RAF Haydock

[shiralee]

Hi everyone
Just discovered this site.  I was in the WRAF at RAF Haydock from 1954 until1956, when I left to go to Germany.  I remember the camp very well - could even draw a map of it. I was a Teleprinter Op. I have some photos of the WRAF block, both inside and out, also other photos of us on parade for Remembrance Day I think.  We worked shifts.  After night duty we went to the Transport Cafe for breakfast - I think I also have a photo of some of the girls taken outside the cafe.  I made many good friends at Haydock and a couple of years back about 8 of us met , in York, to celebrate the 50th anniversery of our first meeting, we have all kept in touch in spite of now living so far apart.  My watch WO was WO Roberts and he formed a "choir" -and we used to go round Haydock inflicting ourselves on poor unsuspecting people in hospital and such like. One Winter there was a flu epidemic and as sick quarters only had two beds, the girls who were sick all got moved into one of the bigger rooms in the WRAF block and we all suffered together - then got two weeks sick leave.  The Wraf Officer there had a nice little scotty type dog - got a picture of him as well.

[cassandra123]

RAF Haydock is now a housing estate. It was not a large station but a Radio Station,  the big station was RAF/USAF Airbase at Burtonwood.
The main runway for Burtonwood is now the part of the M62 which goes past the Trading Estate at Warrington.

[cassandra123]

Jimbo there was a greasy spoon cafe (Transport Cafe) on the East Lancashire Road just up the road from Haydock (Burkhills)  opposite Carr Mill Dam.

Alex Murphy and a lot of other Rugby League players , from Warrington, Wigan,  Leigh, etc., who were sent to RAF Haydock to do their National Service.   Easy for them to get home for the matches.

It was amazing how many of them joined the RAF and ended up at Haydock.

[saul_son]

I'm not sure if this is a widely known fact but RAF Haydock was known as RAF Blackbrook during the second world war, as measure of secracy.

The staff of the North Western Signals Centre (NWCC), or atleast some of them, were billeted at Winstanley Hall near Wigan. The hall today is in a very poor state as can be seen here and information regarding the RAF use of the hall here, that information was found from a publication called Past Forward produced by Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust here pages 37 to 39. The hall was used as the Officers mess, whilst the non-commissioned ranks were billeted in Nissen huts in the grounds.

I hope this helps, I came across this forum and thread whilst searching for information on RAF Haydock myself.

[cassandra123]

I have lived not far from there all my life even during WW2 and have never ever heard it called anything but RAF Haydock.  certainly not RAF Blackbrook  with was a mile or two down the road from it.


The only mention of RAF Blackbrook was the Amatuer Rugby League Team that played with the local team at Blackbrook.

[saul_son]

All I can say is read the .pdf file I linked too. That and information about RAF Haydock turns up on Google when you search for RAF Blackbrook...

[Dancing Master]

Well you cannot believe everything you read on Google, its only information put there by another human being not necessarily correct or even checked out.

I never ever use Google as a search engine.

[saul_son]

Well you cannot believe everything you read on Google, its only information put there by another human being not necessarily correct or even checked out.

I never ever use Google as a search engine.

Which search engine do you use?

[shiralee]

The transport cafe was to the right of the camp diagonally across the road from the Comcen - Carr Mill was considerably further away.  Alex Muphy was on the same watch as I was.