War Office Depot

[Symptoms]

I remember a Depot (War Office or Min of Defense) that overlooked the coast somewhere North of Bedders (maybe between Cambois & Cresswell ???) back in the 60s. Big site with a very high barbed-wire fence and monster green buildings - sort of giant Nissen huts. Can anybody confirm?

Obviously there's nothing on current OS maps.

[Maggie/915]

Boulmer maybe.

Huge underground complex.

[tonyg]

Cambois up beside wembley

[Cyril]

Cambois up beside wembley

I think the big green buildings are still there "nissan huts" I think they were reffered to.

[threegee]

http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Nissen_hut

...or maybe they were the Japanese variant?

Talking about variants I didn't know about these. Copied from the Nissen Hut design! Anyone recognise a pattern here?

[Malcolm Robinson]

Mk1 polytunnels.

[Symptoms]

"Cambois up beside wembley" - I don't know what this means.

"Mk1 polytunnels." - poo!

Maggs - not as far up as Boulmer ... I'm sure they were near Sleekburn.

[tonyg]

Between Wembley Terrace and . Sleekburn school,the huts at one time were full of army equipment

[Keith Scantlebury]

They were where Fergusons industrial estate is now , just as Tony says not far from the school, opposite Synpac (formerly Glaxo). It is actually two estates and the one nearest Cambois still has a lot of the old buildings, (although the nissen huts are long gone)

[Symptoms]

Phew ... thank goodness my brain isn't turning to mush and that I wasn't mistaken about this depot. I know that post-war and cold-war there were stategic depots all over the place and maybe ours was there for easy access to Blyth (port, power station, pits, etc).

During the cold-war the Peelers did exercises called Mobile Columns so they'd be ready for 'when the balloon went up'. The Mobile Columns consisted of troops under the control of the Peelers and were area or regionally based and with access to local depots for their vehicles and other tackle - I was told that our depot was one of these. These MCs had a book of regulations (called the Blue Book) so they could, under the emergency powers, deal with the civilian population; they could extract immediate punishments, including death by firing squad.

I don't know how much of this stuff is still officially secret but, if you don't hear from me again you'll know I've had the 4am knock and have been lifted. Poor old Sym - electrodes on the nuts ... ZZZZZZZZZ ... until I talk. I'll break, and give-up Mal as being a traitor (a mackem).

[Maggie/915]

You learn something new every day.

My childhood was lacking discovery time at Cambois.

Aliens and Monsters! Oops sorry I meant to say, that the powers that be we're protecting us all from disaster!

On the basis of the film threads set in Sheffield, I think, in the event of nuclear warfare the best option is death.

[Maggie/915]

You learn something new every day.

My childhood was lacking discovery time at Cambois.

Aliens and Monsters! Oops sorry I meant to say, that the powers that be we're protecting us all from disaster!

On the basis of the film threads set in Sheffield, I think, in the event of nuclear warfare the best option is death.

[HIGH PIT WILMA]

Eh!...just thi otha neet,a posted a greet lang story aboot me next door retired-miner neighbour,who,in the mid-sixties,

took a part-time job,doon at the Nissen huts at Cambois.[He had ti sign thi official secrets act!as a store-keeper!!]

They used ti hev the words"British Sugar Corporation"written in huge letters,on the sides of the huts,easily seen from the air,and which,I suspect,was a code-word during the war.

Aal find where a posted the story aboot the huts,and re-post it here.[a think it was in the thread aboot the Nuclear bunkers...]

Edited November 2, 2014 by HIGH PIT WILMA

[HIGH PIT WILMA]

It's on thi "Sierra-hire Nissen Hut",thread,but a divvent knaa hoo ti move it ti here!!

[pilgrim]

Symptoms..

you are spot on re the info -- during the 'cold war' there were many area depots where emergency 'civil defence' equipment was kept and that was one of them. the basic idea was that the mobile column would bugger off to the hills if it looked like a nuke was going to be dropped and come back when it was safe and try to restore what was left of civilisation. the scenario of a bomb drop was worked out very carefully and the zones of radiation for different megatonnage was plotted if it should happen. the general populace would be left at home as all petrol stations would be closed and held by armed guards. roads would also be closed. strange thing was about the mobile columns was that they selected young fit folk for them and trained them -- i.e. breeding stock. 

[Maggie/915]

Thank Goodness for Peace and not War.