Monument record MHG54231 - Prisoner of War Camp, Kildary

A site visit was undertaken by HCAU staff in response to a planning application to demolish the ex-Prisoner of War camp. Four substantially intact buildiings associated with the camp would be impacted by the proposed development. A rapid recording was completed in lieu of full and detailed record being compiled, should planning consent be granted. The site is comprised of two parallel north-south aligned barracks of standard WWII type and construction, 5-bays in length and a mixture of brick and prefabricated concrete construction. The majority of original windows survive. Roofs are of corrugated asbestos sheets. Internally, much of the original lining survives, as does the paintwork and some ducting. One of the buildings has been converted to a stables, although is no longer in use as such. A smaller building of similar construction sits adjacent to these. The fourth, and probably best preserved building is T-shaped with a brick-built water tower forming the intersection between the two sections of the 'T'. Presumably the building functioned as a mess hall, cook and wash house. Internally, a star motif can be seen on the gable wall which is supposedly a relic from the building's use as part of a PoW camp. Externally the star motif is replicated (and surmounted by a crescent) on the north-east facing elevation of the water tower. <1><2>

The "War Detectives" website includes recollections one of the prisoners at the Kildary POW camp, Paul Lippok, who stayed on as a resident of the area after the war. War Detectives was a project that gave school children and community groups an opportunity to learn about the Second World War. Participating groups spoke to people who experienced war at first hand and investigated how their communities were affected and the impact war had on peoples' lives. See link at bottom of this record.
Information provided by Simon Dewar, Highland Council. <3>