Hello all new member, first post, so me and a non member my local exploring buddy decided to take a trip to Chilmark to see if the small quarrys where still open and see if we could have a mooch around. We don't like to see damage so we don't cause any. A brief history of the place.
RAF Chilmark
Chilmark Quarries and its underground limestone mines and the surrounding land were acquired by the Air Ministry in 1936 and served as a bomb store, RAF Chilmark, throughout WW2.
Close to the village of Chilmark the huge quarry workings had been supplied the stone for the building of Salisbury Cathedral.There was a standard-gauge transfer station at Ham Cross, with afour mile spur from Chilmark to the BR connection at Dinton which utilises part of the old double track main line from Exeter to Salisbury.
Much of the underground railway, within the individual bomb stores was operated by battery electric locos, one of which was Baguley Drewery 3703, now preserved on the Golden Valley Railway in Derbyshire - link.
The above ground system also served the Chilmark Stone Mine that was located within RAF Chilmark.
The first consignment of war stores arrived in May 1937, unlike most other WW2 RAF depots, Chilmark continued in use after the war but by 1965 chilmark was the RAF's only ammunition supply depot and In 1994 supplies were transferred to the Nato depot at Glen Douglas in Scotland, prior to the complete closure of Chilmark in April 1995 with the loss of 200 jobs
RAF Chilmark was finally decommissioned in 1996 and most of the remaining 2ft gauge railway equipment disposed of in a MOD tender
quote from the RAF museam
for 58 years past generations of RAF,RN, army and american staff have been making, maintaing or disposing of explosives, including mustard gas at chilmark and what contamination might exist on its 343 acre site is any ones guess
there where many anecdotal stories of past dumping activites but apart from one known burial pit for mustard gas containers there was precious little on record, we and our HQ team knew that this time we had to do our best to clear up the results of any previous burial or dumping of explosives at chilmark. the unit had to be thoroughly searched and cleared and an EOD team, lead by RAF EOD specialist, but staffed by EOD trained chilmark civilian armaments staff was formed to carry out the task.
So let's begin sorry for poor photos I'm not a photographer.
We started out on what looked to be the old Base,
That was unfortunately all the old Base photos I got, now for the quarry.
That was all for chilmark. Enjoy andoing have fun
RAF Chilmark
Chilmark Quarries and its underground limestone mines and the surrounding land were acquired by the Air Ministry in 1936 and served as a bomb store, RAF Chilmark, throughout WW2.
Close to the village of Chilmark the huge quarry workings had been supplied the stone for the building of Salisbury Cathedral.There was a standard-gauge transfer station at Ham Cross, with afour mile spur from Chilmark to the BR connection at Dinton which utilises part of the old double track main line from Exeter to Salisbury.
Much of the underground railway, within the individual bomb stores was operated by battery electric locos, one of which was Baguley Drewery 3703, now preserved on the Golden Valley Railway in Derbyshire - link.
The above ground system also served the Chilmark Stone Mine that was located within RAF Chilmark.
The first consignment of war stores arrived in May 1937, unlike most other WW2 RAF depots, Chilmark continued in use after the war but by 1965 chilmark was the RAF's only ammunition supply depot and In 1994 supplies were transferred to the Nato depot at Glen Douglas in Scotland, prior to the complete closure of Chilmark in April 1995 with the loss of 200 jobs
RAF Chilmark was finally decommissioned in 1996 and most of the remaining 2ft gauge railway equipment disposed of in a MOD tender
quote from the RAF museam
for 58 years past generations of RAF,RN, army and american staff have been making, maintaing or disposing of explosives, including mustard gas at chilmark and what contamination might exist on its 343 acre site is any ones guess
there where many anecdotal stories of past dumping activites but apart from one known burial pit for mustard gas containers there was precious little on record, we and our HQ team knew that this time we had to do our best to clear up the results of any previous burial or dumping of explosives at chilmark. the unit had to be thoroughly searched and cleared and an EOD team, lead by RAF EOD specialist, but staffed by EOD trained chilmark civilian armaments staff was formed to carry out the task.
So let's begin sorry for poor photos I'm not a photographer.
We started out on what looked to be the old Base,
That was unfortunately all the old Base photos I got, now for the quarry.
That was all for chilmark. Enjoy andoing have fun