Grafton Underwood

[PETERTHEEATER]

Hopefully Peter will be able to identify the various bits and bobs.

The four HE Bomb Stores (green squares on your map) were to AM Drawing 5416/40. Your keen eye has spotted the white painted brick which made the wall more visible at night using 'blackout' lighting on vehicles. Bomb Store tractors had really solid front wheel covers (mudguards) which was just as well since scrapes were frequent!

The red square is a Component Store but identifying the drawing number is a guess. A singlestore fully earth traversed makes it a Type A so AM Drawing 13426/40 (this number is also in doubt; too many digits!)

Two Fuzing Sheds are spaced symetrically on the lower oval. AM Drawing Number unknown.

The structure in the middle of the lower oval appears to be the Fuzed Bomb & Spare Bomb Store also 5416/40

The four red squares on the right of the lower oval should be an Incendiary Bomb & Pyrotechnic Store 18185/40 but that was a triple store

The building on the NE track I can't ID. I am intrigued by the aperture in the rear elevation in-line with the front door. Seems to have traces of a lighting conductor

The support buildings in the south road area are anyones guess but the group (you have marked them green) could be Small Bomb Container Stores .

As you are aware, a supplementary bomb store was built in the immediate SW in the bottom section of the wood.

Thanks for the photos of what was a neat layout but not well recorded.

[P Bellamy]

Not a problem Peter, I knew what you meant...

After looking at some of the other 1940-design ordnance storage structures the possible SAA store seems to have a similar covered "porch" over the actual doorway, which in this case has had a low wall built across one opening that would otherwise entail stepping out to an 6' drop.

Hope that makes some sort of sense,
PB

[PETERTHEEATER]

Having studied your pictures again with your extra info I can now see what you mean. The apparent 'window' aperture in the rear elevation is the opposite end of the entrance porch. Curious that a raised earth causeway was built and the building located on the end. It is possible that it is (was) a Component Store. The isolated location points to that and omission of the usual full earth traversing might be because of the extent of the outside safety distance (OSD). I need to look at Moreton Valence which I think had a similar building.

[P Bellamy]

Now I have a copy of the RSP (August 1944 with amendments to April 1945) it all becomes clear(ish)..

Hopefully Peter will be able to identify the various bits and bobs.

The four HE Bomb Stores (green squares on your map) were to AM Drawing 5416/40. Your keen eye has spotted the white painted brick which made the wall more visible at night using 'blackout' lighting on vehicles. Bomb Store tractors had really solid front wheel covers (mudguards) which was just as well since scrapes were frequent!

Buildings 166-169: Incendiary Bomb Stores, Brick, 5416/40

The red square is a Component Store but identifying the drawing number is a guess. A singlestore fully earth traversed makes it a Type A so AM Drawing 13426/40 (this number is also in doubt; too many digits!)

Building 172: Components Store, Brick, 18185/40

Two Fuzing Sheds are spaced symetrically on the lower oval. AM Drawing Number unknown.

Building 173 (the eastern one): Bomb Fusing Building, Heavy, 15963/40
Building 174 (the western one): Bomb Fusing Building, Light, 15963/40

The structure in the middle of the lower oval appears to be the Fuzed Bomb & Spare Bomb Store also 5416/40

Not shown on the RSP, neither is the one further south.

The four red squares on the right of the lower oval should be an Incendiary Bomb & Pyrotechnic Store 18185/40 but that was a triple store.

Buildings 175-178: SAA Stores, Nissen, Standard, no drawing number.

The building on the NE track I can't ID. I am intrigued by the aperture in the rear elevation in-line with the front door. Seems to have traces of a lighting conductor.

Building 170: SAA Store, Brick, 15924/40.
There was an adjacent hut, the floor slab of which survives but is slipping down the enbankment.
This was Building 171: SAA Store, Nissen, Type B, 12725/41.

The support buildings in the south road area are anyones guess but the group (you have marked them green) could be Small Bomb Container Stores.

I'm afraid the OS map wasn't drawn very clearly here, but would be an easy mistake to make if using an aerial photo for reference...

Building 179: Incendiary Bomb and Pyrotechnics Store, Brick, 18185/40.

The immediately to the north was Building 180: Pyrotechnics Store, Nissen, Type A, 12725/41.
The at the end of the spur road opposite was Building 181: Components Store, Steel, Type A, 4733/42.
The little one beside the road was a sand and salt store.

All the best,
PB

[PETERTHEEATER]

Thanks Paul.

Yes, the OS symbol confused the ID! I couldn't understand why there was no obvious Pyro & IB Store (triple) 18185/40 since that was the standard.

For the Component Store 18185/40, is it shown on the RSP as Type A? They are quite rare in my research with others at Moreton Valence and Kimbolton.

So the mystery building at the end of the earth causeway (Bldg 1170) is an SAA Store. I have the drawing number listed.

The four 5416/40 stores shown as Incendiary Bomb Stores on your RSP copy would, originally, have been HE Bomb Stores but have reverted to IB Stores when the supplementary later (1942) bomb store in the south west was opened. This was a common reassignment. The later (1942/43) almost identical structures did not have the brick end walls to the traverses (austerity!)

The Component Store (Bldg 181) is also found as Permanent Concrete (same drawing number) the 'Steel' notation, as far as I can find, was the stronger version of a Nissen, 12 feet long with internal steel frames.

[P Bellamy]

Sadly there is no Type letter listed against the Component Store.

[PETERTHEEATER]

Thanks. Following the convention seen on some other AM Drawings, the different variants appear on the same drawing sheet but with a Type letter A, B C etc. The standard 18185/40 was three buildings side by side but the single building version (two compartment) I think was 18185/40 Type A

[P Bellamy]

Evening Telegraph report on today's commemoration service:
http://www.northantstelegraph.co.uk/...sary-1-4176936

Continuing the ET's long-standing tradition of not quite getting things right:

...proceedings were kicked off with a salute from planes from RAF Alconbury.

I suppose that explains why we couldn't see or hear them then.

Good to see a few familiar faces in the crowd, shame my camera died this morning so I'll leave it to others to post their snaps in due course.

All the best,
PB

[Ossington_2008]

Recent pics:

[Arcade Al]

Evening Telegraph report on today's commemoration service:
http://www.northantstelegraph.co.uk/...sary-1-4176936

Continuing the ET's long-standing tradition of not quite getting things right:



I suppose that explains why we couldn't see or hear them then.

That's because they were Phantoms...