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Lancashire At War.co.uk

Exploring the hidden history of War sites in Lancashire

Pillboxes Beyond Lancashire

On occasions on our travels we see things beyond our "geographical area" that are too good to ignore. Here are some of the Pillboxes we have seen.

 

Below: On the edge of a 30ft high cliff overlooking the Afon Glaslyn at Borth-y-Gest, near Porthmadog is this wonderful pillbox. Faced with local stone, but built with brick and concrete on the inside. Along the  path from here towards Morfa Bychan we were told there were the remains of AA Gun bases. But we couldn't find any despite concerted searches.

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Continuing our series of pillboxes beyond Lancashire - here is another unusual one we spotted. This is in Wolverton, Milton Keynes on the corner of Radcliffe Street and Stratford Road.

 

What is great about this one is how its positioning is so unexpected - it is on the corner of the garden walls of the Catholic Church. They have now fitted glass into the embrasures - so you can look through.

 

At the other end of the garden wall on Stratford Road is a further set of embrasures, four in total - with two hidden behind the modern bus stop.

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While not a "pillbox" per se, this control tower is covered in embrasures. It is a fabulous imposing building overlooking The Sound at Oban. It controlled a string of mines across the sound which were in place to prevent submarine attack. At The Oban War & Peace Museum there is a story of how one day during a VIP visit the mines were set off by mistake!

 

According to other websites these mines could be remotely switched on or off and even, as above, set off remotely.

 

More information on this site can be found on the Secret Scotland website and Derelict Places HERE and there is a very interesting site about the harbour defences of Oban HERE.

Oban Minefield Control Tower

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