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Summary

Former guard room (Building 116), built in 1894 and used as such until 1925. By 1933 it was being used as a barracks. It is now used as the headquarters for visiting units. Its unusual position, set well back from the original entrance is probably due to the fact that the guards were protecting the guns in the neighbouring gun park rather than the entrance itself.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1422217: Okehampton Camp: Building 116 (formerly the Guard Room)

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• GUARDHOUSE (Built, XIX - 1894 AD to 1894 AD)

Full description

English Heritage, 05/09/2014, Okehampton Camp. Building 116 (formerly the Guard Room) (Report - non-specific). SDV357086.

The former guard house (Building 116), designed by James Julian was built in 1894, extended in 1901 with internal alterations made in the mid 20th century. It was used as a guard house until 1925. The
unusual central position of the building, facing, but set well back from, the original camp entrance in the north-east corner, is probably due to the fact that the guards were protecting the guns in the neighbouring gun park, rather than vetting visitors. It was originally a rectangular plan with the main part consisting of the prisoners’ room and guards' room, each with three beds. To the south were two enclosed exercise yards, including ablution blocks, accessed from the guard room. The roof had gable ends, with a veranda on three sides. The north-east corner was extended in 1901 with the addition of a detention room, to create an L-shaped footprint and the roof profile of the east elevation became hipped-shaped. Outside two new cells were created which reduced in size the exercise yard. By 1933 the building was used as a Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) barrack room. The guard room became
accommodation for 16 men and the prisoner room became a NCO’s bedroom. At an unknown date the small cell windows in the south-west corner were dropped, a door and a further window were added to the south elevation, and another door was added to the west elevation, most finished in a similar style to the existing original openings. The central brick chimney stack was also removed. The building is now (2014), used as the headquarters for visiting units.
MATERIAL: slate stone block work with brick quoins to the corners and window openings, the latter with granite window cills and entrance threshold. The windows are all modern uPVC replacements. The roof is slate.
PLAN: an L-shaped building; the original building faces east, towards the former camp entrance, with the later wing added to the north.
EXTERIOR: a single-storey building with a veranda on three sides, supported by tubular stanchions which also act as down pipes, and decorated with chamfered timber supports.The front, east-facing, elevation has an off-centre door and two windows to the left. The south elevation has five windows and a door at the right end. The west elevation contains a door to the right and a window to the left. The south elevation includes further window openings and the exercise yard to the west end. It is now entered via an external door in the stone enclosure wall. It would originally have been solely accessed from the guard room and the blocked brick arch entrance is still evident. The yard contains a single cell and an ablution space. The cell retains the metal vents and a timber cell door with observation hole, topped by a brick arch. The roof is hipped at the east end, with a half gable on the west end. The north end of the side wing is gabled.
INTERIOR: the east door opens into a small lobby with timber partitions. The building contains three rooms and a set of toilets. The former guard room, in the north-east corner, is decorated with chamfer and stop detailing to the chimney breast and in the arches above the windows. The roof is ceiled and constructed of close-coupled rafters.
SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: the exterior is surrounded on three sides by raised paving capped with granite stone and a continuous stone rain gully served by down pipes.
Map object based on this source.

Ordnance Survey, 1904 - 1906, Second Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map (Cartographic). SDV325644.

Building shown.

Wessex Archaeology, 2001, Okehampton Camp Devon. Archaeological Desk Based Assessment and Earthwork Survey, Appendices 1, 3, 6 (Pl. 5) (Report - Survey). SDV360511.

Francis, P., 2002, Okehampton Artillery Camp Historical Appraisal, 41, Pl. 40, Appendix 2 (Report - Assessment). SDV276160.

The original guardhouse built in 1894 and used as such until at least 1925. In its original form the buildings had a rectangular-shaped plan form with the main part comprising a prisoner room with three beds and a guardroom. At the rear was an enclosed exercise yard with outbuildings. Constructed of limestone block with brick quoins and window dressings under a slate roof. A feature of its design was the roof which incorportated a veranda along three sides. The building was extended in 1901 almost doubling it in size while outside two new cells were created reducing the size of the exercise yard. It is now used as the headquarters for visiting units.

Wessex Archaeology, 2002, Okehampton Camp. Archaeological Building Recording Survey and Final Earthwork Survey Report, Appendices 1, 3, 6 (Pl. 5) (Report - Survey). SDV348121.

Ordnance Survey, 2014, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV355681.

Map object based on this source.

Historic England, 2015, National Heritage List for England (National Heritage List for England). SDV358087.

Okehampton Camp: Building 116 (formerly the Guard Room).
Summary of Building
Former guard house built in 1894 and designed by James Julian, extended in 1901, with internal alterations in mid-C20.
Reasons for Designation
Building 116, the former Guards House of 1894, is listed at Grade II, for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: it has strong cultural and historical significance, within both a local and national context. The Royal Artillery Training Camp at Okehampton played an important role in the advancement of new military techniques and tactics from the late C19; * Rarity: of the three artillery training camps to have been established in the late-C19, Okehampton is the only one to survive with a legible group of contemporary buildings of note, of which Building 116 is one; * Architectural interest: a handsome and distinctive design that denotes its important position within the camp, it is built using quality materials such as rubbed brick, local slate stone and granite and is one of the more successful architectural statements of this Victorian military generation; * Intactness: despite some adaptation, to be expected for the maintenance of structures in this relatively inhospitable location on the edge of Dartmoor, the original use and function of the building is legible and the building survives well; * Group value: it forms an historic group with other late-C19 camp buildings, with which it has a related use and design concept. Together they form a compact pre-mechanised transport artillery training camp; * Setting: additional and significant interest is provided by the relationship of the camp to Okehampton Range on the Dartmoor Training Area, which in part overlooks the camp and instigated the creation of the camp. It contains evidence of its late-C19 and later use by the occupants of the camp. The range is of high historic significance in itself, and the two sites should not be seen in isolation of each other.
See listing description for history of site and full description of building.

English Heritage, 2015, Okehampton Camp: Building 116 (formerly the Guard Room), Okehampton, Devon (Correspondence). SDV359017.

Notification that the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport has decided to add Building 116 (formerly the Guard Room) to the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. The building is now listed at Grade II.

English Heritage, 25/07/2014, Okehampton Camp. Building No. 116 (Correspondence). SDV357084.

Notification that English Heritage is undertaking a project to consider a number of the military buildings on Okehampton Training Camp for addition to the National Heritage List for England. The project was initiated by the Ministry of Defence and an inspection of the camp buildings was carried out by English Heritage in April 2014. As a result of this inspection a number of buildings have been carried forward for full assessment, including building No. 116.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6567 - Inspection of Buildings at Okehampton Camp
• EDV5539 - Okehampton Artillery Camp Historical Appraisal
• EDV5544 - Building Recording and Earthwork Survey at Okehampton Camp
• EDV3474 - Earthwork survey of Okehampton Castle and Park

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