Explosive Works Upton Towans

[highcannons]

Overgrown with vegetation but with much still visible the 300 acres of The National Explosive Works at Upton Towans was built in 1888. Hungarian, Oscar Guttman designed the place which is also known as Dynamite Towans. The word 'towan' means 'sand dune' in Cornish. The works supplied mostly local mines but also the Royal Navy in World War one. The works were closed in 1919 though used to store explosives until 1960.

Some 1800 people worked there at one time making Nitro-Glycerine and Cordite. The rail line spur remained until 1920 until the buildings were cleared. The special trains had spark arresting funnels.

The huge chimney was renovated in 1998.

One serious explosion resulted in 4 deaths and shattered windows across St.Ives Bay it was heard for many miles reportedly as far as Dartmoor.

There is much more than is pictured here but it tends to look rather the same in pictures but is well worth a visit as it is a huge area that is a rewarding explore.

In the manner of things that go bang if you aint careful, I stopped at RAF Portreath on the way home. I think these must be bomb stores or similar. I had to make do with these only as I could see no way into RAF Portreath site proper...

This looks like one of the old reinforced door hinges.

Thanks for looking.
HC

 

[flyboys90]

Very interesting.

 

[night crawler]

Looks well over grown but worth looking at.

 

[borntobemild]

Nice pics. Love old munitions works

 

[godzilla73]

Those bomb stores look interesting. It seems odd that they would have embrasures on - it just set me thinking about the ones at Lydden in kent, which seem to have windows rather than embrasures. Some pics here
Godzy

 

[highcannons]

Those bomb stores look interesting. It seems odd that they would have embrasures on - it just set me thinking about the ones at Lydden in kent, which seem to have windows rather than embrasures.

Interesting, I am assuming they are stores for some sort of thing that goes bang 'cos of the design. Perhaps they were depth charge or something? The only ? is that they are so close together, although the walls are thick, they don't look enough to stop a spread, having said that they are only accessable cos they are now outside the boundry being so far away from the rest of RAF Portreath. As you drive along to them you go through the old gates...

http://airfields.pikfu.net/set1672587/media57134950.html ha s the as small arms stores

 

[smiler]

Nicely Done HC, we can't fnd a way into Portreath either, Yet.

 

[highcannons]

Thanks for saying so, at least my fail isn't a lone one....annoyingly it seems some do get in as there are various pictures on the web....I expect its a elfin safety thing wot with all the chemicals etc.