MSO12605 - World War Two Nissen huts at North Hill (Monument)

A row of four Nissen type buildings is visible on the 1946 aerial photographs tucked along the hedge line. [1] Nissen huts were designed by Peter Nissen, an American inventor who created the hut while serving in the 103rd Field Company of the Royal Engineers in April 1916. The semi-circular design was supposedly inspired by an ice-skating rink Nissen had seen in Canada. Such huts were not constructed in Britain during the First World War, but military hut development continued during the inter-war period. Building programmes associated with the Second World War resulted in construction of huts in great numbers, with c. 3500 created for training camps alone. The word “Nissen” quickly became attached to a variety of temporary hut types, and 52 different variations are known from this period. [2] Further research on individual hut types in use on military sites on Exmoor would be of value.