It should not be assumed that this site is publicly accessible and it may be on private property. Do not trespass.
Monument details
| HER Number: | TQ 67 SE 1200 |
|---|
| Type of record: | Building |
|---|
| Name: | Shornemead Fort pillbox, Shorne Marshes |
|---|
Summary
Second World War octagonal brick pillbox about 3.5 m across and let into the flood defence bank on a stepped concrete base, about 180 m east of Shornemead Fort. Its superstructure is no longer extant and appears to have been a flat roof supported on steel girders. There appears to have been river-facing and side facing apertures, covered with flapped shutters, part of whose fixings remain. It was probably built in 1941 as part of the defences of the formerly-existing wartime emergency battery a short distance to the rear, and would have been decommissioned by 1945.
Summary from record TQ 67 SE 228:
Pillbox (1940), near Higham Crreek
| Grid Reference: | TQ 69533 74846 |
|---|
| Map Sheet: | TQ67SE |
|---|
| Parish: | SHORNE, GRAVESHAM, KENT |
|---|
Monument Types
- PILLBOX (PILLBOX, Modern - 1940 AD to 1940 AD)
- PILLBOX (Modern - 1941 AD? to 1945 AD?)
| Protected Status: | Selected Heritage Inventory for Natural England: Second World War octagonal brick pillbox |
|---|
Full description
If you do not understand anything on this page please contact us.
Second World War octagonal pillbox about 3.5 m across and let into the flood defence bank on a stepped concrete base, about 180 m. east of Shornemead Fort. Its superstructure is no longer extant and appears to have been a flat roof supported on steel girders. There appears to have been river-facing and side-facing apertures, covered with flapped shutters, part of whose fixings remain. It was probably built in 1941 as part of the defences of the formerly-existing wartime emergency battery a short distance to the rear, and would have been decommissioned by 1945.
Owner : Public
Publicly accessible : Yes
How accessed for survey : On the riverside public footpath
Tourism Potential : Lends itself to inclusion in a defence heritage trail
Condition : Very poor
Date of visit : 29/01/07
Description from record TQ 67 SE 228:
On river wall, 200 m East of Shornemead Fort. Concrete, facing North across Thames. Entrance on landward side. Mainly buried (1), site photographs (2-8).A pillbox with a square base, and an octagonal short wall on top with cut off i-beams set into it. (9)
Smith, V.T.C., 29/01/07, Verbal Communication (Verbal communication). SKE14028.
Smith, V.T.C., 29/01/07, Verbal Communication (Verbal communication). Ske14028.
<1> Victor Smith and Ron Crowdy, Thames Gateway Assesment: Gazetteer of Defence Sites (Index). SKE6445.
<2> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9420.
<3> 1947, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9859.
<4> 1947, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9866.
<5> 1942, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10003.
<6> 1941, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10113.
<7> 2000, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10271.
<8> 1978, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10929.
<9> Wessex Archaeology, 2005, North Kent Coast Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Survey: Phase ll: Field Assessment Year Two Report (Unpublished document). SWX12323.
Sources and further reading
| Cross-ref.
| Source description | | --- | Verbal communication: Smith, V.T.C.. 29/01/07. Verbal Communication. |
| <1> | Index: Victor Smith and Ron Crowdy. Thames Gateway Assesment: Gazetteer of Defence Sites. |
| <2> | Photograph (Print): 1946. Photograph. 3106. print. |
| <3> | Photograph (Print): 1947. Photograph. 4045. print. |
| <4> | Photograph (Print): 1947. Photograph. 4068. print. |
| <5> | Photograph (Print): 1942. Photograph. 36. print. |
| <6> | Photograph (Print): 1941. Photograph. 2025. print. |
| <7> | Photograph (Print): 2000. Photograph. 161. print. |
| <8> | Photograph (Print): 1978. Photograph. TQ6974/2. print. |
| <9> | Unpublished document: Wessex Archaeology. 2005. North Kent Coast Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Survey: Phase ll: Field Assessment Year Two Report. |
