Beattock is a village 3 miles south of Moffat.
|Sergeant C.Heron||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
|Corporal T. Little||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
|Private E. Anderson||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
|Private J. Hyslop||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
|Private J. Proudfoot||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
|Private J. Rennie||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
|Private J. Souttar||Unknown||03 Dec 1944|
The OB is within a small, established wood with a mixture of deciduous and mature larch trees. It is in a remarkable state of preservation, with only some earth infill at entrance and exit.
In 2019 AOC Archaeology Group carried out a survey of the site creating some very impressive 3D images and scans.
We included it in an article for CBA Festival of Archaeology 2020
Targets would have included the West Coast main rail line and bridge. Along with the A74 and A701 main roads.
Training on occasion was conducted at Otterburn and Beattock Moor, as well as Criagielands Woods and grounds.
Although in Beattock the Patrol was about 3 miles southwest of the Moffat Patrol, demonstrating the importance of covering such vital road and rail links.
Beattock was itself a railway village. The famous Beattock summit, which was the most difficult railway gradient in Britain and featured in the poet W. H. Auden's commentary for the classic 1930s documentary film Night Mail.
TNA ref WO199/3388
Hancock data held at B.R.A
AOC Archaeology Group - G. Cavers Oct 2019
Allan Alston for locating the OB and for kindly supplying his photos and findings. 2008
Photos from Adrian Hunt 2014
Major Peter Forbes during correspondence