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Memorial found in a skip

The small plaque at the bottom with the inscription of 1939 - 1945 suggests this large WW1 memorial had a WW2 memorial below it. ‘Mason’ seems to be part of a longer name(s). Or was it Mason as in Masonic ? Viv
 
Another - 2nd Lt George William BOWATER died after an operation. He's buried at Key Hill, but no mention of a previous occupation.

Maurice
 
I have just done a check on the Hall of Memory Books - cannot be certain with only a surname and initial to go on if they are the right people or not. However, the following surnames do not seem to appear Booton, George, Inge, Pepperill and W Stone
 
Another in civilian life employed by Birmingham Tramways - Bombardier George Henry GILES, 24 and older than most.

Maurice
 
pjmburns said:
I have just done a check on the Hall of Memory Books - cannot be certain with only a surname and initial to go on if they are the right people or not. However, the following surnames do not seem to appear Booton, George, Inge, Pepperill and W Stone
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BOOTON, BOUCHER & PEPPERILL appear to have been civilians, Janice, as I can't find mention of them on CGWC or the newspapers.

Maurice
 
Have now found PepperEll at the Hall of Memory. His service record exists on Ancestry (address Grange Road Kings Heath) he was in the RAMC and drowned. See attached. He is on CWGC - name spelt wrongly on War Memorial Plaque.
 

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I believe we have not been given the place where this was found as yet. However, two are listed as having tram employment. Maybe this was in a former tram/bus depot since demolished.
 
There is a C Booton on CWGC. Also Listed on Soldiers effects as Booton C E - widow Lizzie / Elizabeth. He was a railway porter on 1911 census.
 

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This one rather lets out a business as 2nd Lt Frederick George PEARSON was formerly a student at Birmingham Uni and was a member of their O.T.C. Can't see a religious connotation anywhere, and quite a few appear to have been civilians. The religious quotation is a standard one used on this type of memorial. So that appears to leave a school or a club, though the catchment area is quite large.

Maurice
 
Alan,

Like many here, I worked for the old B.C.T. which with its present owners still has a Social Club, and I imagine that they would have ensured that it would have been safeguarded if it was one of theirs. And Pearson was formerly a B'ham Uni student and doesn't appear to have ever had a job.

Maurice
 
Janice,

BOOTON being quite a common name in Birmingham newspapers at that time, I stayed with his full initials as shown on the memorial to be safe! Again a railway porter is yet another occupation. Not an easy nut to crack, but someone must recognise it, though not necessarily a member or prospective member of BHF!

Maurice
 
From what has been recorded here - and elsewhere - Maurice, someone has to make strong efforts to save important artefacts. Remember the efforts to save the BCT stonework city arms from Tyburn Road. Those involved in saving it might say it was not an easy achievement.
 
I agree, I too think it might be a club/group of some sort. And something where several family members would have been involved - there are multiple Stone family members and Giles family members.

I notice the commonest factor in all the addresses is Balsall Heath. So perhaps confining any searches to that specific area at first might prove more productive. Viv.
 
Vivienne14 said:
I agree, I too think it might be a club/group of some sort. And something where several family members would have been involved - there are multiple Stone family members and Giles family members.

I notice the commonest factor in all the addresses is Balsall Heath. So perhaps confining any searches to that specific area at first might prove more productive. Viv.
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There were 3 Stone brothers, Alfred, William and Sidney who were all killed in the First World War. They were living in the vicinity of St Paul's church, and Alfred had married there in 1913.
 
The original St. Pauls Church was demolished in the late 1970's as the current congregation, it is said, were unable to sustain the building. A new church, joint with another denomination was opened by the Anglican Bishop of Birmingham in 1980.
This could suggest that the Memorial might be from the original church.
 
The Memorial was originally erected in the early 1920s, half a mile away on the corner of Moseley Road and St Paul's Road, as a free-standing memorial, outside the entrance to the parish church (St Paul's). That building was demolished around 1979 and the upper section (only) of the war memorial was saved and placed on the wall of the new Church Centre, facing Edward Road.The lower half of the column and the stone plinth on which it stood were lost. Also missing are boards with the names of those from the local community who died in WW1. Stone work of the cross is now heavilly weathered and in poor condition. The inscription on what is now a separate small block of stone is still clearly readable. Less
 
Found this on doing a search. Shows the original cross and boards - there were two wooden ones - not like the one in this thread. So I am not sure.
 

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pjmburns said:
Found this on doing a search. Shows the original cross and boards - there were two wooden ones - not like the one in this thread. So I am not sure.
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It says they were external. Would the one on this forum be one that was inside the church? :confused:
 
It could be but what bothers me is the apparent size of those wooden boards compared to our small one. I did think you had the answer but when I saw that photo I was no longer so sure.
 
Another strand might be that whereas the large Memorial Boards in post 48 might contain all, or most, of the names of men of the Parish of St. Paul who gave their lives in WW1 our quest is for a Memorial commemorating a specific, smaller group, of men. Possible connected with a factory, occupation, members of the Choir and so forth.
Maybe an enquiry to the Diocese of Birmingham could shed light? Why was this Memoria deemed not worth keeping, even in an archive. Now we must wonder what has happened to those two larger boards so full of names. I know 1980 is a while ago but maybe someone still a parishioner at St. Pauls remembers them?
 
It suggests the two large boards were destroyed - doesn't say how but wooden ones would not last as long as stone. I agree we seem to be searching for a small group - linked in some way. I did wonder about smaller churches - methodist, baptist etc - they might have had smaller congregations.
 
Nothing about the found memorial suggests a religious connection to me. It’s quite simple in design, although if cast in bronze (?) would have involved some form of organised committee/group to raise funds/arrange for its construction. The simple surround suggests to me this was intended as a memorial for inside a building, perhaps a local hall ? Viv.
 
I agree it was most likely inside and the short list of names seems to indicate a small group of people. Not sure about religion - some other smaller churches existed eg. Edward Road Baptist Church, Wenman Street (Gospel hall) to name butility two.
 
Viv / Janice,

That casting is in very good condition & must have been inside a building. Given the wide area of addresses, it would suggest one of the denominations that didn't have too many churches, but based in the Balsall Heath area. Maybe it is time to put a series of red dots on a old street map? Those that looked after the day to day running of the building would have lived very close to it. The Salvation Army used simple picture-framed ones - they would resent spending the money on a casting when there were so many needy causes!

Maurice
 
Regarding the skip in which the memorial was found.

Which street was the skip in?

Did the person who found it in the skip have it for a long time before passing it on, and if so, is there a date of when it was found?

Was the skip near a building being demolished and if so are there any details about it?

Maybe the skip was being used for a house clearance etc?

Did someone spot the skip and decide to chuck the memorial in it?
 
Apologies for not having caught up sooner. The spreadsheet did have some details of profession, along with rank and regiment but I will not be able to access it until tomorrow. The problem I have is in transferring the material to something I can post here or elsewhere. The sheet is so wide that it would be difficult to view on the average screen. I think I can transfer parts to a table or series of tables that I can post but that will have to wait until tomorrow.
 
oldMohawk said:
Regarding the skip in which the memorial was found.

Which street was the skip in?

Did the person who found it in the skip have it for a long time before passing it on, and if so, is there a date of when it was found?

Was the skip near a building being demolished and if so are there any details about it?

Maybe the skip was being used for a house clearance etc?

Did someone spot the skip and decide to chuck the memorial in it?
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Unfortunately, I don't think we're going to get those answers. As I remember it the person who found it turned it in at a church in wylde green and left without giving more detail than that they had found it in a skip.
 
pjmburns said:
There seem to have been 2 C of E churches in Balsall Heath - St Thomas in the Moors which was demolished in 1970 and St Paul's (a new church was built in 1979) and the original was demolished.
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I doubt that it would be St Paul's but their list was transferred to the new church centre and a new memorial made. I can probably take a look at that when I'm done here but I doubt that would be it.
 
wam said:
Unfortunately, I don't think we're going to get those answers. As I remember it the person who found it turned it in at a church in wylde green and left without giving more detail than that they had found it in a skip.
Click to expand...
Is it worth contacting the local press or t.v. with an appeal for the person who found it to come forward and provide some details of where and when it was found.
 
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