THE GREAT WAR CAMP WHAT REMAINS TODAY? NEWS Contact
In December 1914, the War Office confirmed that Ripon would be site of one of Lord Kitchener’s ‘New Army’ Camps. Work started almost immediately on the construction of a light railway with Balfour Beatty & Co as the main contractors. The railway ran from the Littlethorpe sidings through to Whitcliffe Lane continuing on to cross the River Laver and on to Clotherholme. Around 30 miles of new roads were constructed and many others strengthened.
In reality it was actually two separate camps. No.1 South Camp, around Red Bank and the surrounding fields had long been a favoured camping ground for the annual Volunteers. This was the first section to be built and the contractors were Nicholson & Son of Leeds. Here the new huts were constructed primarily of wood, each holding around 40 men. In addition there were numerous stables and cavalry structures.
A newspaper report of 1920 states that the South Camp cost £451,000.
No. 2 North Camp was constructed by Balfour Beatty & Co. and consisted very largely of steel-framed reinforced concrete huts, slated with Welsh slates on concrete bases. The huts were also connected by covered walkways. As well as accommodation the North Camp contained large ordnance sheds which the railway ran through.
Capable of accommodating around 30,000 men the Camp housed numerous battalions including the Bradford Pals, 12th York & Lancs and the King’s Own Regiment. It also provided convalescent care within a 670 bed military hospital and it was here that a large number of Canadian Soldiers were treated.
The poet Wilfred Owen was posted to the camp in March 1918, still recovering from shell-shock he worked on a number of his most powerful poems “The Send-Off” and “Mental Cases” while staying on the city.
At the end of the war the camp was used for repatriated prisoners of war.
After the war, all of the huts were sold off and the land was returned to agricultural use.
However, some of the infrastructure of the Great War camp still survives. Most well-known are the "Fairy Steps" on Borrage Lane, but it also included the concrete weir and sluice on the River Laver (pictured above). Situated within the Laver Banks training area, this provided water for the coal-fired power station, shown in the postcard to the left.
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