NHER 60587 (Building record) - Barn at Manor Farm

One of twelve so called 'red barns', built by the East Anglian Property Company in 1936–1937. The barns were painted red, and were next to fields which had obstructions such as hedges and ditches removed, to create one large, flat field. The barns and associated fields were identified by the RAF in 1940 as potential landing grounds for a planned German invasion. The farm owners, all Dutch nationals, were arrested in one night, the barns camouflaged and the fields obstructed (S1). The owners were later released.
The barn is 45m x 25m, and aisled, with two 5m bays flanking a 15m centre section, accessed by a sliding door in each gable. This example has a small extension on its west gable.
The East Anglian Real Property Company were one of the pioneers of sugar beet production in East Anglia. Wade-Martins and Williamson describe the barns as built for the storage of sugar beet (S2).
Cropmarks recorded as NHER 49375 may include elements of the anti-glider/anti-aircraft ditches dug to obstruct the field.
K. Hamilton (NHES), 9 February 2015.