2014

TG2402 : Royal Observer Corps post in Upper Stoke

taken 10 years ago, near to Upper Stoke, Norfolk, England

Royal Observer Corps post in Upper Stoke
Royal Observer Corps post in Upper Stoke
This Cold War era ROC post, which is officially referred to as Framingham Earl ROC post but situated in a field at Upper Stoke, was in use from June 1960 until October 1968. When Nick Catford of Subterranea Britannica visited the site in July 1998, all surface features were intact although the ventilation louvres were missing: LinkExternal link. The pipe of the Fixed Survey Metre - introduced in 1958, it could be operated from within the post with a cable leading to the detector mounted externally - has since been removed or knocked down. The telegraph pole which served this post is still standing beside Long Lane > Link.

During WW2, an Observer Corps emplacement designated Victor 3 (V3) was situated near the same location. Mr Michael Davis recalls that apart from spotting, the men were provided with a .303 rifle and 50 rounds of ammunition and that the rifle was fired once at a passing German aircraft. The observers were: Jack Drewry, Monsey Vincent, Brian Seago (the father of the painter Edward Brian Seago), Ben Burgess, Samuel Davies, Archie Taylor, Jack Cordy, Eddie Cogman and Jack Nobbs (the gardener from Framingham Cottage who was known to also have cut the hair of the other observers). Source: Poringland, Past and Present website
The Royal Observer Corps

The number of Underground Monitoring Posts (UMPs) constructed in Norfolk amounted to 55, 17 of these sharing their site with an Orlit post. To date, 15 of the sites have been demolished. They reported to a Group HQ in Sprowston, Norwich, which was demolished in 2008. The Norfolk ROC posts formed part of Group 6.

The Royal Observer Corps was a uniformed volunteer organisation, which has enjoyed a long association with the Royal Air Force. The motto of the Royal Observer Corps is: Forewarned is Forearmed, and it would appear that the earliest system for the detection and reporting of aircraft was started late in 1914. Police constables were instructed to telephone reports of any aircraft including Zeppelins, seen or heard within 60 miles of London to the Admiralty, who were in charge of the defences at that time. In 1915, it was decided to extend the area covered by this arrangement, to East Anglia, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

In September 1941, due to the increased call-up of manpower, women were admitted to the Corps. In addition to reporting all aircraft flying over land, or the sea belt adjoining the coastline, ROC personnel on duty by then also assisted aircraft that were lost or in distress. On Saturday 10 May 1941, ROC posts in the Durham, Galashiels and Glasgow Groups were responsible for tracking and reporting what transpired to be the arrival of Rudolph Hess.

High quality Navy binoculars were issued and the observation posts were at first nothing more than a wooden shed located next to a telegraph pole, which connected them to the local telephone exchange. These were eventually replaced by more substantial brick-built structures, protected by sandbags, sited in playing fields, on hilltops or rooftops of public buildings and factories. The posts were manned continuously from 3rd September 1939 to 12th May 1945.

In 1955, the Corps was given the nuclear reporting role by the Home Office and in the early 1960s, Nuclear Reporting Cells (NRCs), were set up at Air Defence Operations Centres and subsequently at other key military establishments in the UK. A series of posts for the observation of aircraft was built for the new organisation. These were substantial structures that offered some level of protection from the elements or attack. Many were made of pre-cast concrete panelled structures known as “Orlit” posts, after Orlit Ltd the manufacturers. These structures were split into two sections: the entrance door led into the smaller roofed section which was used as a shelter and store; a sliding door led to the open section, which housed the post instrument and chart on top of a wooden mounting. There were two varieties: the "Orlit A" was at ground level and the "Orlit B" was raised on four 6ft legs with a ladder for access. Between 1952 and 1955, more than 400 Orlits were constructed.

Between 1958-1968, a countrywide building programme resulted in a network of 1,563 underground monitoring posts, located approximately 8 miles apart and distributed throughout Britain at an estimated cost of almost £5,000 each. The posts were 25ft deep and built of reinforced concrete, waterproofed with bitumen. The whole structure was then covered by a compacted soil mound. Entry was via a steel ladder in a vertical shaft leading to a single room, providing accommodation for three observers to live and work, with a separate compartment with a chemical toilet. Air was circulated from grilled ventilators at both ends of the post and electricity was provided by a 12 volt battery, charged occasionally by an electric generator. Instruments detected the size of any nuclear burst, together with the location and levels of radiation. Conditions were cramped, cold and in some cases damp.

Following the 1990 defence spending review, the ROC post and control personnel were stood down on 30th September 1991. Many of the ROC posts have since been dismantled or sold and sadly, quite a number have been trashed by vandals. For more detailed information go to: LinkExternal link


Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Evelyn Simak and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Geographical Context: Derelict, Disused Defence, Military
This photo is linked from: Automatic Clusters: · Upper Stoke [10] · Royal Observer Corps Post in Upper Stoke [4] Title Clusters: · Royal Observer Corps post in Upper Stoke [4] ·
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TG2402, 47 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Evelyn Simak   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Sunday, 11 May, 2014   (more nearby)
Submitted
Sunday, 11 May, 2014
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! TG 2494 0245 [10m precision]
WGS84: 52:34.3994N 1:19.0870E
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! TG 2498 0245
View Direction
WEST (about 270 degrees)
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Image classification(about): Geograph
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