ODDITIES of SUSSEX
Oddities Main Page
The Sugar Loaf Folly
This section of the website will hold the odd things about Sussex - whatever
they are. When I say Oddities, I mean unusual or strange things, or just things
out of the ordinary. If you know where I can find any more oddities of Sussex
which are not listed here, please E-mail me and I shall go and look, inspect
and photograph it for the site.
The Mystery Towers
Towards the end of the Great War, (1914-18), the construction of two
huge circular towers of reinforced concrete and steel, was started near
the harbour mouth at Southwick (Shoreham harbour). The air
photo's (pics 8 & 9) shows their exact location in the harbour. To the people who marvelled
at their size as they grew on the south bank of the harbour they became known as the 'Mystery Towers'.
Whilst they have faded into memory, the Mystery Towers are no longer a mystery!
These were to be the first of twelve towers and they were intended for defense
purposes, across the straits of Dover, for instance, where perhaps, a narrow
entrance for shipping with a submarine boom could have been effected. The
fact was that the war ended before they were ready and they were never used
in anger or defense!
Around 1920 it was decided that one
should be floated to a position south east of the Isle of Wight, then
sunk and grounded to form a light tower to replace the existing Nab lightship,
and so the Nab tower was born. No use could be found for the other tower and
by 1924 it had been ignominiously dismantled.
The size of the project can be gauged by comparing the height of the workmen
and their huts with the concrete bases. With upto 5,000 men engaged in
the project as builders and security personel, and the immense amount of steel
to be used in the making of these towers, it placed them as a major project
during the First World War. The intended future location of the towers was
presumably known by the Defense Ministry.
It was however, not the first time this idea had been thought of and a similar
structure was made in 1785 and was to be sunk in the Channel on the road to
Cherbourg.
For more information goto this Website;
http://mystery.adur.org.uk/index.htm
