Territorial Forces training camp, Edingthorpe, North Walsham, Norfolk

[seaJane]

Does anyone have a contemporary map that shows this camp?

 

I drove over to Edingthorpe this afternoon but the camp has left no traces visible to me (nice church in the village, though).

[Moonraker]

Was it a hutted camp, or merely a camping-ground? It would be unusual for a hutted camp to be dedicated to the Territorial Force, given that its units usually had camps in the summer. In the case of Salisbury Plain before the Great War, Territorial Force units used only camping-grounds, where the only permanent structures were cooking-shelters. (I'm not sure about  the open-air baths, which had a fence of wood.) Such camps are marked only in outline, and then only sometimes, on large-scale maps of the period. (By "outline" I mean showing the boundaries of the area.)

 

Some of the Plain's camping-grounds had hutments erected on them during the war and there's nothing to be seen of them nowadays.

 

Try Old Maps

 

Moonraker

[seaJane]

Thanks - will reply more fully later but a bit tired tonight

[seaJane]

On 19/02/2017 at 13:59, Moonraker said:

Was it a hutted camp, or merely a camping-ground? It would be unusual for a hutted camp to be dedicated to the Territorial Force, given that its units usually had camps in the summer. In the case of Salisbury Plain before the Great War, Territorial Force units used only camping-grounds, where the only permanent structures were cooking-shelters. (I'm not sure about  the open-air baths, which had a fence of wood.) Such camps are marked only in outline, and then only sometimes, on large-scale maps of the period. (By "outline" I mean showing the boundaries of the area.)

 

Some of the Plain's camping-grounds had hutments erected on them during the war and there's nothing to be seen of them nowadays.

 

Try Old Maps

 

Moonraker

Hi again,

I just assumed TF because the man I'm researching (Archie Hamilton Douglas Richmond, for whom see other posts) is down as attending said camp in his TF officer cadet papers.

The only Google reference I have been able to find has someone else in the same battalion there: http://www.peterboroughww1.co.uk/soldiers/jg-stewart/

 

Probably a dreadful warning against assuming things! Thank you for the maps link - I will investigate.

 

sJ

[seaJane]

Have looked on 1907 and 1928 which are the two nearest - no luck. Never mind, was worth a try.

[Moonraker]

Some non-Regular units had training camps on land owned by local worthies, often with connections to the county regiment. I have instances of Yeomanry units being so accommodated in Wiltshire before the war.

 

In the summer of 1915, the 2/1st elements of the Dorset, Hampshire, North Somerset and Royal Wiltshire Yeomanries were at Bowood House, near Calne, the home of the Marquis of Lansdowne, a Government Minister. Any effect they would have had on the terrain would have been very limited and short-lived - marks on the grass where tents had been erected, latrine pits and perhaps some fertile ground from horse-droppings.

 

Common land was also used for short-term camps, such as at Marlborough (for cadet camps) and Hungerford.

 

You could try to find out who owned the land where your man was a century ago.

 

Moonraker

[seaJane]

There is/was a hall and various farmlands.

 

In lieu of being able to find an exactly contemporary map I shall ping my Dad, who lives at Ludham, to ask the local Archives group

[rob carman]

A possibility.... In Meeres, F. 2016.  Voices of the First World War. Norfolk's War 160 pp. Amberley Publishing, there are set of photos showing Norfolk Regt men  in trenches.  The legends say "North Walsham".  There is no text linked to the photos.  

 

Walsham hints of the 6th TF Cyclist Bn .  I will check when I get home this evening and look for any helpful landmarks.

 

Rob.

[barkalotloudly]

i have several photographs of various {mainly yeomanry units} stationed around north Norfolk  Cawston, Holt, Lyng etc but nothing , i can identify as North Walsham {my grand parents lived at Worstead}

[Dragon]

There are historic aerial photos on this site: Historical Maps of Norfolk. You might be able to spot some vestiges from the air.

Edited 24 February , 2017 by Dragon

[kenf48]

Apparently an isolated and desolate spot ?

 

http://www.northwalshamarchive.co.uk/photo/world-war-1-postcard-from-the-troops-in-north-walsham

 

Ken

[Moonraker]

The verses on Ken's card were used on cards for many other camps, with just the location's name being changed. I have several different examples for Wiltshire. But the fact that the publisher produced a version for North Walsham suggests that the camp was sufficiently large to hold enough potential purchasers.

 

No doubt some of us have Googled, as I did originally, including "Edingthorpe", which produced very little. However, searching for "North Walsham Camp 1916" brings up a number of references to various units being based there, suggesting that it was a more substantial camp than I had guessed.

 

Moonraker

[Moonraker]

Should you want to find out more about the camp, you could search the regimental histories of the units based there. Very laborious, I know. I haven't visited the IWM reading room for many years, but back in the late 1990s the histories were on open-access bookshelves around the room. Very convenient.

 

There's an  article about "ceaseless military energy" along the Norfolk coast in The Times, January 9, 1915, p3. It mentions North Walsham in passing. Perhaps soldiers at the camp were involved in coastal defence?

 

Moonraker

[barkalotloudly]

when my grand father joined in 1915 he was in the Norfolk cyclists and was based at Happisbough 

[Moonraker]

A number of cyclist units were deployed on the Coast, where their mobility was an advantage.

 

Moonraker

[seaJane]

Ah, Happisburgh the unpronounceable (Hazebruh). It's an idea, though NW is slightly inland 

[barkalotloudly]

4 hours ago, seaJane said:

Ah, Happisburgh the unpronounceable (Hazebruh). It's an idea, though NW is slightly inland 

the road from Happisboro to North walsham brings back many pleasant childhood memories as we had a caravan {and still do} at Eccles on Sea and this was the routs taken on many a warm sunday evening to see my grand mother on the way home tired and "sun kissed" after a weekend at the beach