This pillbox stands by the roadside at Vale House, Roadwater. The pill box is a type 24 which was common to the south west of Engand. The pillbox is shuttered with concrete blocks inside and red brick outside. The walls are 24 inches thick and it has a concrete flat roof. There is no internal blast wall. It has steel-framed steel shutters on the gun ports, and the one on the door side is 7 inches wide x 12 inches high. The door is on the approx NW side.
Roadwater Pill Box
This irregular brick built hexagonal pillbox could have garrisoned 8 men and formed part of the North Somerset inland defence. In 1940 a network of defences was hastily built all over the British Isles to prevent an anticipated German invasion. The most common of these defences were called "pillboxes", squat concrete forts that were sited at road junctions, canals and other strategic points. With the passage of time it is estimated that less than 6,000 of a total of 28,000 pillboxes built still survive. They remain as permanent monuments to the courage and tenacity of the British people. The Roadwater pillbox is remarkable because it was originally disguised as a small garden building with a pitched shingle roof and painted windows; all pillboxes were camouflaged, but few were disguised. Other examples were built or adapted to resemble bus shelters, signal boxes and seaside kiosks.
Roadwater Pill Box
English Heritage and the owner of the site have worked to restore the pitched shingle roof. The conservation building work was carried out by Steve Cornish of P.J Taylor builders; Mr Taylor's father was a sergeant in the Home Guard and used the pillbox during the war.
It is special as it was disguised as a small garden building with a pitched shingle roof and painted windows rather than simply camouflaged as most were.
It is one of 6,000 surviving pill boxes which were hastily built in 1940 to prevent an anticipated German invasion.
The Monument was scheduled on 24 July 2002, in view of the importance of the surviving wooden roof, the pillbox was selected for scheduling by English Heritage but before it could become a Scheduled Ancient Monument, the roof decayed beyond repair and had to be removed. At this time on the front of the structure, the steel loophole shutters could be seen.
The Second World War Pill Box on theway out of Roadwater on the way to Luxborough
OS Grid Reference: ST 02812 38011 |
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