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| HER Number: | MDV54211 |
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| Name: | Heath Farm Searchlight Battery |
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Summary
World War II searchlight battery at Heath Farm, part of a chain of similar sites covering the approaches to Bristol and Cardiff.
Location
| Grid Reference: | SX 691 973 |
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| Map Sheet: | SX69NE |
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| Admin Area | Devon |
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| Civil Parish | Spreyton |
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| District | West Devon |
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| Ecclesiastical Parish | SPREYTON |
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Protected Status: none recorded
Other References/Statuses
- Old DCC SMR Ref: SX69NE/68
Monument Type(s) and Dates
- SEARCHLIGHT BATTERY (World War II - 1939 AD to 1945 AD (Between))
Full description
Royal Air Force, 13/04/1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1995, 3186; HER 35/11 (Aerial Photograph). SDV224714.
The nissen huts are visible in the field to the west of the farm complex.
Horner, W., 1995, Searchlight Battery (Worksheet). SDV234910.
Site visited on 9th June 1995. World War II searchlight battery at Heath Farm Spreyton. Part of a chain of similar sites covering the approaches to Bristol/Cardiff. Site layout and history explained by owner of Heath Farm. Battery manned by Royal Artillery from 1941 to 1944 (officially 19/3/41 - 21/8/45). The barracks, mess and cookhouse, site of water tower, stores etc are shown on plan. Four nissen huts survive, plus the concrete platforms for four more and the site of a further platform. There is also a U. S. hut imported from Torbay after the war. The cookhouse still has "cookhouse" stencilled on the door. The personnel were originally in a tented camp. The searchlight positions were in the fields to the north, west and south-west. The field to the west also contained the site of the echo locating aircraft tracking system. There is also a slight depression that is the site of a pit in which equipment was buried at the end of the war. There is still barbed wire visible by the hedgebank at the north-east side of the field.
Sources / Further Reading
| SDV224714 | Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 13/04/1947. RAF/CPE/UK/1995. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). 3186; HER 35/11. |
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| SDV234910 | Worksheet: Horner, W.. 1995. Searchlight Battery. Devon County Historic Environment Record. Worksheet + Digital. [Mapped feature: #94817 ] |
Associated Monuments
| MDV54214 | Parent of: Gun Emplacement, Heath Farm Searchlight Battery (Monument) |
| MDV54212 | Parent of: Nissen Huts, Heath Farm Searchlight Battery (Monument) |
| MDV54213 | Parent of: Searchlight Emplacement, Heath Farm Searchlight Battery (Monument) |
| MDV54215 | Related to: Road Block, Heath Farm Searchlight Battery (Monument) |
Associated Finds: none recorded
Associated Events: none recorded
| Date Last Edited: | Sep 24 2015 10:58AM |
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