Recommended Links and Places

Users of Google Earth can download this file, which contains a large number of placeholders for locations associated with Wallis, his work, his weapons and the people who used them.

Main Wallis collections

The Barnes Wallis Memorial Trust has an excellent collection of Wallis-related artefacts and memorabilia. Artefacts include Upkeep, Tallboy and Grand Slam bombs, part of a Highball and part of the Highball carrier from a Mosquito. Formerly at the Yorkshire Air Museum, Evington, the collection is currently in storage pending transfer to a new location - the Trust's Upkeep is now on display at the Newark Air Museum. The Trust holds an annual meeting in Howden, Yorkshire, with a presentation on a Wallis-related topic. The 2013 meeting will be held on Thursday 23rd May at Howden School - as this is the 70th anniversary of the Dams Raid, that is this year's topic. Speakers are author James Holland and historian Robert Owen, and special guest is George "Johnny" Johnson DFM who flew with McCarthy on the famous raid, and is now one of only three surviving aircrew to have taken part in the raid. Full details are on the poster for this event. Numerous other commemorative events are being held, including a service in Lincoln Cathedral on 17th May, which will be attended by Les Munro, who also flew on the raid.
The Brooklands Museum, Weybridge, Surrey (which was near the Vickers factory) has Wellington bomber N2980 "R for Robert" recovered from Loch Ness in 1985 and now fully restored. Some of Wallis' bombs are on display including an Upkeep, Grand Slam, Tallboy and (uniquely) a Tallboy Small (the 4,000lb version used for trials); the museum also has a (mostly) Weybridge-built Concorde G-BBDG.
The RAF Museum at Hendon had on display the only other complete Wellington remaining (MF628), the one seen taking off in The Dam Busters film (the aircraft is currently at Cosford undergoing extensive refurbishment). Hendon has a reconstruction of Wallis's office with original artefacts, a box of model bouncing bomb prototypes of various forms, and an Upkeep. They also have a Grand Slam bomb on display, and their Cosford site has another Grand Slam. The museum also has a link of anchor chain from Tirpitz, which was sunk by Tallboys in November 1944, and a painted bulkhead from the ship (which was repeatedly taken as a trophy by 9 Squadron and 617 Squadron from each other). Other Wallis artefacts and papers are held in storage.
The Science Museum Library at Wroughton, near Swindon, holds the Barnes Wallis papers, a large collection of Wallis's scientific papers, which he donated to the museum shortly before his death. Note that this site is very difficult to get to by public transport, and although there is a lovely reading room on the site, you will need to pre-book your visit, including which files you wish to see.

Bouncing Bombs - Upkeep/Highball

Unless otherwise stated, all of the following were recovered from Reculver, Kent, where test drops were conducted in 1943.

The Brenzett Aeronautical Museum near Romney Marsh has an Upkeep on display (with pistols) as well as a small number of aircraft.
The Spitfire & Hurricane Memorial at RAF Manston, Kent, has a bouncing bomb on display (the text suggests that this is an Upkeep, but the dimensions suggest it is actually the core of a Highball). Note that the reference to Nant-y-Gros dam [sic] on this website is erroneous ... the Nant-y-Gro dam in Wales was used for explosives tests, but not in the form of an air-dropped bomb.
The Herne Bay Museum has a small prototype Upkeep on display in its Dambusters exhibition (this is the same size as the one at Manston above, so is either an early prototype or (more likely) the core of a Highball)
The Petwood Hotel, Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, was the officers mess for 617 Squadron later in the war. It has a small museum to the squadron, and a (damaged) Upkeep in the grounds.
Dover Castle also has part of an Upkeep on display
The Imperial War Museum at Duxford has an Upkeep.
The Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre at East Kirkby has an Upkeep too, and possibly a Highball.
Grantham Museum, Lincolnshire has displays relating to both World Wars, including a 617-related collection based around the papers of Harry Humphries, the squadron's original adjutant. The collection includes part of an original Upkeep (one end plate with fuze pockets) mocked up as a complete bomb; this one may also have come from Ashley Walk.
Haverfordwest (Withybush) Airport has a section of a Highball on display, recovered by the Pembrokeshire Aviation Group from the nearby Maenclochog Tunnel where experimental drops were carried out in 1943.
The Ringwood Town & Country Experience in Hampshire has an Upkeep. Unlike those above, this is a reconstruction from original parts recovered in 1984 from the nearby Ashley Walk bombing range, where trials took place in 1943 to test the use of Upkeeps dropped on land. The Upkeep at RAF Lossiemouth (see above) came from this source too.
The Swannery at Abbotsbury in Dorset, has a prototype bouncing bomb on display; this was recovered from the Fleet (the lagoon between the mainland and Chesil Beach) where many of the early drop tests were carried out; this same bomb was previously on display at Portland Museum which was founded in 1930 by Dr. Marie Stopes - by coincidence, Stopes's son married Wallis's daughter!
Try out your dam busting skills on your iPad with this Dambusters App released on the 69th anniversary of the raid.

Can you help with more information?

The Upkeep carried by Barlow on Operation Chastise failed to self-destruct and was recovered intact by the Germans, allowing them to work out a detailed specification and build their own version - does anyone know where this bomb is now?
One of the Upkeeps dropped at Ashley Walk in the New Forest was recovered in 1984 by the Royal Observer Corps, and part of the end plate was cut into 617 parts and sold for charity (these parts have been selling for around £150 on eBay!) - does anyone know where the remainder of this bomb is now?

Earthquake Bombs - Tallboy / Grand Slam

RAF Lossiemouth (current home to 617 Squadron) has Upkeep, Tallboy, and Grand Slam bombs all on display, although you will need permission to gain access to the base to see them. The Upkeep is a reconstruction from parts of original bombs (see below).
The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight is located at RAF Coningsby, and they have complete Tallboy and Grand Slam bombs on display.
The Dumfries & Galloway Aviation Museum is located at the former RAF Dumfries, and they have a Grand Slam bomb on display (this is on loan from the RAF Museum).
The Kelham Island Museum in Sheffield has a Grand Slam on display; the bomb casings were cast in Sheffield, where the local steelmen referred to it as "the big bastard"!
There is a Tallboy on its nose at the former Holton le Clay Railway Station near Grimsby; it can be clearly seen on Google Street View and appears to have a replica tail; thanks to the Airfix Tribute Forum for spotting this one.
There is a Tallboy at the Belgian Army base at Meerdaal (near Leuven), Belgium. This bomb was recovered when the reservoir of the Urft Dam (attacked unsuccessfully by 617 Squadron and 9 Squadron in December 1944) was drained in the 1950s; the Belgian Explosive Disposal Ordnance team was based at nearby Vogelsang (now in the Eifel National Park) and disarmed the bomb, claiming it as a trophy. When the Belgians left the German site in 2005, they took the bomb with them and erected it as a monument at their Meerdaal site in June 2006; the tail cone is a replica.
There is a Tallboy at the Pakistan Air Force Museum at Faisal (near Karachi), Pakistan - it can be seen over to the right in this picture. This bomb was probably carried by 617 Squadron during its Far East deployment just after the war and left behind - does anyone know a more detailed history of this bomb?
The Nanton Lancaster Society Air Museum at Nanton, Alberta, Canada, has a Tallboy on display - this one is a replica (and the tails were never silver!). The museum also has a link of anchor chain from Tirpitz, which was sunk by Tallboys in November 1944.

Can you help with more information?

Does anyone know what happened to the Tallboys (dropped by 9 Squadron in October 1944) which were recovered intact from the Sorpe reservoir in 1958 and defuzed?
Does anyone know the location of any fragments of exploded Tallboys or Grand Slams in museums or private collections?

Other Items

Explosion! The Museum of Naval Firepower, Gosport, Hampshire, has one of Wallis's Heyday experimental torpedoes on display.
The Wellington Aviation Museum at Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, has a pair of Wellington (or Warwick) wheels and a propeller outside and the tail of a Wellington (said to be L7775) inside; the Lincolnshire Aircraft Recovery Group also have parts from the same aircraft, including the wings.
The Aviation Artefact Museum, part of the Armstrong Museum within Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland, covers many aspects of military shipbuilding and aviation. The collection includes geodetic structure from Vickers-Armstrongs Warwick HG136 which crashed on a nearby hill in 1946, and many other aircraft parts (mostly from local crashes), as well as a T-1 bombsight and computer (though it is incorrectly labelled as a Mark XIV bombsight and computer).
The Flambards Experience in Helston, Cornwall, has a number of aviation-related displays, including a small display of items related to Wallis and his time at Predannack (which is 5 miles from Helston).
Formerly the site of a substantial Barnes Wallis collection, the Yorkshire Air Museum at Elvington includes Wallis in their Pioneers of Aviation display, with a few Wallis-related artefacts.

Other locations of interest

Wallis was born at Cromer House, Butterley Hill, in Ripley, Derbyshire [map] [image] [image] and is commemorated in the Sir Barnes Wallis Recreational Area within the town [image] [image]. On Maple Avenue in the town is the Sir Barnes Wallis pub [image].
On a building in Barrow-in-Furness, where Wallis worked on airships, there is a plaque to commemorate his work. The building is within the site of BAE SYSTEMS though the plaque can be read from the public highway [map].
Wallis lived for most of his life at White Hill House, Beech Avenue, Effingham, Surrey [map]. This house is still there (now called Little Court), though it is no longer in the hands of the Wallis family. His grave is in the grounds of St. Lawrence Church in Church Street, Effingham [map].
During his formative years, Wallis lived at 241 New Cross Road [map] [image] in London - the house has a plaque on it commemorating its most famous resident.
Later, he lived at 23 Pepys Road [map] [image] just round the corner.
A little further west off New Cross Road are Wild Goose Drive [map] and Swallow Close [map], named in honour of Wallis's post-war designs. On Wild Goose Drive, there is the Barnes Wallis Community Centre.
Wallis got married at St. Luke's Church, Hampstead [map] [image] on St. George's Day, 1925.
Wallis went on holiday regularly to the Lake District, preferring to stay in the Scafell Hotel, Borrowdale [map] which now has the Barnes Wallis Suite as a featured room.
The Eder Dam Museum is housed in one of the former power stations at the base of the dam. The museum has a full-size replica Upkeep, as well as a model of the dam after the raid, and other wartime memorabilia (my thanks to Tony Knight for this link).
The Thameside Aviation Museum in East Tilbury have a 1/2 scale replica Upkeep.
R.100 was built at Howden [map], and Historical Howden features Wallis' connection with the town. There is now no trace of the airship sheds or the cottage where Wallis lived, and much of the site is now Boothferry Golf Club. Just north of Howden is the Barnes Wallis Inn [map] [image], which has some Wallis memorabilia on the walls inside.
617 Squadron were originally based at RAF Scampton where there is a small museum with some Wallis-related items - this includes a Highball, which was recovered at Reculver in 1977 and, after 30 years in Amsterdam, found a new home at Scampton in 2007.
In Scampton itself is the Dambusters Inn [map] [image] [image] (opened in 1999) which has related memorabilia (including a model of a Lancaster and prints on the wall).
The model of the Möhne Dam seen in The Dam Busters film is one of the originals used for the wartime tests, and it still exists at the Building Research Establishment in Hertfordshire; the model is now a listed building and can be visited by prior arrangement with the BRE.
The Derwent Dam in Derbyshire [map] was used by 617 Squadron for training for the dams raid, and there is a small memorial at the dam. No actual "bouncing bombs" were ever dropped here.
Wallis conducted some static explosives trials on a disused dam at Nant-y-Gro in the Elan valley [map]; these showed that the small model test results would scale up as predicted. The remains of the dam (which was breached in the trials) can be visited, and it is included in the Elan Valley walk promoted by the Royal Geographical Society as part of its “Discovering Britain” series (click on the "Downloads" tab for written and audio guides to the walk).
Several Tallboys and a Grand Slam were dropped on the bombing range at Ashley Walk in the New Forest, and the sharp-eyed can still spot these craters, as well as part of the submarine pen target which was buried after the war but is starting to uncover. Atlantikwall has some good photos of what's left of the various targets.
After the war, Wallis conducted model flying experiments with his Wild Goose and Swallow designs at RAF Predannack in Cornwall. The models were launched from a rocket-powered rail sled and remotely-controlled by radio. The rails ran parallel to the main runway, crossing the other runway, although the latter was later returned to use. Atlantikwall has some good photos of what's left of the rail track and the rest of the airfield; access to the site is possible when no flying is taking place.
On 15th November 2008, a statue of Wallis was unveiled in Herne Bay, looking across towards Reculver where the "bouncing bombs" were tested.
"Wallis's house" in The Dam Busters film is actually near Little Missenden, Buckinghamshire.
The University of Manchester has its Students' Union in the Barnes Wallis Building in Sackville Street [map] [image]; Wallis was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of UMIST and lifetime membership of the Manchester Students' Union in 1967.
Nottingham Trent University has its IT and Reprographics departments in the Barnes Wallis Building in Shakespeare Street.
Britannia Airways operated a Boeing 737 G-BGYJ named Sir Barnes Wallis; it first flew in 1979.
There is a Barnes Wallis Close in Effingham [map], Boscombe Down [map], Weymouth [map] and Melksham [map], a Barnes Wallis Drive in both Telford [map] and Byfleet [map], a Barnes Wallis Court just round the corner from there in Oyster Lane, Byfleet [map] and another in Welton near Lincoln [map], a Barnes Wallis Avenue in Horsham (overlooking Christ's Hospital, where Wallis went to school) [map], a Barnes Wallis Road in Fareham [map] (near Brunel Way!) and a Barnes Wallis Way in both Gloucester [map] and Redcar [map]. Do you know of any others?

...and locations which don't have Wallis artefacts

Despite statements in books that The de Havilland Aircraft Heritage Centre in Hertfordshire has a Highball, it doesn't ...
... and Scotland's National Museum of Flight at East Fortune (near Edinburgh) doesn't have an Upkeep.
Eden Camp in North Yorkshire doesn't have an Upkeep either.

If you know of sites of interest to Wallis enthusiasts which are not listed here, please send us an e-mail and we will add it here.