Monument record MDO2905 - Pillbox, West Stafford

A World War II type 22 pillbox located at the road junction of the West Stafford - Dorchester road in West Stafford.It was constructed in 1940-41 and has six embrasures, a brick frontage and a concrete roof. The brick walls were constructed first with asbestos sheeting laid over top, then filled with concrete - one inch thick. A field visit in 1996 found the structure to be in a good condition.

A Type 22 pillbox located at the road junction of the West Stafford - Dorchester Road.
1. Brick frontage with conglomerate concrete roof. Elevations are 8' wide and 4' high.
2. Brick walls constructed first with asbestos sheeting laid over top then filled with concrete - 1' thick.
3. Grenade throwing entrance - retaining wall 4' deep into entrance of pillbox with 3 steps.
4. Inside - concrete floor, 'T' shaped anti-ricochet wall. No ingress of water.
5. 6 loopholes, entrance loophole = 23"x10" remaining 5 = 15"x10"

Associated sites:
Maiden Newton
Poole Harbour Stopline
Pillbox SY7388 8963
Pillbox SY7209 9045
Home Guard Hut - SY7450 8960 (2)

Type 22 pillbox. Brick frontage with concrete roof. Elevations are 8ft wide and 4ft high. Brick walls constructed first with asbestos sheeting laid over top, then filled with concrete - 1ins thick. Walled entrance 4ft deep with 3 steps into pillbox. Concrete floor, T-shaped anti-ricochet wall. 6 embrasures, entrance embrasure 23ins x 10ins, remaining 15ins x 10ins.At the road junction of the West Stafford - Dorchester road, West Stafford. (1-3)

<1> Council for British Archaeology, 1995, Defence of Britain Project, S0000097 (Digital archive). SWX5.

<2> Council for British Archaeology, 2003, Defence of Britain Project Database, S0000097 (Machine readable data file). SDO128.

<3> Council for British Archaeology, 2006, Defence of Britain Project Archive DEB01, S0000097 (Excavation archive). SDO17227.

<4> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1416312 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Feb 27 2023 11:05AM