Building record 4079/1/5 - Pillbox at Iron Ore Quay

<1> CBA, 2002, Defence of Britain Project, S0007780 (Digital Archive). SCH4380.

Concrete type 24 pillbox with attached anti aircraft bay to the rear. It is located on the end of an old iron ore quay on the River Dee, Saltney. In city of Chester Defences.

<2> County Historic Environment Record, Site Visit/Watching Brief Observation Report Form, Winfield H 06/05/2004 (Unpublished Document). SCH4357.

A site visit showed it to be in good condition, even retaining parts of the shelves. The quay itself is just visable in some places, though it is heavily silted. The rear compartment is reasonably intact and it is still obvious where the AA gun attached. It has stepped embrasures.

<3> County Historic Environment Record, Site Visit/Watching Brief Observation Report Form, Edwards R 12/03/2014 (Unpublished Document). SCH4357.

A type 24 pillbox with an unusual anti-aircraft (AA) enclosure attached to the rear. It will have been associated with a vulnerable position (VP). In this instance the VP is may have been RAF Hawarden. The pillbox is based on War Office design DFW 3/24, but lacks the Y shaped AR screen and the rear pistol loops. The entrance is is offset, rather than central, and the pillbox has an anti-aircraft enclosure attached to the rear.

<4> Osborne, M, 2008, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland, p.106-9, 124, 127 (Book). SCH7504.

There are similar examples of DFW 3/22 type pillboxes with an attached AA enclosure in Bedfordshire (for airfield defence) and Essex (for coastal defence). Near Wrexham, is a near identical type 24 pillbox built of brick. This example has a centrally placed door between the AA enclosure and the pill box and was built as a guard post for an ROF installation.