Nikki’s Blog: 11th July 2012

By Nikki Davidson-Kerr on Wednesday 11th July 2012

I was watching on TV with great interest the unveiling of the Bomber Command statue in London.

My Great Uncle flew with Bomber Command during World War 2

My Great Uncle flew with Bomber Command
during World War 2
Image ©IWM (CH 8648)

It was of particular interest to me as my great uncle Alexander Davidson was one of those who flew with Bomber Command and never returned from his mission – his remains were not recovered and it was presumed the Lancaster he and his crew were flying in was lost at sea following a raid over Germany.

Alexander’s name is remembered on the Runnymede Memorial in Surrey, but that is still some way from the majority of his relatives who live in Scotland.

This fact is even truer for those families whose relatives are buried or remembered abroad.

Certainly, many people can hop over to Europe but there are still issues of cost and accessibility and then there are the servicemen who are buried even further away in places such as Africa and Asia where sites can be impossible to visit due to unfavourable local conditions.

Having spoken to people who have been able to visit their loved one’s grave or memorial, they are pleased that they have had the opportunity to see for themselves that somewhere, the sacrifice of their relative is recorded in perpetuity.

That is why it is so important that we build the engraved panel wall around the cross of remembrance in Astley Park.

Local people who have lost loved ones can see that the sacrifice of their relatives has not been forgotten and they are all deserving of a prominent position in our town’s remembrance.

As with the Bomber Command Memorial, it’s sad that it has taken so many years to happen but the important thing is that it now it will and people continue their support for the Chorley Remembers project so everybody can see those names around the cenotaph at last.

 

Nikki’s Christmas Blog: 23rd December 2011

By Nikki Davidson-Kerr on Friday 23rd December 2011

In the New Year we have lots of exciting things happening with the project and there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved with the project and find out more about what is happening.

We're currently compiling the list of names to go on the cenotaph in Chorley next year

We're currently compiling the list of names to go on the cenotaph in Chorley next year

We are currently putting together a list of the people who we have identified as eligible for inclusion on the new panels around the Cenotaph. The list has been compiled by using several methods, including many volunteer hours reading through archived material and researching local memorials.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our volunteers and the Chorley branch of the Lancashire Family History Society for the work that they have put in on the project.

Our research has also uncovered many stories about what happened to people whilst serving and what was happening in Chorley during those times. We will be using some of this information in the upcoming “Chorley Remembers” book and also in the Remembrance Experience in Astley Hall.

However, we are keen to hear from anyone who has had a relative with a Chorley connection serve in the forces in times of conflict and has a story, information or photo that they would like to share. Remember, we are interested to hear about all conflicts from the Boer War until the present, not just the World Wars.

In January we will publish our initial list of the names that have been identified for inclusion on the new panels along with the eligibility criteria.

If you think that you have an eligible relative, please check the list. It will be available in local libraries and our website. If your relative is not listed please get in touch so that we can check their eligibility. Indeed, even if your relative is on the list we’d still appreciate hearing from you as it may help us confirm our information.

Many thanks to the families that have already been in touch.

A happy Chritmas and New Year to all and a reminder to keep checking our website as we have a very busy year planned!

 

Nikki’s Blog: 17th May 2011

By Nikki Davidson-Kerr on Wednesday 18th May 2011

It has been a busy month here on the Chorley Remembers project. We have been getting together the paperwork that goes towards our Heritage Lottery Fund application in June.

We need as much support as we can get. If you too support our goals to get recognition for those who lost their lives serving in the armed forces you can help by writing or emailing to us stating why you think Chorley people should be named around the cenotaph.

We are awaiting designs for the stonework to be placed around the cenotaph. Coming up with ideas as how to do this has proved a tricky undertaking as we need to be confident that we can fit in all the names in the space available.

I know it looks like there is a lot of room but don’t forget we have around 850 names to be inscribed and this takes up more space than you may think.

As ever, we are working with the Family History Society to trace the local men who died during conflicts right through from the Boer War until the present but it is an enormous task and if you would like to help then please get in touch.

We are also keen to hear from relatives of those who lost lives to make sure we have them on our system – we don’t want to miss anyone off!

Our tent at the Chorley Picnic in the Park in Astley Park recently

Our tent at the Chorley Picnic in the Park in Astley Park recently

Chorley Remembers had a stand on Sunday at the Picnic in the Park and despite the weather being less than perfect it was a great opportunity to meet people to tell them about our project.

I lost count of the number of people who were surprised that there are no names around our cenotaph here in Chorley and it was good to hear that so many people wanted this to be put right.

On Saturday we will also have a stand at the Cuerden Valley Fair so if you have any questions for us or information to share then look out for us there.

I’ll end with a big thank you to everyone who has volunteered to help on the project or give us information and also to those who have donated towards our appeal.

 

Nikki’s Blog: 7th March 2011

By Nikki Davidson-Kerr on Monday 7th March 2011

It’s been a busy few months since my last blog so I thought I’d take this opportunity to tell you what we have been up to.

One of the important elements of the project is the research to confirm who is eligible to have their name inscribed on the cenotaph. Volunteers from the Chorley Branch of the Family History & Heraldry Society have been doing a fantastic job retrieving and cataloguing information from the Chorley Guardian archives and we have been fortunate to also have a list of men who gave a Chorley address as next of kin from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

However we don’t want to miss anyone so if you know of a Chorley person who lost their life during any conflict, then please get in touch with us to ensure they are remembered on the Cenotaph Memorial.

There has been a fair amount of activity during the past month in Astley Park. Chorley Borough Council has done a great job in clearing the shrubs behind the cenotaph and this has opened up the area, making it lighter and more welcoming. I’m sure these improvements will enhance the new memorial around the Cenotaph immeasurably.

We are currently working towards getting some initial designs drawn up for the work around the Cenotaph and once we have these we will be asking for people to give us comments. So far we have approximately 850 names to inscribe and having talked to several people about the site, I know that we have plenty of challenges ahead in order to ensure we get it right.

The survey being carried out on the Memorial Arch at Astley Park

The survey being carried out on the Memorial Arch at Astley Park

On the 14th of February, we had a structural survey carried out on the Memorial Arch in Astley Park and we are awaiting the results of this.

The archway has been standing at the entrance to Astley Park since 1924 but is actually older having been moved there from the Gillibrand Estate.

Once we have the surveyors report, we can then decide what we need to do to ensure the Memorial Arch remains a Chorley landmark into the future.

Hitting the headlines in last few days has been the political unrest across northern Africa and the Middle East. Once again the skills and bravery of British service personnel has been called upon and just goes to show that today’s generation of service men and women are still providing us with an essential role that is both essential and fraught with danger.

Finally, you may have noticed in the local newspapers that we have launched an appeal for donations to help fund the Cenotaph improvements and whilst we are applying for funds from the Heritage Lottery, we do still need to find a proportion of the costs locally.

You can donate at any branch of the Chorley Building Society into our dedicated account “Chorley Remembers Memorial Appeal”.

We are also still keen to hear from anyone who has photos or information about any relatives who lost their lives in conflict or have an interesting story to tell.

Nikki’s Blog: 29th November 2010

By Nikki Davidson-Kerr on Monday 29th November 2010

Over the past few weeks I have been busy arranging events and talks to raise the profile of the Chorley Remembers project.

On the 11th of November I was at Astley Hall where I met several people who had come to search through the remembrance books for details of relatives lost during World War One. On Remembrance Sunday I felt very privileged to lay a wreath at the cenotaph and also take part in the march and service at St Laurence’s church.

I am currently doing some background research on some local men who died during World War One. Many of them had served with the Lancashire Fusiliers and as I was looking for more information about the regiment and where they served, I decided to pay a visit to the Fusiliers Museum in Bury last Sunday. It was very interesting and informative and I would recommend a visit!

Looking into the backgrounds of so many service people and finding out about where they served has inspired me to find out some more about my relatives who served in both world wars and record what I have found. I’ll keep you posted on my progress via this blog and I hope it will encourage others to find out about their relatives too.

Now that we have this website up and running, a large part is going to be dedicated to our local people who died whilst serving this country. If you have got any information you would like to share about relatives who lived or were born in Chorley and died during a conflict (it doesn’t have to be the world wars) then please get in touch with us.

Finally, I’ll be at Adlington Library on the 30th November where I’ll be giving a short talk on what we hope to achieve through the project and some information about men from the Adlington area who served during the First World War.