Two Structures

Brunel · Post by **Brunel** » Mon 29 Mar, 2010 11:46 pm

The view over LEEDS from this site is huge.Enemy bombers used the River Aire as a navigation aid, and of course would be well in sight and range from here.

blackprince · Post by **blackprince** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 12:59 am

raveydavey wrote: blackprince wrote: Brandy wrote: Warning to anyone taking a look around the old caravan park because theres deep open manholes dotted around there and some of them have 'boobytrap' like boards placed over them.And when i say deep im talking 4-5 mtrs!I was up there metal detecting(proper anorak me lol)just before xmas and i very nearly fell right down one of them.There was also some live high voltage cables that had been left open to the elements but these have now been made safe.I will tell you what i did find up there by the way some large caliber anti-aircraft shells(around where the red X is)so my guess is there must have been a big AA gun up here. I think you have identified it correctly as a heavy AA gun site.The layout looks similar to features in known HAA sites Compare it with these on Canvey Islandhttp://unlockingessex.essexcc.gov.uk/custom_pages/monument_detail.asp?content_page_id=89&monument_id=40014&content_parents=48,79Also the one in the photo - where each gun emplacement resembles the sun shaped feature on the Google Earth photo. What would an AA gun have been protecting there?Were troops still stationed on Soldiers Field in WW2? Or was the Blackburn Aero factory still in use then?Whilst the site is one of the higher points on this side of Leeds, it seems a bit puzzling at first thoughts.. HAA provided air defence up to about 24,000 ft and had an effective radius of 2 or 3 miles. They did tend to site the batteries on hills. The well documented HAA site at Otley Chevin provided air defence for the Avro factory and RAF Yeadon about 2.5 miles away. At a stretch this site at Elmete could have defended the Blackburn factory and Barnbow. Or a number of batteries on hills around Leeds could have provided area defence for the city rather than point defence for individual factories. The site would have had a control centre and sound locating equipment as well as being linked to searchlights. It would have had accommodation for about 80 crew along with an ammunition bunker and concrete lockers for ready to use ammo near to the gun pits. Another thought is that Waterloo lake would have been an excellent waypoint for enemy bombers attacking Leeds. Allied bombers certainly used large bodies of water as waypoints to navigate over Germany before the advent of ground radar ( H2S). Maybe this was just a caravan site but it would have been a feasible site for WW2 HAA .

Post by **chameleon** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 8:34 am

It is often rumoured that the deeper part of Waterloo Lake was used to dump old WWII amo, amongst other things, though I don't rcall anything actually being found when it was partially drained for the dam rebuilding.

LS1 · Post by **LS1** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 8:52 am

chameleon wrote: It is often rumoured that the deeper part of Waterloo Lake was used to dump old WWII amo, amongst other things, though I don't rcall anything actually being found when it was partially drained for the dam rebuilding. There were police patroling the area when they did drain it just in case I seem to remember. Also heard tale of there being a couple of planes in there also?

The Parksider · Post by **The Parksider** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 9:09 am

chameleon wrote: It is often rumoured that the deeper part of Waterloo Lake was used to dump old WWII amo, amongst other things, though I don't rcall anything actually being found when it was partially drained for the dam rebuilding. In 1930 there was an amnesty on WW1 weapons and ammo and the cops collected a pile of stuff and dumped it in the centre of the lake. The lake steamer was scuttled in the lake too and when they drained it the top bit showed. At it's deepest the lake is 100 feet deep down into several 'potholes'.This is where the guns and ammo was put so nobody could get it back out, but I suspect Phil D will be heavily armed soon......

Elmete Rob · Post by **Elmete Rob** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 5:08 pm

Hello, Quick introduction, my name is Rob and I grew up at Elmete hall, born there in 81 & my sister in 84. We left in 92 when the council finally closed the place after years of threats. My sister and I were the last children to be born to the house. It has left me with serious illusions of grandeur! My father was teacher in charge of the then residential education establishment. I still miss the old place, and my dreams of one day buying it back have long since died of realism, but I have been very happy to see that it has been refurbished at long last after the council let it rot for decades (including the time we were there!). I have been back to Leeds and seen the house since the conversion, I am very appreciative that people are now using it but still feel sorry it is no longer a home as it was originally intended.The last time I stumbled accross mention of Elmete hall online it was at derelictplaces.co.uk, which really showed the state of disrepair the council let the place get into!Any way, due to my connection with the house I have a lot of interest in the history of the estate and the Kitson family.I know the summer house well. it is indeed part of the old Elmete estate. When I was younger there used to be most of the mosaic tiled floor still in place.The Summer house is in an area of the grounds that featured several walking paths, long since overgrown. As shown on the left in this plan, taken from the 1901 sales brochure for the estate. (£100k got you an awful lot of house back then!)That should also give you a good idea of the Park/Elmete boundries.If any one is interested I have a number of photo's of the House and grounds, they may take some digging out of old family albums but I am sure I could get them posted.

Elmete Rob · Post by **Elmete Rob** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 5:20 pm

The suggestion of a wartime AA site is totally new to me. However it could explain the amount of earthworks that have happened on the south facing slopes infront of the house.I had always thought the land that was occupied by the caravan site was flattened when they created the 2 football fields above it. When comparing old photographs to how it is now. It would seem a huge amount of effort to go to in order to level the ground for the installation of football pitches. Also as suggested the view over the Aire valley couldn't be better.That said there was quite some height drop between the peak of the hill (just north of the house), and the caravan site, so the location wouldnt of been the prime spot to obtain maximum view, but there may be other considerations for positioning anti air guns that I am no expert on! A very interesting suggestion!

Brandy · Post by **Brandy** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 5:22 pm

Elmete Rob wrote: Hello, If any one is interested I have a number of photo's of the House and grounds, they may take some digging out of old family albums but I am sure I could get them posted. hi rob, welcome to the site mate im interested and i dare say my fellow SL'ers will be also.

Post by **chameleon** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 5:29 pm

Brandy wrote: Elmete Rob wrote: Hello, If any one is interested I have a number of photo's of the House and grounds, they may take some digging out of old family albums but I am sure I could get them posted. hi rob, welcome to the site mate im interested and i dare say my fellow SL'ers will be also. Seconded here

jim · Post by **jim** » Tue 30 Mar, 2010 5:46 pm

I seem to recall being told that Post Hill was another AA battery. Can anyone (briefly,as it's off topic) confirm or deny?