Earsham Forward Ammunition Depot

[Steve Nunn]

Earsham- Stn 545, Forward Ammunition Depot

Hi one and all. Just to introduce myself, I'm in Norwich, Norfolk, UK and am a mature (sometimes...) student studying History and Landscape at the local university (UEA). I'm doing a project on the village of Earsham in Norfolk and am trying to get as much info as I can about the USAAF Forward Ammunition Depot there (1942-45 and beyond). Can anyone help? Units assigned, command structure, stations served, ordnance stored and so on?

Thanks in advance.

cheers

Steve

[PETERTHEEATER]

Earsham was used by the USAAF as a Forward Depot (FD) for aircraft munitions. Designated Station 545. The 1916 Ordnace Ammunition Company (Aviation) were there along with the 2217 QM Truck Company (Aviation)

Nowadays I am like an octopus, retired, trying to do the things that I want to do interrupted by family committments and I have misplaced my notes. I will see what I can find; sure I have some diagrams somewhere!

Carnaby; help!

[Carnaby]

I have some diagrams somewhere! Carnaby; help!

This is strange - as a result of the Hockering thread below I immediately decided to put up a starter thread on Earsham. I have the plans but they are very poor quality - hence the delay. I will do something within the next few days. A number of woods were used by the unit. It will be interesting to see if there is access which will reveal if there are any remains.

Graham

[Steve Nunn]

Thanks Peter and Carnaby - this is great stuff, much appreciated.

A fellow student and I contacted the USAF Historical Unit at Maxwell AF Base in Alamaba, and they appear not to have very much information. A local resident (at Earsham) was able to supply some anecdotal information about where the units were accommodated - he couldn't identify the units of course, so your information is very useful, thanks. I've requested some plans from the RAF Museum at Hendon, which I believe relate to USAF post-war presence from around 1949 to very early '50s. I would imagine the ground plans would be similar even if the ordnance was different. If you also have the plans that would be even better!

I have seen the site and there is still some hard standing relatively intact, and the remains of a couple of small Nissen huts (or if I'm picky about it, probably Questor huts i.e. the corrugated roofs go direct to ground level with no supporting brickwork).

I'm curious as to why the site was chosen for an FAD. Almost certainly because there is a lot of woodland around which would act as blast defence. The Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum has some very brief documentation in their 'Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum, Airfields of Norfolk and Suffolk' (Parts 1 and 2, 1977, 1979), held at the 2nd Air Div Memorial Library in Norwich, also at the UEA library. The N&S Museum archivist was very helpful but said very little was known about the site. There is one curious reference to the FAD servicing air bases within a radius of 42 miles, which seems a little ambitious, as this would take in a huge number of USAAF bases in Norfolk and Suffolk. I wonder if Earsham was in fact a very major site - and how many other FADs were located in East Anglia at that time?

Thanks for your ongoing help on this - apologies if my reply is a little waffly!

Steve

[sumter]

Steve,

See my posts here about Bures FAD - which was not dissimilar to Earsham in serving USAAF units. I've also sent you a PM.

sumter

[tbeach]

I have Find a storage area sandwiched between Seething, Hardwick and Flixton. There is a lot of tracks that you can see from google map and norfolk e-map explorer. Then off these tracks are small storage areas. Also in one area there is two orignal nissan huts in mint condition and a concreate pad where you can see where a build used to stand.

These are the links to see for your self.
Google Maps
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&...27466&t=h&z=15

Norfolk e-Maps
http://www.historic-maps.norfolk.gov...p?PID=10&NJS=0

[sumter]

I think you'll find that's Earsham ordnance depot. See here.

[PETERTHEEATER]

There were two sites. The other is here:

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=52.46197 ... 58&src=msl

[philbasildon]

There was a USAAF bomb depot in the area, a long siding with a concrete hardstanding was put in between Homersfield and Earlsham on the Tivethall to Beccles railway line to serve it.
At Pulham Market nearer to Tivethall, Pulham airfield had a direct connection to the line and its own 2 foot gauge railway.

[tbeach]

Can you still this from flash earth?