World War II air raid shelters and defenses in the Liverpool area

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I've heard too that the workers at the factory turned yellow with the chemicals.

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It was because of the nitro in the explosive, and it earned the girls the nick name of Canary's.

[IMG]http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...x/image-29.jpg[/IMG]
Hi Ged, anti tank pyramids used to keep paddling pools on the beach when the tide had gone out. This is the missus with our first born taken from an old colour slide in 1959.

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Originally Posted by ChrisGeorge

Hi Derek

Thanks for pointing us to your very interesting site. I had a look at the interactive map. I seem to remember dragon's teeth in the fields to the south of the railway bridge on Speke Hall Road. They would have been across the road from the Retail Park but south of the bridge. Am I remembering correctly? This would have been in the Fifties or early Sixties.

Chris

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Originally Posted by Degsy_b

Hi Chris if they are the ones by Hilfoot road Bridge. I went to look for them a few months ago and couldn't find them. I never give up until I've been back in the Winter. You can see much more when the vegetation dies back. So I will be going back, perhaps with a few more pillboxes to look for with the kind help of people from this forum!

Better go look busy

Derek

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Thanks for your answer, Derek. :PDT11

Chris

Kew Street off Scotland road had a shelter.


Anyone any info on this ?


My dad said his Nan would make sure everyone in the family(men included) where in the shelter when the alarm went off. Then she would go and sit under her kitchen table. she never went in a shelter ever.

Those anti-tank pyramids I thought were silly - as if the Germans would land tanks around Liverpool. Probably a propaganda ploy. The Anderson shelters were to boost moral nothing else. They could not stop an adjacent bomb hit, never mind a direct one.

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Originally Posted by Waterways

Those anti-tank pyramids I thought were silly - as if the Germans would land tanks around Liverpool. Probably a propaganda ploy. The Anderson shelters were to boost moral nothing else. They could not stop an adjacent bomb hit, never mind a direct one.

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We had to knock down an Anderson shelter years back, might not have took a bomb but it bloomin took 7 workies strength away over 2 days :034::028::002:

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Originally Posted by Gnomie

We had to knock down an Anderson shelter years back, might not have took a bomb but it bloomin took 7 workies strength away over 2 days :034::028::002:

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where was that Gnomie?

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Originally Posted by ChrisGeorge

Hi Derek

Thanks for pointing us to your very interesting site. I had a look at the interactive map. I seem to remember dragon's teeth in the fields to the south of the railway bridge on Speke Hall Road. They would have been across the road from the Retail Park but south of the bridge. Am I remembering correctly? This would have been in the Fifties or early Sixties.

I am sure you can answer DaisyChains query about whether there are any other air raid shelters still about in Liverpool. Of course, the Western Approaches Command Centre at Derby House would be one, but I wonder if there might be other air raid shelters in Liverpool still in existence but derelict or put to other uses? In the postwar years, my grandfather used my family's old Anderson shelter as a toolshed and I am sure other Liverpudlians did likewise, so there may be a few of those around as well.

Chris

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Re Dragons Teeth. Chris your memory certainly serves you correctly and more dragons teeth around the Dunlops end off Speke Hall Avenue plus around the railway bridge ,also the railway bridge on HuntsCross avenue, and Hillfoot Avenue, I guess they would have been around all railway bridges

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Originally Posted by DaisyChains

where was that Gnomie?

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It was in Widnes back in the late 80`s. i wish i would have took a camera then.

I know a house in Old Swan that had one in the garden, it went undergound. when the new owners decided to get rid of it( only in the 90`s ) they tried to dig/Knock it out. they gave up after 2 days and filled it all in, then placed soil and turfed over it. so it is still there now, though full of rubble and under a garden.

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Originally Posted by Gnomie

It was in Widnes back in the late 80`s. i wish i would have took a camera then.

I know a house in Old Swan that had one in the garden, it went undergound. when the new owners decided to get rid of it( only in the 90`s ) they tried to dig/Knock it out. they gave up after 2 days and filled it all in, then placed soil and turfed over it. so it is still there now, though full of rubble and under a garden.

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Brilliant info Gnomie! Thanks

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Originally Posted by jimmy

Re Dragons Teeth. Chris your memory certainly serves you correctly and more dragons teeth around the Dunlops end off Speke Hall Avenue plus around the railway bridge ,also the railway bridge on HuntsCross avenue, and Hillfoot Avenue, I guess they would have been around all railway bridges

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I'm at a loss why. Maybe they thought the Germans may take Ireland, who were sympathetic to Germany in WW2 and mount an invasion attempt from there.

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Originally Posted by jimmy

Re Dragons Teeth. Chris your memory certainly serves you correctly and more dragons teeth around the Dunlops end off Speke Hall Avenue plus around the railway bridge ,also the railway bridge on HuntsCross avenue, and Hillfoot Avenue, I guess they would have been around all railway bridges

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There were some on the 'GreenHill' bridge spanning between Chelwood Ave and Bentham Drive in Childwall, but you can also see a good amount of them in undergrowth while on the loop line in the Halewood area.

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Originally Posted by Waterways

Those anti-tank pyramids I thought were silly - as if the Germans would land tanks around Liverpool. Probably a propaganda ploy. The Anderson shelters were to boost moral nothing else. They could not stop an adjacent bomb hit, never mind a direct one.

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The main worry about an invasion of Liverpool or the Lancashire coast, was in the event of Southern Ireland falling to the Nazis. The Sinn Fein leadership in Eire were very supportive of Hitler, indeed they took a wreath to the German Embassy in Dublin on hearing the of the suicide of Adolf! It should be mentioned at this point that the Government of Eire remained neutral throughout the war. But suspicions remained and it wouldn't have been the first time the Germans had gone through a 3rd country to meet their military objective. So there was some risk if a bit remote. Strangely enough one of the first places to be fortified with anti invasion defences was Orkney, and not in the south east England as you might imagine. I suppose with the early presence of German forces in Norway and its Ideal fjords for disembarking an invasion force made it seem like a good bet. On top of which the British fleet had its base in Scapa Flow in itself making it a good candidate for attack.

I love the pictures of the Dragons teeth on the beach, is it Waterloo?

PS, Can anyone tell me how to post pictures here I have a few I'd like to share.
Derek:handclap:

If you've saved them on your p/c, just attach them when you do your post, ( it shows on the post form)
Steve.

Hi,
OK I have a mixed motive for this post, I want to see if I can successfully upload a picture and it is in-keeping with the beach photo above.

These are the Dragons teeth behind the motorworks Speke/Halewood where the Transpenine trail crosses the railway. As of September 2007 they were still there but I got word Network Rail are going to remove them. I did write to the local MP to protest but as you'd expect got no reply!!!

Derek

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Originally Posted by Gnomie

We had to knock down an Anderson shelter years back, might not have took a bomb but it bloomin took 7 workies strength away over 2 days :034::028::002:

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Should have used one of these Gnomie ;)


http://www.mersey-gateway.org/server...ediaFile.18262

or

http://www.mersey-gateway.org/server...ediaFile.18173


.

Some more here:

Happy browsing......


http://www.mersey-gateway.org/server...&currentPage=2



.

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Originally Posted by jimmy

Re Dragons Teeth. Chris your memory certainly serves you correctly and more dragons teeth around the Dunlops end off Speke Hall Avenue plus around the railway bridge ,also the railway bridge on HuntsCross avenue, and Hillfoot Avenue, I guess they would have been around all railway bridges

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Thanks, Jimmy. :PDT11

Chris

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Originally Posted by Degsy_b

Hi,
OK I have a mixed motive for this post, I want to see if I can successfully upload a picture and it is in-keeping with the beach photo above.

These are the Dragons teeth behind the motorworks Speke/Halewood where the Transpenine trail crosses the railway. As of September 2007 they were still there but I got word Network Rail are going to remove them. I did write to the local MP to protest but as you'd expect got no reply!!!

Derek

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Hi Derek

I don't mind adding my voice to having them saved if the Dragon's teeth are still there as depicted in your photograph. This bit of history should not be lost. Let me know to whom I would need to write. Also maybe somebody here could get an updated photograph of these Halewood Dragon's teeth that might be used in a renewed attempt to have them saved?

Thanks

Chris

did someone shay they,ve found my teeff?

Hi,
If anyone else would like to contact the MP about the Dragon's teeth than they can follow this link http://findyourmp.parliament.uk/comm...ons/l/446.html
That will get you to Maria Eagle MP for Garston. You can leave an email message or the address of the House of Parliament is also on that page.

Let me know if you get a reply I think you can contact me through this forum or email me on derek@worldwar2defences.co.uk

Thanks for your enthusiasm!

Derek :PDT11

up till a few years ago booker avenue school in allerton had shelters in the playground. i work sometimes at heron eccles playing fields and the headmaster sometimes let us store machinery in them. been in them a few times they were above ground, long and low ,and had thick concrete roofs.
inside they had seperate rooms which were staggered to confine any blasts.
unfortunately they have now been demolished to upgrade the playground.i am sure the school will have some pictures of them. there is an old man who lives by us who claims to have been one of the few survivors of the blast in clint road school by durning road . unfortunately i believe the boilers received a direct hit and most victims were scalded to death. Harry said he dragged himself out of the rubble and staggered to his grans house who then told him off because he was filthy. hope this helps. pete.

I remember Fort Crosby very well. we used to go there a lot as kids. Used to get there either via Hall Road (though i can't for the life of me remember the route from there now) or by crossing the Liverpool-Southport railway line somewhere beyond S n i g g e r y Woods in Little Crosby. The return trip was always via Hall Road as there was a tap mounted on a wooden pole there that we'd descend upon with delight after a day playing in the arid old fort.
(To my astonishment, actually photographed by Sirob- http://www.yoliverpool.com/forum/sho...?t=8390&page=6)
It was a massive concrete construction set back from the seashore and half-buried by dunes. If you climbed to the top there was a wide circular groove in the concrete where a gun mounting used to be. There were lots of odd nooks and corners and rooms whose walls were inscribed with mysterious words in white paint.
Another source of wonder for me was that the place was strewn with the bones and skulls of rats, all bleached white- except for the yellow teeth. Thousands of them. I used to fill my pockets with them but my mam always kicked up a stink when she found them and chucked them out. We never ever saw a live rat though- what the beggars lived on there anyway I have no idea, there was nothing but sand...
The place was a wonderland of imagination for us, the perfect setting for all manner of war games. I've no idea when it was demolished or why. It would have been an interesting building to have preserved as a memory of the war in Merseyside. It was in pretty good nick the last time I saw it in the mid-60s. Anyone know what's there now, if anything?

On the subject of pill boxes, there's one tucked into the rural back lane that links Little Crosby village with the Southport by-pass. A quiet spot even today, hard to imagine Nazi invaders passing that way.

A pic of the Allerton pillbox on Springwood Avenue:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lsauld/...2242121198@N01

There was an air raid shelter in Croxteth park near the bridge over the river Alt heading out from the Mansion towards Crocky and past the old tree. It was a big mound of built up earth with a concrete surround doorway that at the time you had to drop into. It is well away from the house and in the middle of some trees next to the river. Must still be there?

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Originally Posted by Degsy_b

The main worry about an invasion of Liverpool or the Lancashire coast, was in the event of Southern Ireland falling to the Nazis. The Sinn Fein leadership in Eire were very supportive of Hitler, indeed they took a wreath to the German Embassy in Dublin on hearing the of the suicide of Adolf! It should be mentioned at this point that the Government of Eire remained neutral throughout the war. But suspicions remained and it wouldn't have been the first time the Germans had gone through a 3rd country to meet their military objective. So there was some risk if a bit remote.

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The north of the island of Ireland was in the UK with forces stationed there, which could be quickly reinforced. Any Germans attempt to occupy Eire, invited or not, would have been repelled. And there was a plan to full occupy Eire if need be. The chances of an invasion attempt on the west coast of Great Britain was so remote it was not worth contemplating.

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Strangely enough one of the first places to be fortified with anti invasion defences was Orkney, and not in the south east England as you might imagine. I suppose with the early presence of German forces in Norway and its Ideal fjords for disembarking an invasion force made it seem like a good bet. On top of which the British fleet had its base in Scapa Flow in itself making it a good candidate for attack.

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The south coast was well prepared and there were few places to mount an invasion with high cliffs all along that coast. Any invasion attempt there would have meant certain defeat - as General Jodle said, it would be like putting his troops through meat grinder.

Orkney was islands and not easily re-taken if an invasion attempt, by paras and sea, was successful. Although the Germans supplying the place by air and sea would have been near impossible

This is my dad, aged about 20, outside an air raid shelter during WW2, I thought it was Fitzgerald Rd in Old Swan, but could be around Greenfield Rd ...

http://img55.imageshack.us/img55/688...0001yi2.th.jpghttp://img55.imageshack.us/images/thpix.gif

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Originally Posted by Cadfael

There were some on the 'GreenHill' bridge spanning between Chelwood Ave and Bentham Drive in Childwall, but you can also see a good amount of them in undergrowth while on the loop line in the Halewood area.

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There are dragon's teeth in the bushes on the Greenbank Park side of the Stalbridge Road railway bridge. Though now heavily overgrown now, they were clearly visible when I was youngster in the 60/70s.

There used to be a substantial concrete air-raid shelter outside the now demolished Westfield House in Greenbank Lane. (Removed when the Greenbank Project Sports Centre was constructed some years ago).

Dovedale Road School still has above ground air-raid shelters in the school yard.

The large Stanley Tobacco Warehouse has lookout (firewatching?) posts on the roof - they are quite noticeable if you look carefully - as the brick work appears newer than the main structure.

John

I'm sure there's a pillbox (or similar structure) in Maghull, where the railway line crosses the Leeds & Liverpool canal. I think it can be accessed by the road leading to Durrants cottages.

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Originally Posted by ChrisO

I'm sure there's a pillbox (or similar structure) in Maghull, where the railway line crosses the Leeds & Liverpool canal. I think it can be accessed by the road leading to Durrants cottages.

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Hi Chris

You will find discussion and images of the pillboxes in Maghull and Lydiate here:

The Leeds Liverpool Canal at War

Best regards

Chris

Speaking of the war..
Here's a letter/postcard that was sent to my mum from a German P.O camp. by my great uncle.
Hope some of you find it of interest:PDT_Piratz_26:
The envelope.

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/a...OWENVFRONT.jpg
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/a...POWENVBACK.jpg

THE POSTCARD
(Addressed to Fontenoy Gardens)
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/a...f/POWFRONT.jpg
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/a...ff/POWBACK.jpg

For all who are looking up there ww1 hero's Ancestry.co.uk is free to look up all this month.Well worth a look.one poor boy with the same name as grandad thats how i got to see it .as next of kin addrres he had put his school.some of it is hard reading.hope this is the right place to put this.

Re: Stalbridge Avenue dragon teeth. The bushes have recently been cut down, to reveal the concrete pyramids. There are several of them.

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Originally Posted by marky

Re: Stalbridge Road dragon teeth. The bushes have recently been cut down, to reveal the concrete pyramids. There are several of them.

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I noticed yesterday passing the old "Westfield" house site in Greenbank Lane - that the concrete air raid shelter I refered to is still there. Just to the left of the entrance - opposite Merebank flats.

Re: Greenbank Lane: I know there's a very small building in the front garden of the Gym. I have a picture of this if it is the building you mentioned.

Stalbridge Avenue:
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...lbridge_DT.jpg

[QUOTE=marky;156144]Re: Greenbank Lane: I know there's a very small building in the front garden of the Gym. I have a picture of this if it is the building you mentioned.QUOTE]

Interesting to see the Stalbridge dragons teeth free from undergrowth. They used to appear like this in the 60s when I was little though one appears to have started to flake away.

As for Greenbank Lane is the small barrel roofed concrete building partly buried in the earth between the gate and the cottages.

Here's the Greenbank Lane building I was thinking of:
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e...nk_Dec2006.jpg

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Originally Posted by davegore2005

Here is one for the history buffs among us, my family and myself were walking on the path from the coastguard station out towards Hightown and Formby today and I mentioned to my wife that there used to be what I imagine to be old air raid shelters dug into the sand dunes somewhere along there, I remember climbing down into them when when I was many years younger.

We walked as far as the waste water treatment pumping plant but for the life of me i could not place where the shelters were, or even how far they are from the coastguard station...any help to jog my memory would be gladly appreciated

Dave

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We walk there regulary with our dogs and i have seen wot u r talking about...its quite out in the open...if you r still interested I will look next time i go and tell you exactly where it is...u r still able to get down into it cos my children have been down... elliekr41

Kew Street off Scotland Road had a shelter. Anyone know anything about it? any maps? anything? My family used it.

Fine, photographs, Zaps and Marky! Very interesting stuff! :002:

Chris :snf (41):