Fort Siloso: 6-Inch BL Battery Magazine Cartridge & Shell Stores
6-Inch BL Cartridge & Shell Stores
LEFT: The entrance to the Cartridge Store from the ramp leading in
to the Magazine.
RIGHT: A Lantern Recess facing in to the Cartridge Store.
The barrier has now been removed from the entrance and there are exhibitions inside the Store. Originally there was a steel door in the entrance. The entrance formed a small lobby, called a ‘Shifting Lobby’ which was where Magazine workers would leave clothing and other items which were not permitted in the Magazine.
There was only one Lantern Recess in the Cartridge Store, near the entrance from the Shifting Lobby. The only other source of light would be through any open Ammunition Hatches from lanterns outside the Store, thus making it very gloomy inside. Electric lighting was available when the magazine was updated during the 1930s.
The Cartridge Store in 1995 before exhibits were put on inside it. At the far side is a figure of
a man passing cased Cartridges out of the of the Store through an Ammunition Hatch at floor
level. Other hatches are in the wall on the right.
The opposite view in 2005. The Lantern Recess can be
seen in the far wall. A figure passing Cartridges out has
been added and posters are on the walls.
The figure in Photograph 1 photographed from the passageway outside the Store. A steel
sliding door would have been inside the Store to cover the Ammunition Hatch. Unfortunately
this Hatch has been destroyed by a doorway being cut in to the wall (insert) to ease entry for
visitors. This doorway gives a false impression of what this area looked like.
The wall of the Store showing where the wall which divided the store in two was when the 9·2-Inch Gun was operational.
Figure of a WWII soldier passing Cartridges out of the Store. The recess where the steel door
for the hatch was is to the left.
Inside the No.1 Gun Shell Store. This is to the left as you enter the Magazine. Stanchions for
shelving still remain. In the far wall can be seen a Lantern Recess.
A Lantern Recess in the side wall.
A figure passing shells out of the store. In real life, the shells would be placed on a trolley.
This Shell Store was well lit for the day, having three Lantern Recesses.
The view along the Magazine passage. on the right is the
Cartridge Store. At the far end is the Shell Store (6,7 & 8).
The No.2 Gun Shell Store. Shells were stored standing on their bases against the wall on the
left. The black line shows the extent of the storage area. In the far wall is the Ammunition
Hatch shown in 3. Two Lantern Recesses are in the wall on the right.
Displays in the No.2 Shell Store. The glass case contains a model of a Prisoner of War Chapel which was at Bukit Timah in 1942. The model was made by Stanley Warren who painted the Changi Murals (Links Page). He also painted murals in the Bukit Timah Chapel.
Stanley Warren’s Model. It would be best if this model was moved to a place where it could be preserved. The conditions in the Magazine make it an unsuitable place for the model.