RAF Harpur Hill

RAF Harpur Hill was a Royal Air Force base, situated at Harpur Hill near Buxton, Derbyshire in England. The site was operational from 1938 to 1960 and was mainly used as an underground munitions storage facility. It became the largest ammunitions dump in the country across the 500 acres site.
From December 1939 to December 1960, the RAF Maintenance Unit 28 was based at Harpur Hill. The RAF used Harpur Hill as an underground munitions store. In 1938 the Air Ministry bought Harpur Hill Quarry from ICI. 11 tunnels were built and dug into the hillside from 1938 to 1940 by McAlpine to house munitions and ordnance during World War II. The small entrance leads into one main tunnel, which used to have a railway track running along its length, with three side tunnels branching off on each side. These tunnels are 25 feet wide, 17 feet high and over half a mile long. The tunnels were constructed 60 feet below ground level to withstand enemy bombing raids. There are four slightly smaller tunnels on a lower level, accessed by lifts. War food rations were also stored within the tunnel system. Bombs were transported to the site by road and by the mainline railway through the site .

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