot to de desired and his singing...Well.

Thanks for looking Jon
 
Hello Jonney I am liking that Pillbox a lot. Unusual one that and in fantastic condition as well. you will have Foxy in raptures!:mrgreen:
 
It's the first of the ones I was telling you about in your WW1 pillbox post. Most of them are of the same design and in the same condition and in the same sort of rural location (up on the hill tops). One of the more published pillboxes even has a stove in it (but no ricochet wall). Below is a picture of it that I knic*** aquired from another web site of it.

db_BroomhillStove1.jpg


Will be going over there to get my own photo's as soon as I can

Cheers Jon
 
Oh, nice one. Not a searchlight emplacement, though. Tis a Type 22.
The pic of the one with a stove is brill. Never seen that before.
Nice find, jon. :)
 
It is a searchlight site foxy. Up here they used type 22's as defense for the actual search lights but in most cases there is no trace of the actual light, they were probably were trailer based.

Sorry, jon...I thought you meant the pillbox was the actual searchlight emplacement! :lol:
I see what you mean now. Interesting, as I hadn't heard of mobile searchlights before, although it really does make sense to utilize them as and where needed. Cheers for that. :)

So what would denote a searchlight emplacement then Foxy.

Here's one, Shuck. It's a CASLE...coastal artillery searchlight emplacement, and is built into the cliff face on the sea front of my town. :)

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Showing the wide viewpoint to sweep the searchlight across the sea.

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Yeah Foxy we have a few similar to that on the North East coast but these are well inland (approx. 20/25 miles as the crow flies). The vast majority of our defenses were situated on the coast and around the airfields. Inland the pillboxes defended strategic road & rail places and searchlight sites. The searchlight probably looked like this...


450px-Searchlight_-_WWII_anti-aircraft.JPG


I have just found a reference to a surviving spigot mortar site locally with back filled trenches near it, near the site of an old colliery so I am going to investigate further and hopefully find that as well. God the todo list grows ever bigger. :) Cheers Jon
 
pillbox

There is a very similar pillbox to this near me,its in a field in kirkbymoorside and i think it too was for searchlight or anti aircraft installation due to wombleton airfield being near which if i recall correctly was a heavy bomber base flying lancasters during second world war.its in excellent condition and i will put a report up later this afternoon now i see this is of interest to some folk : ) cheers simon
 
i think that lamp might be a bit to big to take out lamping with my lurcher>!!nice pic tho jonney
 
Nice one jonney. :)

It is an interesting location by the looks of things. We did notice a pillbox on the valley floor near to Hounsgill (spel?) Viaduct. That one will be much closer to the steelworks I think.

The mention of a spigot mortar post reminded me of something I was told by my father. He said that Seaton Delaval Colliery had three of them (plus machine guns) near to the colliery itself. A bypass covers them now!

It does go to show just how important the coal mines ( and steel works ) were to the war effort.

Thanks for posting. :)
 
Foxy I think they were usually placed on concrete platforms but I'm not 100% on this. When me and Daddybear were out the other day we think we might have found a possible base for the searchlight (in the field behind the road block which could be why they were there) but we couldn't get close enough because there were lambs in the field and its next to the farm. Here's a pic of it see what you think I zoomed in on it and its made of concrete

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Would love to know your thoughts on this...

Cheers Jon
 
Sausage that pillbox was the same as this one a searchlight site for the steel works. As legend has it the Germans flew a reccy misson over the site and they could not fire up the light because they has swapped all the petrol they had with the local farmers for eggs, meat etc. It is known as Moorside Pilbox

Cheers Jon
 
Ah rite. :)
Funny story that one!

The stove - I'm probably way off here but it actually looks like an old clothes boiler. I have seen many examples in derelict farms and countryside buildings. They would light a small coal/wood fire below and then boil the clothes before working on cleaning them.
 
To be honest with you Sausage I've not really had a look at that one yet, and only seen the photo's of it on the website. As for the stove I'll take your word for it mate as I have no idea, never seen one before.


Foxy it is some way down the lane from the pillbox but I think because of the gradient of the hill (doesn't look that steep in the photo - my dodgy camera work) the light would have to be raised up so that it was level and balanced so it could possible be its site. Going to have to get better look at it. It's going to bug the life out of me now.
 
jonney - is there any chance you could put a flash earth link up for the concrete thing in the field?

I tend to search old maps and images when I've got nothing to do.....
 
Mmmm!

I was going to be all smug and say that the concrete thing was part of an old mine but I don't think it was!

To rule out anything other than war-time structure I think you will need to get up close to it. It may be part of something which the nearby farm once had ( pumping point, slurry etc ) and until you get a closer look you won't be able to rule it out.

My ordnance survey maps at home don't cover this area in particular and it is impossible for me to find on oldmaps.com because I just don't know this area and keep getting lost!

The mystery deepens... :)
 

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