Second World War huts at Great Easton Manor, Dunmow Road, Great Easton (EHER 81072)

It seems likely the two huts recorded at Great Easton Manor were purchased from RAF Great Dunmow, after its closure in 1950.

April 2023. Level 3 building survey. It seems likely the two huts recorded at Great Easton Manor were purchased from RAF Great Dunmow, after its closure in 1950. At first glance the huts seem uninteresting due to their modern age and lacklustre appearances, particularly considering modern-day knowledge on the dangers of asbestos, but the survival and utilisation of these huts does attest to the ‘make do and mend’ attitude adopted and embraced by the British people after the war. The armed forces may have seen the temporary hutting of the Second World War as disposable but the local farmers saw an opportunity to expand their existing stock of farm-buildings with ready-made, transportable and easily adaptable structures. This secondary use preserved these military buildings which otherwise would probably have completely disappeared from the historic record. <1>