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Erdington postmen heroes remembered

How nice for you to meet Alan Lyn & how surprising this must be for him and his family, just out of the blue :friendly_wink:

I for one will be sad when it all comes to an end so I hope it goes on for awhile :friendly_wink:

Again well done to you and all who helped it finding the information.
 
hi folks it was lovely to meet alan and his wife olive yesterday and he told me quite a bit about his family history which i found very interesting...not too sure if there was another page to this letter as it is not signed but its the last one that alberts daughter (alans mom gladys then aged 14) received from him just before he died in a military hospital in bury st edmunds and she kept this letter all her life...although he does not have a death cert alan was told that albert died from that awful spanish flu pandemic that took so many people from the summer of 1918...what a very touching letter of love and concern from a father to his first born child..his wife and other children (there were 7 other younger children)...the pages are very flimsy now and falling apart so i have scanned it as best i can..most of it is legible..until i looked it up i did not realise just how quickly people died from the spanish flu (within a matter of hours)..the link below gives us some info on it..now i really do feel as i knew albert..

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/...but-Spanish-Flu-would-kill-millions-more.html





 
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That's so terribly sad Lyn. To have gone through the war but to have died of Spanish Flu is so, so tragic. But at least Albert got the opportunity to write a letter of advice to his daughter. No wonder she treasured it. It's been an interesting journey, made even more real by Alan's generous help. Thanks Lyn and Alan for meeting up and making this possible. Viv.
 
That's such a lovely father to daughter letter. It must have been so horrible to be away from your children knowing you may not return home.
How sad that Albert died of Spanish Flu - I didn't know people could die that quickly from it either. Thank you for posting the letter Lyn and thank you to Alan for sharing it with us.
 
hi pol...as far as alan was told albert was on his way home when he was struck down with spanish flu...how very sad

lyn
 
UPDATE

hi folks...after enquires have been made about the postal workers plaque it has been decided that it will go to the national memorial arboretum in alrewas...planning permission would have to be granted(which we may not get) to put it at the erdington sorting office and that could take months and time is something we do not have on our side if its to be put back up before the the centenery date...it will go in the postal workers section of the arburetum and the royal mail will have the plaque cleaned up and will have a nice wooden plaque made and placed in front of it to say where the postal workers came and worked from..it will be safe and well looked after..also the local reverend will be holding a re dedication service for these men once the plaque is safely in place...the royal mail have extended an invitation to the re dedication to any of our members and any family of the 7 men to attend and of course the man who rescued the plaque ken stowe will also be there.it would be lovely if a few of us could be there as you have also played a part in this..great result folks and now we can say for certain that these 7 heroes will never be forgotton...:encouragement:

thank you all for your suport you have all been great.. i will keep you informed as things progress..

lyn x
 
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hi viv yes it would have been nice for it to go to erdington but as we know all things are not possible..i am just glad that it will find a fitting home in the post office memorial garden where the men will be alongside their commrades and also have a proper re dedication..now i can get some sleep lol

lyn x
 
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thanks dave and mike...next stage will be when the royal mail come to collect the memorial which wont be long as they want to move pretty fast on getting it all sorted out..i was just sitting here thinking that the NMA is a far better place for it than on a demo site smashed to bits..i am quite sure they will do it and those men proud..

lyn
 
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Lyn, Thank you so very much for taking us all on this fantastic journey and well done to all who gave their time to this most interesting project. I am certain Alan and his family are really happy that their Grandfather has been remembered in such a lovely way.

Such a touching letter.............. so caring of the time.

Well done and thank you both again Lyn and Ken xx
 
Lyn, I think it is probably going to the best place - I was worried that if it went on a building the same thing might happen again in years to come.

Well done - you have worked hard and achieved a great result!
 
Lyn this has been a fantastic journey thanks to your hard work and Ken saving the plaque it will go to a proper home and it will be saved for ever. How lovely to be able to read the letter that Alan had it made me shed a few tears. I look forward to seeing pictures of the day you get the dedication. Thanks again all for all the history you have all gathered on the men on this plaque.
 
hi folks another rellie has come forward..this time for cornelius ernest neal so i will be getting in touch with him..here is the message i received

I have read the article in the birmingham mail regarding the plaque from the war involving erdington postmen.my father studies genealogy and has discovered that Cornelius Ernest Neal is his grandmothers second cousin , great grandfathers cousin and as a former postman of 30+ years at the Erdington delivery office himself, has a great interest in this topic. He was wondering if there is any way he could contact you regarding information about this, however he is not at all computer literate and email is not really an option for him. I am his son. I am emailing on his behalf today however I am at work most of the time and if there is any chance he could talk to you or write to you, he would greatly appreciate It.
Thankyou for you time
Yours
Steve Arnold
 
Wow, what can I say Lyn. This is again such good news. I'm sure it will be another interesting meeting. Looking forward to hearing about it. Viv.
 
its great isnt it viv...not sure of a meeting but hopefully we will speak on the phone..:encouragement:

lyn
 
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That's great news Lyn! Another relative and a former postman at Erdington himself - what a coincidence!
I look forward to hearing more when you've spoken to him.
 
What a great result to have another family interested. What a great job you have done Lyn, I bet the families are thrilled.
 
thanks wend ive really enjoyed being a part of this and although when i started it i was really only thinking of those 7 men who should be remembered but now i realise just how important this is to their family as well...

lyn
 
I am realy pleased it is going to the NMA and will be going to take a look on our next visit. Let's hope more family may be found as you know this is close to our hearts, as Michael's grandfather was an Aston postman who lost his life at the Somme. There is a small exhibition in Ward End Library at the moment with reaserch on the men of the area who lost their lives. One we must visit. The memorial will be so special to the families of these men...well done to eveyone involved.!
 
Going back a bit. C'mon Lyn. Spill the beans.:courage: Alan and Olive Green.

Post #144, Page 10.
Of the children, what can be inferred is that:-
Gladys Ada Emily Sharp married Frank Edgar Green 1923, Q4, 6d, 1045
Click to expand...

I was obviously accurate on that bit but.....what of the siblings?

Sometimes we don't choose to remain in contact with the 'extended' family, but did they offer any details concerning other offspring?

If 'not for an open forum' then PM me.

I'm just interested.:smug:

Ken.
 
ALBERT EDWARD SHARP 003.JPG
Ken_R said:
Going back a bit. C'mon Lyn. Spill the beans.:courage: Alan and Olive Green.

Post #144, Page 10.


I was obviously accurate on that bit but.....what of the siblings?

Sometimes we don't choose to remain in contact with the 'extended' family, but did they offer any details concerning other offspring?

If 'not for an open forum' then PM me.

I'm just interested.:smug:

Ken.
Click to expand...

hi ken..not really much other info on offpring but alan could confirm all the children of albert and i think he said that 2 or 3 of them are still alive and in there late 80s early 90s now..must apologise i forgot to post this war medallion that was sent to albert sharps widow which alan has got...i was surprised how heavy these are..bit of info here on them..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Plaque_(medallion)
 
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just a quick update folks...the postal plaque will be collected from me by the royal mail next week and taken to the NMA for cleaning so we are are the move now...will let you know when the re dedication service will be in case anyone would like to attend this

lyn
 
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