History
What happened here, and when.
Cultybraggan Camp was built in 1939. During the war it held thousands of German prisoners of war, including senior officers. After the war it was used as a Cold War civil defence facility.
In 2007 the community of Comrie bought the camp from the Ministry of Defence. Most of the original structures are still standing.
The Wartime Years — 1939–1946
A human face in the wartime period — individual before institution
Anchor the history in a person, not infrastructure. Black and white. The reader should feel proximity to a real life.
Life continuing — activity that shows the camp was more than a place of confinement
Documentary, observational. Human activity in motion. Against: static portrait.
One prisoner never forgot Cultybraggan. Read the Heinrich Steinmeyer exhibit →
The full extent
The camp at its fullest extent — a view that makes the scale of what was built here visceral
The aerial or plan-view moment. Nothing else answers 'how big was this?' as quickly. Full-width for maximum impact.
Control & Record
The state's eye — an official record that documents power and authority over this place
Something institutional: a document, a formal photograph, a record. Adds the other side of the human story.
The physical site as document — a drawing or plan that shows how this place was designed and controlled
Architectural or cartographic. Satisfies the reader who wants to understand the space structurally.
Cold War — a different kind of threat
The Cold War chapter — a different era, a different kind of threat, the same place
Tone shift from WWII images. Should feel more clinical, more recent. Bridges the wartime story to community ownership.
The Jail Block — Hut 9
The Jail Block
It is situated in the Grade A listed brick building that has been, at various times, the guard house and detention block, the stores and armoury. We call it the 'Jail Block'. Here you can see the original "slammer" cell doors, handle military objects, listen to voices from the past and see crafts made by PoWs at the camp.
The museum sits at Cultybraggan Camp, owned by Comrie Development Trust. Read about the Trust →