Heavy Anti Aircraft Battery, Coven Heath, Staffordshire
Details
Heavy Anti-aircraft (HAA) battery, including four gun emplacements and a command post constructed around 1940 with later gun shed constructed in the early 1950s.
MATERIALS: constructed of reinforced concrete and brick.
PLAN: The command post is located at the centre of the site with the four gun emplacements located in an arc from the north-west of the command post to the south-east. A light anti-aircraft machine gun post is located to the north of the site, with the later gun shed to the very south-west. At both the west and east of the site is a rectangular magazine, attached to the adjoining emplacements with curved walling.
DESCRIPTION:
COMMAND POST: a rectangular building oriented north-west to south-east, the building is constructed in a single range with reinforced concrete roof and large later opening on the west elevation. The roofed range contains two cells, likely to have contained the plotting room and office to the south. Steps lead from the north-east corner of the building to the first of three small enclosed courtyards which would have housed the height finder, predictor and spotting telescope.
EMPLACEMENTS: the four emplacements are octagonal on plan with varying levels of surviving ammunitions lockers to the interior; originally six within each structure. The north-west emplacement has the best survival of these lockers. Each emplacement has an attached generator house to the right of the entrance which, on the north-west emplacement, has been partly converted for domestic use with tiling to the interior. The emplacements would have had an entrance facing the command post and another directly opposite. Each of the emplacements has had one opening in-filled with late-C20 block work. The openings closest to the command post have been retained. Each of the emplacements retain a number of mounting bolts on the floor for positioning the guns.
MAGAZINES: a magazine is located at both the west and east of the site, both attached to the neighbouring emplacement(s) with curved brick walling. The western magazine is subterranean, with its main façade facing north. The building has five bays, with alternating doorway and small, six-light window arrangement. Internally the building is divided into five cells, with openings at the northern end between each acting as a corridor. The opening between bays three and four have been infilled with brick. Each bay has a circular vent within the ceiling and a set of two rectangular holes within the floor, possibly to support racking. The eastern magazine also faces north and has five bays with door openings to each. The building is again divided into five cells, with similar internal openings between the bays, holes within the floor for racking and ceiling ventilation.
LIGHT ANTI-AIRCRAFT MACHINE GUN POST: to the north of the site, approximately 35 metres north-east of the north-western emplacement, stands a rectangular machine gun post with mounting post within the southern enclosed courtyard. To the north of the courtyard, steps lead down to the interior of the building which is subterranean and rectangular on plan with reinforced concrete walling and central supporting concrete post.
GUN SHED: a gun shed is situated to the south-west of the site, and is post-war, probably dating to the early 1950s. The building is square on plan and entered by a doorway on the east elevation with projecting concrete hood. The southern elevation has a series of four casement windows with iron fixings for shuttering and concrete hood mould with stepped sill. The interior of the building is open-plan and would have stored spare gun barrels and parts. A series of concrete beams between the bays supports the ceiling, one of which is currently propped (2020).
Heavy Anti Aircraft Battery, Coven Heath, Staffordshire
Details
Heavy Anti-aircraft (HAA) battery, including four gun emplacements and a command post constructed around 1940 with later gun shed constructed in the early 1950s.
MATERIALS: constructed of reinforced concrete and brick.
PLAN: The command post is located at the centre of the site with the four gun emplacements located in an arc from the north-west of the command post to the south-east. A light anti-aircraft machine gun post is located to the north of the site, with the later gun shed to the very south-west. At both the west and east of the site is a rectangular magazine, attached to the adjoining emplacements with curved walling.
DESCRIPTION:
COMMAND POST: a rectangular building oriented north-west to south-east, the building is constructed in a single range with reinforced concrete roof and large later opening on the west elevation. The roofed range contains two cells, likely to have contained the plotting room and office to the south. Steps lead from the north-east corner of the building to the first of three small enclosed courtyards which would have housed the height finder, predictor and spotting telescope.
EMPLACEMENTS: the four emplacements are octagonal on plan with varying levels of surviving ammunitions lockers to the interior; originally six within each structure. The north-west emplacement has the best survival of these lockers. Each emplacement has an attached generator house to the right of the entrance which, on the north-west emplacement, has been partly converted for domestic use with tiling to the interior. The emplacements would have had an entrance facing the command post and another directly opposite. Each of the emplacements has had one opening in-filled with late-C20 block work. The openings closest to the command post have been retained. Each of the emplacements retain a number of mounting bolts on the floor for positioning the guns.
MAGAZINES: a magazine is located at both the west and east of the site, both attached to the neighbouring emplacement(s) with curved brick walling. The western magazine is subterranean, with its main façade facing north. The building has five bays, with alternating doorway and small, six-light window arrangement. Internally the building is divided into five cells, with openings at the northern end between each acting as a corridor. The opening between bays three and four have been infilled with brick. Each bay has a circular vent within the ceiling and a set of two rectangular holes within the floor, possibly to support racking. The eastern magazine also faces north and has five bays with door openings to each. The building is again divided into five cells, with similar internal openings between the bays, holes within the floor for racking and ceiling ventilation.
LIGHT ANTI-AIRCRAFT MACHINE GUN POST: to the north of the site, approximately 35 metres north-east of the north-western emplacement, stands a rectangular machine gun post with mounting post within the southern enclosed courtyard. To the north of the courtyard, steps lead down to the interior of the building which is subterranean and rectangular on plan with reinforced concrete walling and central supporting concrete post.
GUN SHED: a gun shed is situated to the south-west of the site, and is post-war, probably dating to the early 1950s. The building is square on plan and entered by a doorway on the east elevation with projecting concrete hood. The southern elevation has a series of four casement windows with iron fixings for shuttering and concrete hood mould with stepped sill. The interior of the building is open-plan and would have stored spare gun barrels and parts. A series of concrete beams between the bays supports the ceiling, one of which is currently propped (2020).