Hatston, Quarry Cottage Pillbox
Pillbox (20th Century)
Site Name Hatston, Quarry Cottage Pillbox
Classification Pillbox (20th Century)
Alternative Name(s) Hatston Airfield Defences
Canmore ID 81650
Site Number HY41SW 135.01
NGR HY 42910 11774
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/81650
- Council Orkney Islands
- Parish Kirkwall And St Ola
- Former Region Orkney Islands Area
- Former District Orkney
- Former County Orkney
HY41SW 135.01 42910 11774
A type 22 pillbox of unusual construction is situated on a piece of waste ground to the rear of Quarry cottage, NW of Kirkwall. Built by the Royal Marines whilst they were guarding Hatston airfield, the pillbox has been constructed using bags of cement, immersed in water and allowed to dry in that form. The machine gun mounting still survives inside.
J Guy 1993; NMRS MS 810/2, 159-60, 161 (vol.1)
A six-sided pillbox is situated about 20m W of a modern house on Sunnybank Road annotated 'Jonsheim' on the current OS 1:2500 scale digital map. In addition a concrete platform was visible about 2m NE of the pillbox.
The pillbox stands to about 3m and measures 3.9m NW to SE by 3.6m NE to SW and is constructed entirely of concrete. The roof, entrance lintels and gun loops are all precast concrete beams, whilst the main superstructure has been built by the in situ drying of water soaked concrete bags with mixed cement used to fill the gaps. The outline of the cement bags is still clearly visible.
The ground level entrance is on the SE and there are gun loops on all six six sides. Internally, a concrete floor and the remains of the machine gun mounting.
Visited by RCAHMS (DE, GS, SW), August 1999
