I was told this was an old munitions depot and was expecting little. After the Ministry of Supply Munitions Factory which was a bore-fest, my mind had already been made up.
It will be something like a deserted Butlins Holiday camp while being devoid of humanity. Magazine Farm has its own road junction and that made it easy to park.
It also tells everyone that we are on the grounds. The day was so hot that I doubt anyone cared. It was one of those rare occasions that put the UK on par with tropical countries.
Magazine Farm was originally a munitions storage facility for the British Army, established 1889.
The site was expanded throughout the years, but ultimately abandoned from its original purpose in the 1970s where it was sold, converted into a pig farm (also known as a Piggery), and was used to breed pigs until its closure in the 1990s. The site has remained crumbling and derelict ever since.
Source
I had no idea of the history during our visit but the pig farm makes sense. Bloody pigs and their shit, I try my best to keep clear of what they leave behind lest it sticks to my feet and contaminates the car.
The link from another explorer reveals some interesting details about ‘Magazine Farm'. We came across what is detailed as 'Cottages' right away.
Getting inside the cottages was a question of which window or door to climb or walk through. They looked severely neglected and so my expectations were low.
Built-in cupboards are a 'thing' of these kinds of old houses. They have survived remarkably well.
Upstairs was easy enough if you jump the big hole near the bottom. The wood placed across it seemed more like a decoy to get you falling down the gap.
This room was quite bare besides the big hole designed to trap your ankle and rupture your calf. I saw right through it.
I have no doubts that this is the original bathtub. You can still get these but not with rust attached... that's extra.
Very sturdy and typical of our ancient working-class housing.
People once sat here and gazed out upon what looked like a concentration camp.
The block of houses I guess housed three families which means three lots of stairs.
Besides dodgy banister-less landing areas and more bad-conditioned baths, there was little else to see.
The Gunpowder store was built in 1889 and is one of the original buildings.
There was some evidence of what it used to house, as well as long dark creepy corridors.
What this is I cannot tell you, except it was festered with spiders, webs, and a logo that looks suspiciously like 'McCain'
One strong punch to penetrate this facade and we could have been buried in a pile of chips or French fries as the Americans call them.
Walking around Magazine Farm was similar to a theme park. You visit and then move to the next sight.
…'except some of the sights were not so enthralling'…
Corrugated iron sheds with pig shit. Fuck that…, it's one sight I will veer away from at lightning speed.
We came to a series of long buildings described as the 'stores'.
Some were suspiciously like pig barns and I quickly moved on.
A few had laughable locks and attempts to keep people out. It was never going to happen and if there are things to see I will be in there.
Ugh, whatever was splattered on those walls is not worth contemplating.
One large building appeared to be locked but we managed to scrape through the door with one of us holding it open for the other.
It looked to be filled with tools and knick-knacks.
A few pieces of rusty engineering, this one with a dial.
The drill looked well oiled or had someone taken a piss on it?
An industrial lathe perhaps?
All full of cobwebs. How long since anyone has been in here? I have read other reports on Magazine Farm and they seem to have missed all this.
If you are going to teach yourself First Aid then it's always wise to have a stash of Elastoplast's handy.
That old chain would make a fine weapon. Swing it around your head and strike terror into your enemies.
It does look like a concentration camp, don’t you think?
A little better than expected and Magazine Farm had some atmosphere. Just avoid the pig shit.
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