History of Hobbs Industrial Estate

Hobbs Barracks

Hobbs Barracks, now the site of Hobbs Industrial Estate, is located to the West of the A22, North of the village of Felbridge at Newchapel, Surrey. There are very few documented details about the barracks available from military sources; so much of the enclosed information is based on local knowledge and the memoirs of soldiers that were once stationed there.

Before the Second World War, the site, which had once formed part of the Evelyn estate, was part of Golards Wood, and had been home to charcoal burners from the middle of the 16th century until the end of the 18th century, providing fuel for the iron industry that was operating in the locality. In the 19th century the wood was known as Goldhard Wood and a hundred years before that, in 1748, as Gold Hoard Wood. The name suggests some treasure has been found in times past, but when and by whom, we do not know. The wood was mostly sweet chestnut, with a few oaks and silver birch, and abundant examples of ancient coppicing can still be seen in the remnants of the wood to this day.

In 1856, the Evelyn estate, which included Goldhard Wood, was purchased by George Gatty, and became known as the Felbridge Place estate. By this date the demand for charcoal had declined and Goldhard Wood, along with Furnace Wood, was used for breeding game birds, pheasants and partridge. To maintain a constant vigil on the birds, a keeper’s cottage was built on the Eastern edge of Goldhard Wood, West of the A22, opposite Golards farmhouse and what was then the Woodcock forge, now Golards Farm and Markey’s Diner. Around 1917, the keeper’s cottage transferred to the Newchapel House estate, purchased by Henry Willis Rudd and was sold by Barclays Bank, holding on behalf of the Rudd’s in 1924. The sale details, for what was then described as ‘a very pleasant cottage residence’ were as follows:

It had a frontage to the main road (A22) of about 90 ft (27m) and was approached off the main drive to Golands, to which it has a frontage of about 160 ft (48m). The upper floor had three bedrooms with fireplaces, a bathroom fitted with a porcelain enamel bath, with hot and cold water supply, and there was also a hot air cupboard.

On the ground floor there was an entrance porch opening into a lounge or sitting room that had a chimney opening, with a tiled hearth and wood curb in which was fitted a register stove with a mantel above and dwarf cupboards either side. There was a kitchen with a tiled floor, a range and a sink with hot and cold water. There was also a scullery with a tiled floor, glazed brick dado and two deep wash sinks, again with hot and cold water, the whole house being supplied by mains water. Leading from the scullery was a door into the garden.

Outside there was a brick built and tiled outhouse for wood and coal, and the cottage and outbuildings stood in the midst of woodland, with a small ornamental garden and kitchen garden, enclosed by a rustic fence, the whole area covering about half an acre.

The keeper’’s cottage, known for a period of time as Grim House (or Grims Cottage), but now as Willow Cottage, remained in private ownership. It was occupied by a chartered surveyor, John R. Wiles, his wife Hazel with their son Simon, this cottage remained independent from the barracks site until its purchase by Clive Jacques in the early 1980’s. It now forms one of the properties owned and lived in by one of members of the Jacques family, owners of the Hobbs Industrial Estate.

On the death of George Gatty in May 1864, the estate passed to his son, Charles Henry, and on his death in December 1903, the estate was left in trust to two male cousins, Alfred and Charles Sayer, Charles Gatty having never married and therefore without direct heir. The Sayers’ retained the estate until April 1911, when it was sold to Mrs Emma Harvey and the East Grinstead Estate Company. One month later, the entire Felbridge Place estate was put up for auction in separate lots. The bulk of what eventually became Hobbs Barracks was purchased by William Oswald Carver on the 10th October 1911, and Charles Rowe Colville on 9th August 1912, and in 1913, Andrew Duncan MacNeill and William MacKinnon MacNeill purchased parts of Golards Wood. Andrew was responsible for extending the house at New Chapel Farm, Newchapel, Surrey, and residing there until 1916, when Henry Willis Rudd, backer of the Lewes gun, purchased it, along with Felbridge Place, creating the Newchapel House and Felbridge Place estates.

The story of the barracks begins with the First World War. With the sudden influx of men under arms, there was a need to house them and initially they were billeted in local towns and villages. Unfortunately, this caused social problems as the licentious soldiery lived up to their reputation, (the illegitimacy rate increased by 30%). The decision was made to house these men in camps, initially tented. Understandably, this was unpopular with the men in winter so hutted camps were built circa 1915. The Sussex Regiments had camps at Crowborough, and Pippinford, on Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, and it has been suggested that the West Kent Regiment, whose depot was at Maidstone, Kent, came just over the border to Newchapel, Surrey, on the site we now know as Hobbs Barracks, although the camp would have been much smaller than today. However, this base camp on the site of Hobbs Barracks has not yet been substantiated and there is no mention of its existence when the area is sold by the MacNeills to Henry Willis Rudd.

At some time between 1911, the initial break up of the Felbridge Place estate, and 1924, when Barclays Bank were selling on behalf of the Rudd’s, a second property known as Golands had been built. William Carver, who had purchased the site in 1911, may have been responsible for the building of the house, although it is more likely that the Rudd’s, who owned the area between 1917 and 1924, built Golands. Evidence for this is the fact that the outbuildings to Golands were constructed on land not formerly belonging to the Golands’ plot at the time of William Carver’s ownership, and many of the internal fittings of Golands, as described at its sale in 1924, were similar, if not the same, as those found in Newchapel House, home of the Rudd’s, also sold in 1924. The 1924 sale details for the freehold residence of Golands were as follows:

On the top floor there was a large and well-lit servant’s bedroom about 18ft (5.4m) by 14ft (4.2m), fitted with three cupboards and a fireplace.

On the first floor, approached by an oak staircase, there were six bedrooms, all having central heating, four of which measured 18ft 6ins (5.55m) by 13ft 3ins (4.65m), 14ft (4.2m) by 12ft (3.6m), 14ft (4.2m) by 13ft (3.9m) and 14ft (4.2m0 by 12ft (3.6m). They all had fireplaces with tiled mantels and hearths, with fitted cupboards, and three of the rooms had enamelled lavatory basins (wash hand basins) with hot and cold water. The two smaller bedrooms measured 14ft 6ins (4.35m) by 10ft (3m) and 12ft (3.6m) by 10ft (3m), one being fitted with a fireplace and the other with a cupboard. There were also three bathrooms, all with enamel baths and lavatory basins, and one with a plate glass enclosed shower, douche and pedestal WC, (reminiscent to Newchapel house). There was a cupboard on the landing and a back staircase for the servants.

The ground floor comprised of an entrance hall measuring 18ft (5.4m) by 14ft (4.2m) with a fireplace having an oak mantel and tiled hearth. Leading off the hall was a drawing room measuring 26ft (7.8m) by 16ft 6ins (4.95m) into the bay. The flooring was of oak and the room was fitted with a marble fireplace holding a stove, with a tiled mantel over. There was also a dining room measuring 16ft (4.8m) by 13ft (3.9m), which had a brick fireplace holding a basket stove with a tiled hearth. There was also a morning room measuring 16ft 6ins (4.95m) into the bay, by 13ft (3.9m). This room also had an oak floor and mantel, with a tiled hearth and stove set into the fireplace.

Also on the ground floor there was a Gentleman’s lavatory, a cloakroom, storeroom and housemaids’ pantry with a sink. The domestic offices comprised of a well-appointed kitchen with a double over range and a combined dresser and china cupboard enclosed by six panelled doors and two glazed doors. There was a scullery with a small lead lined sink, a glazed sink and a copper. There were also two larders fitted with slate and wood shelving, a cellar, servant’s WC and a lobby with the tradesmen’s entrance. There was mains water and the whole house, with the exception of the top attic, was centrally heated.

Conveniently placed a short distance from the residence, to the North, was a brick built engine room with a 10 HP engine and dynamo, and storage cells, (reminiscent to Newchapel House). There was a large garage with a lobby and loft over. Also, a brick built and tiled stable with loosebox, two stalls, harness room, store cupboard, and WC, and a cart shed, partially enclosed.

In front of the house and extending to the West side, was a newly formed, well laid out ornamental garden with lawns and flowerbeds. At the rear there was woodland and meadowland with a frontage of about 350ft (105m) to the drive. The drive led off the main road (A22), heading West and Golands stood in just over eleven acres.

Emily Frances Emma Henstock purchased Golands and the surrounding area amounting to just short of forty-five acres on 21st November 1924, and it remained in her ownership until it was purchased by Mary Stratford, Lady Sanderson, wife of Sir John Sanderson, hence the derivation of the current name of the house, (as yet, date of purchase is unknown). The house still stands, although greatly extended over the years, and is now the home to another member of the Jacques family who own and run Hobbs Industrial Estate.

In the late 1930’s, with war imminent, there was a great need for more barrack accommodation and the War Office, (as the Ministry of Defence was then called), acquired Stratfords and associated land in Newchapel from Mary Stratford, Lady Sanderson, under Section 1 (1) of the War Department Property Act of 1938, although the property was not purchased by the War Office until 2nd January 1940. Local knowledge suggests that the building of the barracks started before the war, in 1938, took about eighteen months to complete and was developed to form a large permanent camp and named Hobbs Barracks, by 1940. This fact may suggest that the land had been requisitioned for military use prior to purchase. The barracks eventually covered sixty-three acres, by the addition of ten acres of land purchased from Marjorie Thomas of Park Farm in 1941, and about six acres of land purchased at the rear of the White Rabbit Road House, now the Peacock, from Miss Margaret Josephine Fisher Brown some time after 1941 and before 1953. It would appear that at no time did the barracks own the property known as the White Rabbit Road house, later known as the White Rabbit Farm Restaurant, the White Rabbit, Runway 22 and now the Peacock. The original property was built circa 1916, and operated as an angora rabbit farm during the 1930’s, after its purchase by Miss Margaret Fisher Brown in 1929, before becoming a tea-rooms, much used by the soldiers stationed at the barracks, and then a restaurant. Nor did the military own Cypress House, the property built to the North of the White Rabbit Road Restaurant, which was and still is a private house.

The land purchased from Park Farm, situated West of the A22 and South of the camp, became the sewage treatment works, built in 1941, that served the barracks and is now the site of Beavers Water Plant & Fish Farm. In the late 1950’s, the decision was made to site the main sewage treatment works for the Felbridge area in the adjoining field, to the West of the barrack sewage works. A further two acres of land, just North of the barracks, to the East of the A22, was later acquired, circa 1943, which became No.1 Static Bakery serving the South Eastern Command that operated out of Hobbs Barracks. The military also commandeered five acres of woodland, opposite the Bakery, belonging to Newchapel House and possibly the field to the West of the A22 between Hobbs Barracks and the commandeered woodland. Evidence for this is that a block of three Nissan huts, built by the military, project through the Northern boundary of the Hobbs Barracks site into this field creating a kink in the current boundary that was not present at the sale in 1940.

On completion, Hobbs Barracks became the home of the 3rd Battalion of the Irish Guards, a Training Battalion, together with associated service units, in June 1940. The first Commanding Officer was Lt. Col. The Viscount Gough, who lost an arm and won the regiment’s first Military Cross in the Great War. The Irish Guards consisted of three battalions; the 1st Battalion in the 24th Guards Brigade was stationed at Northwood, Greater London, the 2nd Battalion in the 22nd Guards Brigade was stationed at Woking, Surrey, and a Training Battalion, that later became the 3rd Battalion, was at Hobbs Barracks, Newchapel. Local legend has it that one of these Irish Guards, Gunner Spike Milligan, was stationed at Hobbs Barracks during the early part of the war, but this is not substantiated in his War diary, ‘My Part in Hitler’s down-fall’.

The 24th and 22nd Guards were held in reserve around London to counter any German invasion. In July 1940, under the command of Lt. Col. The Viscount Gough, the Training Battalion at Hobbs Barracks moved to Dover as part of the garrison for three months. By October the number of recruits at Hobbs Barracks had accumulated to over 1,200 men, and from these recruits the 3rd Battalion was formed. In November, the Training Battalion in Dover moved to Northwood to relieve the 1st Battalion, and whilst at Northwood they were given the new name of The Holding Companies, under the command of Major JOE Vandeleur. Lt. Col. The Viscount Gough then returned to Hobbs Barracks and the companies there became the Training Battalion. The Training Battalion continued to supply men to the holding Companies until February 1941, when they were large enough to be a battalion in their own right. In autumn 1943, the 3rd Battalion, Guards Armoured Division became one of the Infantry Battalions in the Division and from then until the end of the War trained with the 2nd Armoured Battalion. They were withdrawn to England and were disbanded, along with the Training Battalion, in 1946.

Recruits from other regiments also received their basic training at Hobbs Barracks and it continued to be very active throughout the War, culminating in the invasion of Normandy in 1944.

The camp also provided a training ground for the local Home Guard, or to be precise, the Felbridge Platoon of ‘F’ Company, 9th Surrey (Lingfield) Battalion, Home Guard, using the Rifle Range for practice with live 303 ammunition. The Felbridge Platoon was under the command of Captain Jack Thomas, with second in command, Lieutenant Arnold Kelf. Capt. Thomas had been a non-commissioned officer in the Royal Artillery, serving in France during World War I. He had been awarded the Military Medal for running ammunition supplies to the front line under heavy enemy fire and had been mentioned in dispatches for rescuing a team of horses that had come under attack. A keen horseman, he had set up a riding school, run by his daughters, at Brook Nook, Furnace Wood, in 1938, and during the Second World War enlisted the ponies as a means of ‘transport’ for the Home Guard, an action that ensured their food allocation and survival. Lieut. Kelf was an explosives expert and during the war had most of the bridges in the Felbridge area wired up in case of a German invasion. After the war, rather than give up the Home Guard completely, Thomas and Kelf founded the Felbridge Home Guard Rifle Club, along with other Home Guard personnel. They initially met at the Barracks, before building their own Rifle Range in Imberhorne Lane, and changing their name to the Felbridge & District Rifle Club, later moving to East Court in East Grinstead. Some local residents may remember the late Jack Thomas of Brook Nook, and Arnold Kelf of Perry Farm, West Park Road, Newchapel.

During the war, apart from basic training, Hobbs Barracks also operated as the RASC (Royal Army Service Corps) Command Supply Depot for the South Eastern Command. They supplied the Army, Royal Air Force and Navy with provisions, meats and bread, the bread being baked at the No.1 Static Bakery that was situated approximately 250 yards (231m) from the main gate, on the opposite side of the main road, heading North. The barracks, at this time, also housed the female members of the ATS (Army Territorial Service) who worked along side the male RASC bakers at the Static Bakery. The Bakery started production in 1943 and was in operation up until the late 1950’s.

The 3rd Infantry Division, Column HQ, RASC were stationed at Hobbs Barracks during the 1950’s, along with members of the REME (Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers), and the 34th Light Aircraft Defence Regiment Artillery, with many National Service men passing through the camp.

Early in the 1960’s the WRAC (Women’s Royal Army Corps, formerly the ATS) Depot at Guildford, Surrey, was rebuilt and, on a temporary basis, the WRAC’s moved to Hobbs Barracks. Brig. Ann Field, later Commandant of the WRAC’s, was stationed there at the time and can remember the café opposite, now Markey’s Diner, and being served by ‘a rather large lady’. That was the late Cllr. Mrs Anne Coutts who lived at Golards Farmhouse next door and was simultaneously County, District and Parish Councillor, a busy lady.

Later, in the mid 1960’s, five companies of the 1st Battalion, The Queen’s Regiment (Queen’s Surreys) were stationed at Hobbs Barracks before being sent to the Persian Gulf, now known simply as The Gulf, for a nine-month tour of duty at the beginning of 1968. They were replaced at Hobbs Barracks by the 2nd Battalion, The Queen’s Regiment (Queen’s Own Buffs) who had a few moments of local publicity, when in May 1968, HM Frederick IX, the King of Denmark, as Allied Colonel-in-Chief of the Queen’s Own Buffs, visited the Barracks for an inspection of the troops. However, by 1970, Hobbs Barracks was surplus to military requirements and stood empty, being taken into care by the Department of the Environment.

In 1972, the Barracks briefly came to life when over 700 Ugandan Asians occupied it, as a temporary refuge, having been thrown out of their country by Idi Amin, who forced over 80,000 non-Ugandan citizens to flee the country, the vast majority leaving behind most of their wealth and possessions. During their stay, the local Woodgate Dairy, off Lingfield Road, East Grinstead, provided milk, and Garden & Merchant Food Services Ltd supplied the catering. Some of the younger refugees were kept active by helping with chores around the camp, and on one Saturday afternoon, the Guides and Scouts from the Felbridge area put on a tea party, at which they organised games, music and dancing, and the following Sunday, six Police Cadets from Surrey organised a series of football matches. Most of the Asian families left the area, but one or two moved to East Grinstead, their children attending the local schools and adapting to their new life in an unfamiliar country.

Between May and June 1974, Hobbs Barracks was used as a film set to represent a women’s concentration camp in the film called ‘The Hiding Place,’ released by Worldwide Pictures. The film was based on the book of the same name, written by Corrie ten Boom, which had been published in 1971. A true story, the film traces the lives of Corrie, her father and sister Betsie, from the quiet years in Holland before the World War II, to their work with the ‘underground’ in helping to save the lives of countless Jewish families. Corrie and Betsie were eventually arrested and imprisoned in one of Nazi Germany’s most dreaded concentration camps, Ravensbruck, where 96,000 women were exterminated during the War. Betsie died at the camp, but by a quirk of fate, Corrie was released and lived to tell the tale. For a short period of time, Hobbs Barracks became Ravensbruck, and Corrie visited the set for the final days of shooting. She recanted ‘It was difficult for me. The moment I entered the camp I felt it was all real again, maybe too real’. Jeanette Clift, making her film debut, played the part of Corrie and other well-known actors included Julie Harris, who played Betsie, Eileen Heckart and Arthur O’Connell who played Mr ten Boom. For the extras, the director, James Collier, advertised for a number of emaciated females to play the parts of the prisoners of war, and several local girls went to the audition held at the Felbridge Hotel. Shooting started at 4.30 a.m. each morning, and payment was £10 a day, although it significantly increased for anyone who was prepared to shave their hair off and went up to £25 for anyone prepared to strip off for the shower scenes! One local lady, Anna Pearson, played quite a significant part in the film, being Dutch herself, it was a poignant reminder of three of her Jewish friends that died in concentration camps during her childhood in Holland.

Another moment of fame, again in 1974, was when the Barracks were used as the location for filming the television sitcom ‘Get Some In’. Filmed between 1974 and 1977, the series ran between 1975 and 1978, with thirty-four episodes and one special, on Thames Television. The comedy series, written by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey of ‘Good Life’ fame, was set in the National Service days of the 1950’s, and was about four young RAF trainees, played by Robert Lindsay, David Janson, Brian Pettifer and Matthew Ryder, and their dealings with the hated Corporal Percy Marsh, played by Tony Selby. In the first four seasons, Robert Lindsay, being over on by Karl Howman in the fifth, played the character of Jakey Smith. Much of the filming for this series took place at the old Ration Stores, now demolished.

There then followed a period of uncertainty when several options for its future were considered: a crematorium, an open prison, heavy goods vehicle-training centre and a sports training complex for potential athletes. In 1978, the site, excluding the camp sewage works, was sold to the late Mr Herbert Jacques with the limitation of agricultural use only.

An examination of the minutes of the Parish Council and planning applications at Tandridge District Council show a lot of ideas were being generated as to its future. This was a period of high unemployment and job creation was a national need, Mr Herbert Jacques suggested the site might be used as an industrial estate. In 1980, the Chairman of the Parish Council, Dennis Webb, a Chartered Engineer, visited Hobbs Barracks and reported back that the site was ideal for light engineering. Through Herbert Jacques persistence, the Parish Council supported this idea, but the District and County Councils wanted the site returned to woodland. Eventually, after much persuasion, the District Council also supported the idea of light engineering and planning permission was given for the phased development of the site.

Many of the original buildings have been utilised, some with minimal alteration and others with additional metal cladding. Obviously some buildings were not suitable for alternative use and have been demolished, the ‘Spider’ billets, chapel and some of the large warehouses and stores, but on the whole the camp remains little changed and still uses the original road layout, all be it a one way system now. The main entrance has been re-located to the South West corner of the site for easier access onto the main A22 road, and on entry into the Industrial Estate the first impression is one of green open spaces, with most of the units concealed from sight. Today it continues to be run by the Jacques family with some 50 units employing 450 people.

One question remains unsolved – who was Hobbs? He could have been the first Camp Commandant or the name of the Royal Engineer responsible for its construction. However, the Army Lists have produced no likely candidates. Any suggestions are most welcome.

Thanks go to the Jacques family for their co-operation and general information about the Hobbs Barracks site, Michael Parkin, former Driver with the 3rd Infantry Division, Column HQ, RASC, for his guided tour, information and memoirs, Ivan Burman and Ivor White, former Irish Guards, Ken Housman and Jane Weller for information on Capt. Jack Thomas and Lieut. Arnold Kelf, Albert Merriman who served with the RASC, Brig. Ann Field and Pt. Vee Taylor, former WRAC’s, Doris Jenner and Ernie Borer for information and contacts, and Denise Johnson, Dorrie Hart, Beryl Oatey and Anna Chamberlain for information and memories of filming The Hiding Place at Hobbs Barracks.

DHW 08/01/03

Addendum

Since this original article was written, we have been helpfully contacted by a couple of people who were stationed at Hobbs Barracks with regiments that were not listed in the main article. For completeness we therefore attach extracts from them giving the additional information.

“I was stationed at Hobbs Barracks in 1954 and about 5 months in 1955, I was in the WRAC and with the Royal Artillery 46 (m)Regt RA. I was a radar operator and not quite 18 when I joined the Womens Royal Army Corps.”
S. Hudson

“I was a member of the RASC stationed at Hobbs Barracks from August 1955 to January 1956. I Was posted from 15 Battalion RASC Blandford to the 15th Field Ambulance Unit RAMC at Hobbs Barracks which had only recently been moved to Felbridge from Folkestone. The Commander of the Unit was a Colonel Fry. This Unit was part of the 3rd Armoured Division and in January of 1956 I was posted again to another part of the Division at Bishop Stortford in Essex.”
E. Turner

“After reading your story about Hobbs Barracks I felt compelled to write to you as I was surprised that there was not a mention of the Royal Artillery Regiment, that was stationed there in the early fifties. I was trained there, and served there, from 1953-1955 as a member of the 124 Battery, 46 Mixed (we had around 250 WRAC who manned the Radar) Regiment, Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment Royal Artillery. I do not know how long the Regiment had been stationed there, but I do know that it was disbanded in the July-August 1955 time frame.A large portion of us were posted to another Regiment, which was an amalgamation of two. this was then called the 46th A A Regiment. Your mention of the Bakery brought back memories as I would be sent there on occasions to collect bread supplies for the camp. There was also a company of the R.E.M.E. who provided maintenance for our equipment. One of my memories was on route marches on the roads round the Lingfield Race Course. Our unit was used to guard ammunition dumps in the area against raids by the IRA. Not to many of us (National Service) wanted to be in the Army but I must admit it did not do to much damage to us in the long run.”
Ex- L/bdr Young R. H.

“I was in the Band of 1st Bn. Queens Regt (Queens Surreys). The Regiment came home from Munster (Germany) in July 1967 and our home was Hobbs until summer 1970, when we were posted to Berlin. I remember the country type Tea Rooms opposite the main gate, where the Band had their daily morning tea break.Great staff worked there. The Band used to lead the Battalion on a yearly parade from Hobbs to lingfield, marching along the main road passing Felbridge, then turning right (with our local pub on the left). I remember many from the Barracks going to see the Rolling Stones in Hyde Park 1969, I did not go, but remember playing Stones records on the Naffi juke box. My bad memory of Hobbs was coming out of the Gas training buiding at the top near the parade ground, I was gasping for air. Also the Army Dentist in the Barracks. Great place and great times when I was young, with the locals very friendly.”
Bandsman David Robinson (Robbo) 1966 to 1974