Bridlington North Patrol

Locality

Bridlington is located on the East coast approximately half way between Scarborough and the Humber in North Yorkshire.

Patrol members
Name Occupation Posted from Until
Sergeant Albert Berry

Motor engineer

Unknown 03 Dec 1944
Captain Charles Victor Colley

Confectioner & cook

Unknown Unknown
Corporal George Henry Parkin

Haulage contractor

Unknown 03 Dec 1944
Private Lancelot William Coville

Tractor driver

Unknown 03 Dec 1944
Private Jeffery Tinsley Horsfield

Miller

Unknown Unknown
Private Jack Allsop Lea

Baker's van driver

Unknown Nov 1941
Private George Robson

Farmer

Unknown 03 Dec 1944
Private Harry Shaw

Bricklayer

Unknown Unknown
Private John Woodcock

Farmer

Unknown 03 Dec 1944
Operational Base (OB)

The Patrol had two OBs.

The first was a shelter built in a chalk pit in a copse of trees close to Marton Lodge just to the north of Marton Gate.

The second OB was an "Elephant" type shelter built close to the initial site. It was brick built with an escape tunnel, built above ground then covered with chalk and stone rubble to hide it.

The Patrol had an Observation Post close to the second OB hidden in a hollow tree.

Patrol & OB pictures
OB Image
Caption & credit
OB chamber with tunnel leading away (from Andrew Lennard-White)
OB Image
Caption & credit
Main chamber (from Andrew Lennard-White)
OB Status
Destroyed
Location

Bridlington North Patrol

Patrol Targets

The Patrol targets were the area around Flamborough Head, a double bay on the East coast, and an expected German landing zone. The area was heavily defended during the war. The large light house was an obvious target. Bridlington Bay was another expected German beach landing site.

Other targets would have included RAF Lissett, the Bridlington to York and Scarborough railway lines and roads inland from the coast.

Training

Training was done locally around the Patrol's area and Group training at Middleton on the Wolds, the Area Auxiliary Units HQ.

It is thought they also trained at Richmond and Castle Howard with the Green Howards (Castle Howard was large Home Guard training centre).

Some of the Patrol went to Coleshill House for specialist courses.

Weapons and Equipment

Weapons issued included sniper rifle and sights along with fighting knives.

Other information

Mike Howell recalled; "As a child I lived in Bridlington, close to Marton Gate. One of the favourite playgrounds of our small gang of boys was 'Woody's Wood', on Marton Gate and probably the wood which appears on Google Maps just to the east of West Crayke. In the wood, in a bit of a quarry was our 'den', what we took to be the air-raid shelter of the neighbouring farm. This was the mid 1950s when this area of Bridlington was still rural. The shelter was brick built, with two rooms one of which had a square hole access in it's ceiling. The other had a passage which led to an entrance in the quarry. I suppose it must have been about a four foot drop to get into the passage, hard work for a ten year old to get out of!  We did wonder at the time why an air-raid shelter was built so far from the farm it served, but dens in woods were not something to be discussed with parents as such places were well out of our bounds !"

References

TNA ref WO199/3389

Hancock data held at B.R.A

1939 Register

Andy Gwynne

Various Newspaper articles

Paul Richardson (son of C.S.M. F.K Richardson)

Mike Howell

Andrew Lennard-White