Links to the stories of WW1 Fallen
Links to the stories of WW2 Fallen
I’ve lived in Castle Bromwich for 32 years, and for each of those years I have marked Remembrance Sunday in the traditional way, with the culmination of the service being the solemn and respectful reading of the names of the people who fell in the two world wars.
While this has ensured that the names were never forgotten, I have never felt any real connection with the people behind the names, or able to form any mental picture of who they were or the sacrifice they made.
As far back as 2009 I embarked upon a project to uncover the stories behind the headstones in Castle Bromwich Graveyard and more recently the names behind the war memorial.
Each of the names on the war memorial marked a devastating blow to a local family: we owe a huge debt of gratitude to these men and women – the least I felt I could do was find out more about them. Over the last few years I’ve been able to piece together a picture of each person named; some are more detailed than others. Along the way I’ve had helped from Tracey Williams at Solihull Heritage and Local Studies, as well as young people who have worked with me to research the stories of these men and women. I’m now sharing these stories on the Castle Bromwich Graveyard website and the Graveyard Detective facebook page, however this will remain a ‘work in process’ as more pieces of the jigsaw gradually emerge and fall into place.
Terrie Knibb – Chair Castle Bromwich Youth & Community Partnership
