A614 The old Rufford Road 1950s

[poohbear 1,360]

Doing some searching the other day and an old memory came to mind.Does anyone else remember the signs at the side of the road in the woods at Rufford.

'KEEP OUT...UNEXPLODED SHELLS!

I seem to remember being driven on holiday as a kid...and my Father explaining that shells and bombs were hoarded in the woods in wartime out of sight of German bombers.

Was he right?...and when were the woods eventually cleared and mine swept?

[katyjay 5,091]

Could this be anything to do with it?

http://sherwoodforestvisitor.com/2012/10/18/sherwood-pines-clipstone-heath-forest-war-time-role/

[poohbear 1,360]

'A practice bombing range in WW2' could explain the worry about unexploded ordnance.Thanks katyjay.

[firbeck 859]

I recall going into the Forest just north of Ollerton in the late 50's, when my uncle was caretaker at Edwinstowe School and we spent many happy weekends up there.

Sitting in the woods was a rusty Comet or Cromwell tank ( they looked very similar). I recall trying to climb on it, but was too small to get up on to the hull.

I was told that it was used for target practice, no doubt much live ammunition was expended on it. Does anyone recall seeing this, or indeed what happened to it. I see on the OS map that their is a camp nearby, is this still an active military camp these days.

Trying to move a seized up tank is clearly difficult, we have a Chieftan sitting in a field near us in Finchingfield where it's been abandoned for many years and has now been covered over with brambles, trying to move that could be interesting.

Just down the road from the tank was the Ollerton Miniature Railway, a steam line that ran for a few hundred yards along the Worksop road, does anyone remember that and what happened to it also.

[denshaw 2,871]

Proteus camp was in Sherwood forest, i think it was used by cadets. The miniature train was there, also an ice cream van (mobile) fond memories of the sixties.

[firbeck 859]

Ah, I see that there is now a Sherwood Forest Steam Railway on the road from Edwinstowe to Warsop, related?

[denshaw 2,871]

Not seen that one Pete.

[mick2me 3,033]

I believe Proteus Camp was used by by The police to Billet Foriegn force officers like the Met, during the 1984 Miners Strike.

[Beefsteak 305]

We used Proteus Camp during my years in the ATC. Quite a few night exersizes in those woods. One lad (Andrew Fowler IMMSC) broke his ankle and had to be carried out by yours truely , over the shoulder of course, glad I volunteered for that one ....NOT

[yerfd0g 2]

There was a bombing range at Rufford. In the mid to late 1940s an RAF dummy practice bomb missed its target and landed in Rufford school playground and I think went through the school wall. Several children were injured - my sister was there at the time. I have been unable to find any newspaper reports etc of the incident.

 

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

Proteus and the associated woods and heathland were used as an ammunition dump during WW11 so no bombing at that time. WW1 saw the dropping of small practice i.e. ne explosives at a target near what is now the village of Clipstone.

 

After WW11 the area was used by cadets and TA forces for training purposes. The only live firing was on a 30 yard range for pistols and rifle only, this was situated in Proteus camp itself. Tanks of the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry used the heathland until The 60s when they swapped to wheeled armour of the Saladin type.

 

The notices we remember were all to do with it being used as a WW11 ammo store, lots of it were missed during the clean up, I have friends who were going up there in the 70s and 80s still recovering stuff.

[FLY2 10,108]

This used to be a great road, and a quick way to get to South Yorkshire, and the northbound A1. 

Now, as far as the A1 from Leapool island, it's blighted by speed cameras, traffic lights, islands, central refuges, side road closures and assorted baffling chevrons. All because a few idiots pull out from side roads, overtake at unsafe places, and generally drive badly !

[Oztalgian 3,278]

I see from Fly's comment that things have not changed. Back in the 60's "The Ramper" as it was known locally was notorious for accidents. Many were caused by impatient motorists overtaking in areas where there were three lanes. I remember that in certain sections the centre lane on the road had red coloured tarmac and was meant for overtaking if the other lane was clear. Unfortunately too many ignored common sense and overtook when they could not see if the road ahead was clear. This was due to the dips in road often combined with road junctions in the bottom of the dips (e.g. Blidworth Lane now Baulker Lane and Longland Lane into Farnsfield) An accident mentioned somewhere else on this site where a slower vehicle pulled out or was crossing the A614 and was hit by a vehicle travelling at speed down the dip. Another notorious junction was Mickledale Lane (to Bilsthorpe) and Inkersall Lane right near the Limes café where cars turning off the A614 often misjudged the speed of oncoming vehicles and were T-boned.

We used that road regularly when going to one of the great Dukeries estates for picnics in the 60's. Clumber Park was a particular favorite of mine.

 

[BulwellBrian 107]

When I was a child the family would travel to my Aunt & Uncle who lived near Grimsby. We would go from Bulwell down Oxclose line and up the A614, opposite the Clumber Park gates was a road that led to Retford that road was lined both sides with small corrugated iron huts that my Father told me were used to store amunition. This would be about 1947 to 1949.

 

I remember the red centre lanes, I think they were common on trunk roads at the time. Of couse then traffic was much lighter and slower, it was quite common to come accross a lorry doing 20mph when the car was doing 35mph. What was safe then became leathal in later years.

[Brew 5,411]

I lived on the A614 in the '60s in a house just after the railway bridge. The MD of Barton buses lived next door. The only thing I remember of the military camp near Ollerton are the 'Beware Tank Crossing' signs. I always assumed it was some sort of tank training ground.

It was whilst living there that I first fired a shotgun. The guy at the farm next door asked if I'd like to go 'rabbiting' . Six guys met outside my house and I was given a shotgun and told to be quiet as we crept across the road and stealthily peered over the hedge. Lo and behold there was a rabbit. So, more creeping until we got to the gate and entered the field. Damn, no rabbit. We stood around (Oi, keep that bleddy thing pointed at the floor) deciding where to go next when up pops Mr Bunny and he's running for his life. He's fast, but not fast enough to escape yours truly, the mighty hunter. At this point I had never fired a gun in my life except airguns at the Goose Fair. My father, who won shooting contests in the army was most disparaging of smooth bore guns. 'No kick, not accurate, rubbish guns' he said. Dad you lied to me!

Up came the gun and bang! It hit my shoulder and cheek so hard I was knocked of my feet. I was flat on my back, the gun is in the air with a live shell in it while five guys are trying bury themselves in the ground to take cover. Fortunately the second barrel didn't go off and we were  OK. The rabbit wasn't so lucky. I had hit and killed it.  When I looked at it felt so sick I couldn't even touch it. My wife refused to even consider skinning and cleaning it so I gave it to the farmer who was amazed at how soft 'townies' were.

I have two guns of my own now and I'm not bad at clay pigeon shoots but the thought of killing anything still makes me shudder.

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

4 hours ago, Brew said:

The only thing I remember of the military camp near Ollerton are the 'Beware Tank Crossing' signs. I always assumed it was some sort of tank training ground

Back in the late 50s and early 60s it was the last tanks used there were Centurion Mk1s after that only wheeled armoured vehicles and infantry used it.