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MHG30320 - ROC Observation post - Tomatin

Summary

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Type and Period (1)

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Full Description

A Royal Observor Corps observation post is situated on the E side of the A9 from the Little Chef cafe. The underground bunker was constructed of brick and concrete in the 1950s. <1>

The Tomatin bunker (Inverness 62 Post) was part of a countrywide network of monitoring posts providing data via telephone. The one-roomed concrete shelter is approx. 20’ down a narrow laddershaft. It was opened in 1963. The batteries and communication lines were removed in 1993. A brick aircraft post stands alongside. <2>

View Subterranea Britannica website for this site (see External links)

An historic building survey was undertaken of the site by AOC Archaeology Group in 2022 ahead of the Tomatin to Moy section of the A9 Dualling Programme. The Tomatin ROC Post is a typical example of its type, built during the height of the Cold War in the 1950s and 1960s. The purpose of these posts was to monitor the size and location of nuclear blasts in advent of nuclear war. This example, completed in 1963, and the other 1,562 like it, were all built to the same specification and included identical fittings throughout, although some elements were updated throughout the 1960s – 1980s. The last posts were decommissioned in the early 1990s with the monitoring equipment removed by the Ministry of Defence. Although some artefacts were present as late as 2011, at the time of survey these had all been removed. Fittings for the Fixed Survey Meter and Bomber Power Indicator are still visible as is the fitting for the sump pump. The final phase of the historic building survey will involve a watching brief during the demolition of the structure to allow for the final recording of the buried elements of the ROC Post to be undertaken, providing a better understanding of the construction techniques and materials used in its inception. <3>

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Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred NH 7981 2992 (41m by 20m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	NH72NE
Civil Parish	MOY AND DALAROSSIE
Geographical Area	INVERNESS

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