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Remains of World War II Chain Radar Station (no. 47) which provided long range early warning for the north of Scotland. The location was selected by the Air Ministry as a Radar site in 1939 and it was photographed by the Luftwaffe in 1940 whilst still under construction being named as Smiddyseat after the farmsteading to the South. The evidence on the photograph was interpreted by the Germans as a Radio Station. The station would appear to have become operational as a final type Chain Home station during March 1942, though it had been working as an Intermediate Chain Home (ICH) from 1941. The Radar Station at Hillhead closed operationally during March 1946 and dismantling, such as it was, began at the end of that month. It comprises a main site, originally surrounded by a steel fence and included Transmitter (Tx) and Receiver (Rx) blocks, two blocks of masts, a domestic site and pillboxes, and dispersed features including a remote reserve, pill-boxes and huts. All of the elements of the site are visible on RAF aerial photographs taken in 1954. Most of the structures survive, albeit derelict (and some with more recently modified entrances for agricultural use) and have been recorded by RCAHMS site visit in 2008. The Transmitter block is a large reinforced and shuttered concrete building with an internal brick wall brick is situated in the middle of an arable field to the southeast of the domestic area. It measures about 28.8m by 10.6m overall with an estimate height of 14m. The inner brick built block which housed the technical equipment, measures 24.5m by 7.4m, has a flat roof on which the remains of aerials could be seen. The main entrance is at the southwest end, and this has been more recently enlarged to allow tractors to carry bales of straw/hay into the interior. The outer walls are in effect blast walls, although of much greater strength than those protecting doorways. Further entrances were noted on the southeast and northwest facing elevations whilst the northeast end has four large openings about half way up, through the outer concrete blast wall, with three small brick buttresses on the lower section. One entrance through the outer southeast-facing wall has steps and is of a reduced height with a square brick pillar immediately inside set at right angles to the door. Some of the original fittings to the outside of the inner block survive including the remains of trunking for the air extraction, wooden doors and the flooring. The inside was not visited. The Receiver block is similar to the Transmitter block, but smaller in size, measuring circa 21.7m by 14.8m, with flat roofed brick-built inner block circa 18m by 8.7m. The main entrance is at the southwest end, but has been enlarged to allow tractor access. The domestic site was in the central part of the main site. Two groups of building have been recorded, one (centred NJ 94252 61767) comprising a group of at least 12 buildings to the north of the main access track to the station. All appear to be of brick and concrete construction with steel roof trusses and small buttresses. Most are single storey huts, some now unroofed, and some with short towers for water tanks. The group includes an air raid shelter of Stanton type. The other (centred NJ 94283 61692) is a group of at least six buildings to the south of the main access track to the station, all of brick and concrete construction with steel roof trusses. One building has short tower for a water tank and a widened entrance and may have been for motor transport. The others were single-storey huts, some unroofed. Six pillboxes stood on the perimeter or within the main site, of brick and concrete construction. Five of these were Type 24 pillboxes, most of 6-sided design but one of eight sides. The other two are Type 27 pillboxes. No trace of the mast bases were seen at the time of the RCAHMS visit. North of the main site, at NJ 94427 62607, is the surface receiver reserve. The 1954 aerial photographs show four small bases immediately north of the bunker which may be for a mast or UP mounting. To the southeast of this, at circa NJ 9461 6240 is a buried transmitter reserve, to the southeast of which at NJ 94579 62327 is the stand-by set house. Two pillboxes stand north of the main site, both Type 27. That at NJ 94726 62065 measures circa 27m in diameter, and is 8-sided with a loophole in each side, and an entrance on the northwest. It is built of brick, with a concrete roof which has a space for mounting an anti-aircraft gun. To the west of the pillbox is a rectangular hut, measuring circa 17.9m by 5.6m, with an asbestos roof. It has six bays, some retaining metal window frames. The entrance is in the north end with a chimney at the south end. The pillbox at NJ 93919 62311 measures circa 7.9m by 9m, of brick with a thick reinforced concrete roof, with an entrance on the southwest angle and loopholes in every face. Site visit found no trace of a rectangular building which stood circa 40m west of the pillbox adjacent to the road as shown on a 1969 OS map. A standing building survey of a guard room building at NJ 94135 61735 near the western edge of the site was carried out by MAS in November 2020 ahead of proposed demolition. It was constructed of red brick with concrete render, the roof now missing, the west end of the building comprising guard rooms or offices, the east end of the building probably used for accommodation. Metal detecting of the development plot recovered objects of 19th or 20th century date, mostly roof nails and washer, or minor door or window fittings, but also a single 1843 threepenny piece was also found. A number of structural finds were also recorded included iron pipes, probably leading to a cess pit.
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Historic Environment Records (HER)