THE DISCOVERY OF A UNIQUE WORLD WAR II DOMESTIC AIR RAID SHELTER

In February 2021, after moving to Falkirk, I noticed a brick building at the bottom of my new garden. Covered in decades of household rubbish, green waste and unchecked growth, I was unsure if this building was a forsaken garden shed or, perhaps, something less mundane. My curiosity piqued, I contacted Historic Environment Scotland (HES) via Twitter, enquiring about my find. I was asked to submit additional photos to HES for their evaluation. At the time, I could barely see inside the building.

Several weeks later, I was contacted by Allan Kilpatrick. In his initial assessment of the building, he confirmed that I had ‘uncovered an air raid shelter’. He also noted that this shelter is a ‘rather unusual design’ when compared to other domestic shelters.

The excavation begins

Thoroughly intrigued, I knew the only way I could learn about this neglected piece of history was to conduct an amateur excavation of the site. I began clearing the area in front of the shelter so that the local council could remove the household waste. That was followed by a clearance of the green waste and growth on top of the site and the relocation of a tree