Ww2 Pillbox And 2 Fire Posts South Of Former Royal Ordnance Factory

A pillbox and two fire posts from the Second World War, sited in a field to the south of a former Royal Ordnance Factory near Steeton. The fire posts occupy the south-west and south-east corners of the field, while the pillbox stands nearer to the factory to the east. The ground rises toward the south at the eastern end of the field.

All three structures are built of brick with reinforced concrete roofs and precast concrete embrasures. The pillbox is constructed of Phorpres bricks in English garden wall bond, 23 inches thick. The fire posts have brick walls 13.5 inches thick.

The pillbox is a two-storey variant of a Type 24 design—a hexagonal form with an expanded rear wall to accommodate two rifle loopholes instead of one. Access to the ground floor is via a rear door. A transverse anti-ricochet wall crosses the interior, with a hatch behind it leading to the first floor via a steel ladder (of which only the top two rungs survive, with portions of handrail and guard rail). No openings pierce the ground floor except the entrance. The anti-ricochet wall continues through the first floor to the roof. Each wall of the first floor has a wide double-splay embrasure, except the rear wall which has two embrasures. The embrasures are precast in four parts: sill, two jambs, and lintel, with a wider internal splay than external. The roof is approximately 9 inches thick. The first floor interior walls are painted and bear modern graffiti.

The fire posts are low square buildings with flat concrete roofs. Each wall has a wide internally splayed embrasure, precast in two pieces. The entrance is positioned beneath the embrasure on one side, with a low brick wall extending from the adjacent wall, returning at right angles toward the entrance. Inside the western fire post, the north wall retains a wooden batten that would have supported a telephone shelf. Modern graffiti is present.

These structures formed part of the defensive network protecting the Royal Ordnance Factory. Pillboxes were developed during the early stages of the Second World War, with thousands built at strategic locations and along 'stop lines' to slow attacking forces. The Steeton pillbox is a variant of Type 24, designed for a garrison of eight men. This two-storey example is extremely rare, one of only four known surviving variants. The pillbox and fire posts remain unaltered and complete. The factory itself has been largely replaced with later structures, though some original buildings appear to survive among the later industrial development on site.