Summary

Pillbox (destroyed)

Full description

Along this stretch of the beach there were five wooden pavilions for bathing, refreshments and amusements built between 1929-1936. With the advent of World War Two and the subsequent construction of coastal defences, two of them, W of Kings Avenue and E of York Road (SMR 21164), were stripped and transformed to provide a roofed camouflage for a concrete pillbox. These pavilions were built on wooden piles with a wooden floor, walls and roof. The walls were removed but the roof was retained on side and corner posts with the pillbox hidden within the heart of the structure. This can be seen on various postcards and ground-level photos taken both during and immediately after the war. <1>

The pillbox was demolished around 1947 and the pavilion followed soon afterwards. <2>

<1> Kennel, R - in the collection of, 1942, In the collection of R. Kennell (Photograph). SEX67963.

<2> Kennell, R, 2006, Personal comment August 2006 (Verbal communication). SEX67962.

Monument Types

• PILLBOX (WWII, Modern - 1939 AD to 1945 AD)

Associated Events

• WWII Defences of Clacton - field visits by Fred Nash in August 2006 (Ref: Nash TEN Aug 2006)

Sources and further reading

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