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Aston WW1 memorial

gaward

Brummie babby
Hi,
My grandfather George Abraham Ward died in April 1917 while serving
with the Worcestershire Regt. He was born and lived in the Aston area.
He attended St James the Less Church. Does anybody know if there
is any memorial in or around Aston. I believe the church was demolished
in the late 1940's. Any help would be appreciated.

Regards,
George
 
Here's a bit about St. James the Less:-
The church of ST. JAMES THE LESS, Ashted, was founded in 1789, when Dr. John Ash's house was converted into a chapel after his departure from Birmingham. (fn. 50) The chapel was opened for divine service in 1791, (fn. 51) and was consecrated in 1810. (fn. 52) It was originally a proprietary chapel owned by a Mr. Brooks, (fn. 53) and later by a Dr. Crofts, and in 1810 it was vested in four trustees for 60 years. (fn. 54) The incumbent was styled a perpetual curate, but there was no endowment and all expenses, including the support of the minister, were met by the seatholders. (fn. 55) In 1853 a parish was formed out of Aston; (fn. 56) in 1859 began a series of grants by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners to endow the living, (fn. 57) which became a vicarage in 1868. (fn. 58) In 1881 the patronage was transferred to the Aston Trustees, and the living was further endowed with £40 out of the revenues of Aston. (fn. 59) The net annual income of the vicarage in 1953 was £397. (fn. 60)
Until 1830 it seems that none of the seats in the church was free. In that year the seating arrangements were altered so as to provide 150 free seats for the poorer inhabitants of the heavily populated hamlet of Ashted. Enlargement of the church in 1835 made another 850 free seats available. (fn. 61) Towards the end of the century efforts were made to improve the proportion of the number of seats in Anglican churches to the number of inhabitants: a mission room to hold 100 was built in 1882, (fn. 62) and in 1889 a mission room was opened in Dollman Street (later known as St. John's Mission) in a building designed to serve as the transept of a possible subsequent church. (fn. 63) This mission has been licensed for public worship since 1908. (fn. 64) Another mission, in Lawley Street, later known as St. Peter's, was opened in 1896 and licensed from 1908 until the Second World War. (fn. 65)
The church of St. James, in Barrack Street and Great Brook Street, was a converted 18th-century house, a plain rectangular building of brick, with a semi-circular projection on one side surmounted by a turret with cupola. It was lengthened by about half its original length in 1835, (fn. 66) and was restored in 1887–9. (fn. 67) It was seriously damaged during the Second World War, (fn. 68) and was demolished c. 1956. The registers begin in 1810. (fn. 69)



Not sure about WW1 Memorials for that church. I know about Aston Parish memorials.



From British History online
 
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