Now like many people I have passed the war memorial in Didsbury countless times.
Occasionally I have stood in front of the names and pondered on the stories behind each of the men recorded there, but until today I have never wondered about the people responsible for its erection in July1921.
There were fourteen of them listed as on the Committee, and they were, John T Seale, Rupert C Samuels, James Clayton Chorlton, James Frederick Motorhead, Thomas William Evans, Frank Taylor, G. Biddle, F. Merrill, C. B. Owen, J Davenport, Councilor E. D. Simon, George Edward Crowe, T Malloy and R Bramwell
Of the fourteen, eight have come out of the shadows, and their backgrounds throw an interesting light on how such committees were constituted.
One was a doctor, one a surveyor, one was employed by Manchester Corporation and the remaining five were manufacturers, and all by 1921 were in their late 50s and into their sixties.
George Biddle and Frank Taylor both had sons who died in the war and were commemorated on the memorial, and interestingly of the eight, these were the two men who were not professionals or manufacturers.
In time I might be able to track down the minutes of the Committees meetings along with a list of subscribers, but for now I have a picture postcard of the memorial sometime in the 1920s or the following decade and the Order of Service for the unveiling. *
From the order of service, we have the committee names along with the men commemorated, the list of hymns sung and the dignitaries who were invited to the event.
Added to these there is a newspaper account of the unveiling from the Manchester Guardian which reported that Lord Derby led the service, speaking of how “the memorial would show for all time that the comrades and friends of those who died were mindful of them and hoped that by revealing what a sacrifice of life war meant the memorial might be a deterrent against future war”.**
I doubt I would ever have gone looking for the story of the memorial, if that Order of Service hadn’t surfaced recently.
It was acquired by my old friend David Harrop and until I find the minutes of the committee it serves as all we have on how the memorial came to be and the day of its unveiling.
The document consists of 10 pages, detailing the address, the hymns and men commemorated, and begins with a dedication to “The memory of the sacred dead of this village who, having left all that was dear to them endured hardships, faced dangers, and finally paid the supreme sacrifice in defence of our King and Country”.
Location; Didsbury
Pictures; Didsbury War Memorial, undated, and Order of Service, 1921, courtesy of David Harrop
*Didsbury War Memorial, Unveiling Ceremony, July 2, 1921
**A Didsbury War Memorial, Manchester Guardian July 4th, 1921
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| The War Memorial, date unknown |
There were fourteen of them listed as on the Committee, and they were, John T Seale, Rupert C Samuels, James Clayton Chorlton, James Frederick Motorhead, Thomas William Evans, Frank Taylor, G. Biddle, F. Merrill, C. B. Owen, J Davenport, Councilor E. D. Simon, George Edward Crowe, T Malloy and R Bramwell
Of the fourteen, eight have come out of the shadows, and their backgrounds throw an interesting light on how such committees were constituted.
One was a doctor, one a surveyor, one was employed by Manchester Corporation and the remaining five were manufacturers, and all by 1921 were in their late 50s and into their sixties.
George Biddle and Frank Taylor both had sons who died in the war and were commemorated on the memorial, and interestingly of the eight, these were the two men who were not professionals or manufacturers.
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| Order of Service, 1921 |
From the order of service, we have the committee names along with the men commemorated, the list of hymns sung and the dignitaries who were invited to the event.
Added to these there is a newspaper account of the unveiling from the Manchester Guardian which reported that Lord Derby led the service, speaking of how “the memorial would show for all time that the comrades and friends of those who died were mindful of them and hoped that by revealing what a sacrifice of life war meant the memorial might be a deterrent against future war”.**
I doubt I would ever have gone looking for the story of the memorial, if that Order of Service hadn’t surfaced recently.
The document consists of 10 pages, detailing the address, the hymns and men commemorated, and begins with a dedication to “The memory of the sacred dead of this village who, having left all that was dear to them endured hardships, faced dangers, and finally paid the supreme sacrifice in defence of our King and Country”.
Location; Didsbury
Pictures; Didsbury War Memorial, undated, and Order of Service, 1921, courtesy of David Harrop
*Didsbury War Memorial, Unveiling Ceremony, July 2, 1921
**A Didsbury War Memorial, Manchester Guardian July 4th, 1921
Marvellous post... I try as often as I can to read all the names on memorials, and I've sometimes done a similar thing, looking for their stories. Wonderful, a moving tribute
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this. As a former resident in Didsbury whose uncle (not a Didsbury resident) died in World War One I would really like to see a copy of the ten page order of service for the unveiling ceremony on 4/7/21. Is there a link to it anywhere? or is there another
ReplyDeleteway I could access it? Many thanks
Well I will have an electronic copy somewhere, just need an email address which won't appear as a published comment.
Delete