Welcome to the Kington Camp Project
Explore the Interactive Map and learn more about Kington Camp. Move your mouse over the map and click on highlighted areas to retrieve related information from the Kington Camp collections.
The map is based on an aerial photograph of Kington Camp taken in 1944 by the US airforce which is the copyright of English Heritage (NMR) USAAF Photography.
NEW FOR NOVEMBER 2008!
We have many new outputs based upon all the contributions made to the project by those who remember the camp in all its various stages.
Audio Documentary. We have developed a 30 minute audio documentary about the British and American use of Kington Camp. It draws upon the contributions of many who remember the camp during this period.
Listen to the Kington Camp Audio Documentary
Project event. On the 24th of November Lady Hawkins’ School in Kington hosted an event to showcase the Kington Camp project outputs and to launch the new book: the Story of Kington Camp. The project exhibition was on display, including its new installation, as were laptops where users could browse the new virtual ward, the audio documentary and other audio visual outputs (see below). Over 200 people attended the event – for some photos please click here
A New Book: The Story of Kington Camp, based on the contributions of those who remember the camp during the war and after, is now on sale. Published by Logaston Press, it is accompanied by a DVD with audio and slideshow clips about the Camp as well as our special 30 minute audio documentary. Please contact us if you would like a copy (info@kingtoncamp.co.uk or info@logastonpress.co.uk)
The Virtual Ward. Southampton University used computer generated images based on a detailed survey of the ward buildings to reconstruct what a ward looked like in 1944. You can view a limited functionality version in Gallery One of the new online exhibitions, or by clicking here
Online exhibitions Have a look at the new online exhibitions that show case different aspects of the project, including our new virtual ward, audio visual slideshows, the audio documentary and the Morris Drogin collection of photographs and letters from his time as a supply officer at the 107th US General Hospital
New museum installation. We have recreated the corner of a doctor’s office at the camp into which is installed our touchscreen and Talking Tactile Tablet. Come and have a look at the installation and explore more about the camp using the IT facilities, such as the the animated Virtual Ward, the audio documentary, the audio visuals and the textured overlays on the TTT. The installation will be on display at Kington Museum when it opens in April 2009. The exhibition may be travelling to an area near you in 2010! Details will be posted on this website.
Accessibility for the Visually Impaired
NEW FOR 2009. We have developed a number of facilities to assist visually impaired users in accessing information about Kington Camp, particularly the rich audio material which has been contributed. You can use the Talking Tactile Tablet, the multi sensory booklet and the Touch screen, all of which accompany the project exhibition that will be on display at Kington Museum from April 2009.
Click here for more information.
What is Kington Camp?
Kington Camp is an important but little known Second World War heritage site close to the town of Kington in Herefordshire, UK.
It was used by the British as a re-grouping point after Dunkirk, by the Americans as a major hospital installation, and after the war by the Polish Resettlement Corps. The camp brought many thousands of people to Kington under extraordinary and difficult circumstances.
This project is about the impact of the Camp on the small town of Kington. It brings together information about the people who lived and worked there, during war and peace, as military personnel, wounded soldiers, and as civilians. Who were they? What do they remember? What stories can they tell?
Many of the buildings at the Camp remain standing, although two thirds have disappeared since the Second World War. What remains of the Camp today? What did it look like? What can archaeology tell us about life there?
This project is also about the future. By recording these memories and studying the site, we can help preserve the importance of Kington Camp for generations to come.
This website brings together information gathered during a community project to learn more about the camp. You can listen to the experiences of veterans and local people, view photos and historic documents, search our Project Database, view the results of an archaeological survey, explore a virtual computer generated ward, and explore the site on the Interactive Map.
What is available on this website?
The Interactive Map of Kington Camp shown above is based on an aerial photograph taken by the US in May 1944. The road from Kington to Brilley (running East to West) bisects the Camp: the 107th US General Hospital lies to the North, and the 122nd US General Hospital lies to the South. Use the map to learn about the site and discover associated audio and visual information.
A Collections facility allows you to explore the numerous images, audio clips, texts and documents in the Project Database.
The Project page shows how the involvement of local schools, the Kington community, the Museum and Southampton Archaeology Department have all played vital roles in this project.
History will help you to learn more about the Camp’s history and the people who worked, recuperated and lived here.
Education is the page for our educational materials which have been developed with the help of local teachers. We have designed these to help teachers use local heritage to teach curriculum subjects. There are two interactive facilities with accompanying downloadable material (on ‘Evacuees’ and ‘Global Connections’) and two further packs to download (‘Racism’ and ‘Displaced Peoples’).
Exhibitions provides you access to a number of online galleries, where you can explore a number of the aspects of the camp in more detail, listen to the 30 minute audio documentary and other audio medleys, view slide shows, and explore the virtual ward.
Your memories
Were you or a member of your family ever at Kington Camp? We would love to hear from anyone who has any information, memories, photographs, artefacts or connections to the camp. You can send us your comments and images.
John Higginbotham Archive
In the 1980s, John Higginbotham, a Kington resident, undertook considerable research into the history of Kington Camp for the Kington History Society. The results of his work were published in a book entitled Kington Camp, from which much of the narrative history presented in this website has been drawn. Higginbotham consulted widely with many who lived, worked or stayed at the camp, collecting written testimony, photos and documents. We are indebted to the Kington History Society for enabling us to make Higginbotham’s extensive unpublished archive material accessible for the first time through this website.