Visited with: @UrbanZ
History: (Stolen from Subbrit)
The air raid shelter at Foxwarren, or Silvermere, would have served one of the Vickers (Brooklands) dispersal depots sited nearby which were used for secret experimental work and known as the Foxwarren Experimental Department. Barnes Wallis, the inventor associated with the Dam Busters raid, would have worked here on the Upkeep bouncing bomb and a number of prototype planes including the Windsor bomber and the Vickers 432 “Tin Mossie” an alloy version of the Mosquito.
The Vickers Experimental Department was relocated here after the heavy bombing of Brooklands in early September 1940.
The shelter is H-shaped in plan with wide entrance steps, latrine recesses by the entrance for ventilation, reinforced concrete walls and a vertical escape shaft at the far end. It is cut and cover and has an earth banked roof giving it splinter protection. The quality of the timber board marking on the concrete is good indicating that the timber was new at the time it was used. Further into the shelter the walls are painted white but this appears to have been in more recent times.
Explore:
Although extremely small and not having much of interest inside, seeing as we were local and had a visited other shelters linked to the Vickers Armstrong site, we thought it rude not to have a quick peek.
The site is very easily accessible and appears to have been well used the by the local youths and alike throughout the years, judging by the fire damaged sofa and piles of trash all over the place, but all in all the main structure is still sound and holding up well.
Not much to report here, hence the lack of pics, and I wouldn't advise going unless specifically in the area, but if you find yourself close by and want a quick, fairly uninteresting two minutes underground...
1. Looking into the shelter from main entrance
2. Entrance and UrbanZ stepping over partially bricked up passageway
3. Rear section of shelter
4. Looking back at the entrance
History: (Stolen from Subbrit)
The air raid shelter at Foxwarren, or Silvermere, would have served one of the Vickers (Brooklands) dispersal depots sited nearby which were used for secret experimental work and known as the Foxwarren Experimental Department. Barnes Wallis, the inventor associated with the Dam Busters raid, would have worked here on the Upkeep bouncing bomb and a number of prototype planes including the Windsor bomber and the Vickers 432 “Tin Mossie” an alloy version of the Mosquito.
The Vickers Experimental Department was relocated here after the heavy bombing of Brooklands in early September 1940.
The shelter is H-shaped in plan with wide entrance steps, latrine recesses by the entrance for ventilation, reinforced concrete walls and a vertical escape shaft at the far end. It is cut and cover and has an earth banked roof giving it splinter protection. The quality of the timber board marking on the concrete is good indicating that the timber was new at the time it was used. Further into the shelter the walls are painted white but this appears to have been in more recent times.
Explore:
Although extremely small and not having much of interest inside, seeing as we were local and had a visited other shelters linked to the Vickers Armstrong site, we thought it rude not to have a quick peek.
The site is very easily accessible and appears to have been well used the by the local youths and alike throughout the years, judging by the fire damaged sofa and piles of trash all over the place, but all in all the main structure is still sound and holding up well.
Not much to report here, hence the lack of pics, and I wouldn't advise going unless specifically in the area, but if you find yourself close by and want a quick, fairly uninteresting two minutes underground...
1. Looking into the shelter from main entrance
2. Entrance and UrbanZ stepping over partially bricked up passageway
3. Rear section of shelter
4. Looking back at the entrance
