Established 1955 and still going strong
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Cirencester commemorates
World War 1
(From Newsletter 59 April 2014)
A (very) small team of Society
members is researching the impact of
World War 1 on the town and its
residents. Can you please help us?
Cirencester has a richness of
memorials to the fallen of World War 1
but they are not all immediately
apparent. Two striking memorials
adorn the walls of the south porch of St
John Baptist and the facade of the
Memorial Hospital in Sheep Street,
with smaller memorials to the former
members of the Church Lads’ Brigade,
the bell ringers of Holy Trinity,
Watermoor, and pupils of Cirencester
Grammar School. Pupils of Oakley
Hall and students and lecturers at the
Royal Agricultural College (now
University) have their own plaques.
The staircase within the former Cottage
Hospital in Sheep Street was paid for
by the family of Major E.J. Bannatyne
in gratitude for the care he received
following a fatal air crash in 1917.
The Sheep Street Roll of Honour lists
211 names while that on the parish
church names 188 individuals. Why the
discrepancy? And why in our research
are we finding the names of fallen
servicemen not commemorated on
either, even though they were
Cirencester born and bred?
The town played a significant role in
recruiting volunteers with over 400
answering Kitchener’s call in
September 1914. Regiments were
billeted in the town and Earl Bathurst’s
Park was the focus for training camps
and drill. The Midland and South
Western Junction Railway in
Watermoor was a significant link to the
south coast ports and the proximity of
the Bingham Hall lent itself as an ideal
site for a Red Cross Hospital.
Despite the hardships of war, food
shortages and higher prices life
continued with the town rallying to
support the war effort on all fronts.
Pupils at the Girls’ Council School in
Lewis Lane knitted socks and mitts for
the Christmas parcels for the Soldiers’
and Sailors’ Comforts Committee,
giving up their drawing lessons in
November 1916 to complete the
consignment. This and many other
snippets of interest are there to be
uncovered.
All this is working towards an Exhibition
in the Society’s name at the Corinium
Museum from 16 August to 14
September this year. We cannot hope
to tell the full story of the impact of
World War 1 without your help in this
ongoing project. Please help us - we
are still searching for Frederick G.
Burge, Charles Burrows, J. Johnson,
William Lane, William Mustoe, George
Thompson, Cyril B. Williams. Do you
know of them? Are they relatives?
If you can help please contact the
Society via the editor. Meanwhile,
many thanks for the efforts and
enthusiasm of Dale Hjort, Florence
Beetlestone, Linda Viner, Christopher
Fear, Michael Rose and Aileen
Anderson.
See local press for full details of all the
events and activities for ‘Cirencester
Commemorates WW1’; and for
Gloucestershire Local History
Association’s day school see
http://www.gloshistory.org.uk
Welcome to Cirencester Archaeological
& Historical Society
We are always happy to see new members. Do
browse our site to see what we do. While our main
activity is our meetings, we have other interests,
such as our projects and the publishing of short
articles in our Newsletters or even on line. The
Spring Newsletter was available to collect at our
May meeting. if you did not collect it see below and
the panel on the right.
Our next activity is the WW1 Exhibition at
Corinium Museum from 15 August to 14 September,
for which we need stewards. If you can help for an
hour or so please contact us.
News items will usually be on this page. Feel free to
hover over and click any picture to see what
happens.
Our next meeting is in September. A new programme
will be published in August, which will be mailed to
members.
Page last updated 16 July 2014
Society gives Archaeology Prize to
Cirencester College Student
At our April meeting four students from
Cirencester College presented their A level
practical results to the Society. The audience
was surprised by the quality and quantity of
work presented. Aiden Scott, their tutor,
decided that the prize, a £50 book token, should
go to Dougal McDonald.
Your Committee decided during the year that as part
of our charitable commitment, this prize should now
be awarded annually. A prize was first presented at
the College on our 50th anniversary.
Spring Newsletter no. 59
This was given to members in good standing at the
May Meeting. It will be available in print form again
at the September meeting. However it contains
timely information, some of which is reprinted at
right. If you would like to receive your copy by email
as a Word or pdf document (state which), please
email cahs @ cirenhistory.org.uk. [remove the
blanks!] Copies will be emailed from early July.
Society gains Heritage Lottery Funding
See the Press Release
The funds will be used to stage the Cirencester
Commemorates Exhibition -see right.
Other related events include:
RAU Chapel exhibition until November, when Chapel
not in use.
A WW1 timeline in the Parish Church.
Corinium Museum has material for Schools -ring the
Museum for details
New Brewery Arts Art installation on the Theme of
Carrier Pigeons from July 5th
Festival of Archaeology 2014
Corinium Museum presents two activities this year for
the Festival of Archaeology. The first, on Thursday
17th July 2.30-3.30 shows off the finds from the
Cotswold Community Site in Ashton Keynes. The
second on Saturday 19th July When Cotswold
Archaeology will have an Open Day at the Museum
from 10-4pm. Both activities are included in the
normal entrance charge.
VCH Gloucestershire Newsletter
This Newsletter might look a bit dry, but
there are several interesting local articles
in it. Your Society intends to help fund this
work in the future.
A Study Day re mediaeval Cirencester
Brasses may also be of interest
