Stow Maries Aerodrome

Unlike a lot of air museums around the south east of England, Stow Maries is not a Second World War aerodrome. It was actually used during the First World War, with the first planes utilising it in 1917. It was home to just over 200 personnel, but it's believed that not all the planned building works on the site were finished as the Armistice in November 1918 meant it was no longer needed. It was never brought back into service during the Second World War, but was bombed as it still looked like an airfield from above (a handy decoy).

Today the site is being steadily restored and displayed as one of the last remaining examples of a First World War aerodrome in the UK.

We were impressed at the size of the site. Access is across private farmland and past a collection of farm buildings, with a small car park in a field on the outskirts of the site. Walk down past the first set of buildings on the left, and into the first building on your right. There you will find the ticket office and giftshop. Once you have your wristband you can start exploring.

As I said, we were impressed at the size of the site. There are several hangers with planes on display (including some that are being actively worked on) near the entrance. As you walk further down the site you'll find buildings including the mortuary, blacksmiths, accommodation, and the Officers Mess which is now a cafe. Opposite the cafe is also a war memorial to those based at the site who died during the war.

One thing we were particularly impressed by were the displays. The building shared by the ticket office and gift shop also has a series of displays and wax works about other aspects of the war, including the impact of the First World War on Essex, the development of nursing and role of nurses, and an officer resting in his bedroom. Our three year old was particularly fascinated by two wax models having an argument about weapons not working.

There were also a couple of flight simulators and some small planes that toddlers could sit in. All the volunteers we met were very friendly and helpful and keen to point out things that we may have missed.

Was it somewhere we would have gone if we didn't have a toddler with us? Probably not as I'm not much of a military historian. But that would actually be my loss as it was a really interesting site, for such an isolated location it was very well looked after and a lot of work had been put in to making it interactive for all ages.

They are still planning to repair and conserve more of the original buildings and I hope we get to visit again in the future and see how far these plans have developed. If you're in the Chelmsford area it is definitely worth a visit. If you aren't a local but you're fascinated by their work and want to support it then you can donate on their GoFundMe.