Could it be true?

[Great War truck]

Over the years we have probably all heard stories that we think unbeleivable. In most cases they turn out to be exagerations or fanciful imagination. For example, there is the whole "Jeep in a crate" myth. Also the large quantity of steam engines still held in army reserve bogus myth. But every now and again some strange story is actually true - "There is a Humber armoured car buried in that field" or "there is a WW1 Thornycroft lorry (actually an AEC) in that wood", or strangely enough "There are two WW2 German U Boats in that building (the building being a bombed U Boat pen)". Which have all proved to be true.

 

So what story's have you heard that might either be or not be true, and are they true? Here are a few to get you going:

 

1). At Brize Norton a collection of captured German aeroplanes were badly damaged in a storm in 1946. They bulldozed a hole and buried them.

 

2). As a precaution against a Soviet EMP, the MOD still keep a reserve of WW2 tanks (either Comets or Churchills - which are too basic to be imobilised by an EMP) in a London depot.

 

3). At the Alvis factory site, there remains in a basement a collection of prototype vehicles from the 1950's and 60's. The story goes on that when the factory was cleared the entrance to the basement was filled in. Then when they tried to build a new Tesco's they had to swap it and the car park around as the foundations could not be made safe. A large bore was made and the basement filled with pea shingle.

 

4). In the Indian Army reserve there are still some surviving British tanks from WW1.

 

Truth or over fanciful imagination. Over to you.

 

Tim (too)

[Ed Batchelor]

Have heard various tales, only the other day was picking up some bits from a farm which was a US airbase just outside Aylesbury (location not being given out as the guy probably wont thank me) Legend has it that after de-commissioning they were not allowed to ship the stuff home so a berm was dug out and filled with all their equipment. Similarly an underground bunker was supposedly filled up with all manner of tools and equipment. True or false who knows, probably legend developed over time, the "machinery" may have been to rolls of barbed wire and some bent wheel rims and the bunker had a few empty ammo tins left behind...he did have a pair of very old axles which had been turned into a farm trailer, looked like a large vintage car with large hubs and short thick wire spokes. Had a 'B' in the centre so could have been Bentley or Buick.

[Grasshopper]

I heard that there is supposed to be a narrow gauge railway locomotive buried under Wembley stadium that sank during construction of the original stadium.

[Willyslancs]

Rumour had it years ago the Gi 'S stationed local during the war asked a local lad they had befrended what he would like as they were shipping out " a jeep "was the reply, many years later at a rally an old guy with a jeep turned up, i asked him about it , and he told me it was left for him by the yanks when they went .Makes you wonder!!!........

[woa2]

I heard the following :-

1. There is US Paratroop equipment buried in old trenches at Aldermaston, which was an airfield used by 101 in 1944. However, this is now the Atomic Weapons Establishment, so digging there is not advised. Information came from an ex-Policeman who was there in 1944/45.

2. There are crates buried under Newbury racecourse, which was used as a supply depot in 1944/45 and a POW camp post war, but I don't think they will keen on them being dug up.

3. There are aircraft buried at Greenham Common airfield, but as there was an incident there involving Nuclear weapons, this is also not advised.

[Willyslancs]

local runway filled in with jeeps, harleys etc , had it confirmed by one of the gi s that did it.......................

[abn deuce]

It seems most of the really good stories involve things buried in locations or sites that one could never dig to confirm , hence the allure of it being believable .

 

Or on the other hand take for example a story handed down in one family of a great great relative who was a watch maker inscribing a note inside Abraham Lincoln's pocket watch about the start of the American Civil War which only recently was in fact confirmed as true by the experts at the Smithsonian Institute.

[Ed Batchelor]

I heard the following :-

1. There is US Paratroop equipment buried in old trenches at Aldermaston, which was an airfield used by 101 in 1944. However, this is now the Atomic Weapons Establishment, so digging there is not advised. Information came from an ex-Policeman who was there in 1944/45.

2. There are crates buried under Newbury racecourse, which was used as a supply depot in 1944/45 and a POW camp post war, but I don't think they will keen on them being dug up.

3. There are aircraft buried at Greenham Common airfield, but as there was an incident there involving Nuclear weapons, this is also not advised.

Anyone local to Newbury may remember when Greenham common was being cleared up by volunteers and some WW2 era guns turned up in a disused dump! So some stuff does just get abandoned. It was in the Newbury Weekly news at the time.

[Tony B]

There is supposed to be atunnel from the top of Polehill in Kent down to the sevenoks rail tunnel that was used to move ammunition from store to the railway. And that's as true as I'm standing here riding my bike!!!!!

[Richard Farrant]

I knew someone who used to metal detect over the site of an Advanced Landing Ground. It was used up to June '44 by the USAAF for P-47 Thunderbolts, once the landings had taken place, they moved to France. Legend had it that things were buried, this chap was around in those days so knew the layout. One day he came in with some small metal casings, they were found stacked together in a filled in trench. I eventually identified them as the mounting adaptor for a radio system fitted to vehicles, to give advance warning of an air attack. The stencil lettering and paint was still in reasonable order. In identifying this I was in contact with a MV collector in the USA, who wanted one so he could mount the same set on his Dodge, I think. Sadly nothing more interesting turned up.

[HotBed]

i have been told that the british army still has a load of Bedford OYs and QLs in reserve

 

regards

[N.O.S.]

I drilled some 8" dia. auger holes to 20ft depth to locate a disused sandpit near a US airbase which was rumoured to have been the main dump when the 8th AAF left. Unfortunately everything had been burned as it was dumped, we found a few bits and bobs at the very edge where the fire was less intense.

 

Last year at the same airfield the landowner financed a 15t excavator to find the bicycle dump without success - not sure why they bothered, as the person who thought he knew the location said he'd watched them being driven over by a Cletrac before being tipped!!