Sources for Farrar Street Congregational Church

The War Memorial at Farrar Street Congregational Church, now the Trinity United Reformed Church, bears no names.

Part of the Wall of the Church Hall on Crookes Street (Photo by Nigel Croft, 28 May 2015)

But after some inscribed stones, particularly one with the words "York and Lancs", were spotted on the wall of the Church extension which opened in 1933, research was carried out to see if any of them commemorated Fallen soldiers. There are two which do.  Click on the links to see more information about these men.

Harold Wright
Harry Tock

In the course of the research the following sources for WW1 soldiers connected to Farrar Street Church were also discovered in Barnsley Archives. They were stored as item A/163/3/N which is two cardboard boxes of mixed items to do with the church, such as pamphlets, minute books, baptism certificate books and photographs.

List of "Old Scholars Killed on Active Service" from the 1919 'Coming of Age' Souvenir booklet for the Church.  Names of 6 men killed.

Harold Raymond Oldham Hebdon
Maurice Rowlands
Stanley Thorne
Newby Thornley
Harry Tock
Harold Wright
 
Church produced Christmas Card from 1915 listing 34 names on a Roll of Honour

Lance Corporal Wm Dale Drummer Harold Wright Bandsman Herbert Haigh Corporal Wilfred R Cleverley Sergeant Arthur H Wainwright Pte D. Maurice Rowlands Pte Robert Oakley Pte Clarence Mellor Pte Charles Horbury Pte William Cooper Lance Corporal G Broadhead Pte Stanley Thorne Trooper Gilbert Wheelwright Pte W Hewitt Pte H Field Lance Corporal W Glassby Lance Corporal F Chappell

Pte Walter Thornton Pte H Hydes Sergeant Fred Dobbs Pte Harold Mason Sapper Tom Pashley Sapper Harold West Sapper Lewis Redhall Driver E Percy Hebdon Driver C R Hartley Driver W Peace Trooper Stuart Oldacre Pte E E Parkes Pte Wm Kirk Pte Elliott J Kirk Pte George Scott Pte Alfred Thorne Pte Gordon Turner

Entry in the Church Minutes for 10 August 1920 giving the names of 9 men who were to be listed on their war memorial.  Later it was decided to list no names.

Hebdon, Field, Rowlands, Thorne, F. Broadhead, Tock, Wright, Thornley, Holt

(Assumed to be Harold R O Hebdon, Harry Field, David Maurice Rowlands, Stanley Thorne, Fred Broadhead, Harry Tock, Harold Wright, Newby Thornley and James William Holt.)

Finally a search of the Barnsley Chronicle in April 1915, looking for an obituary for D M Rowlands also turned up a cutting about a sale of work, which not only mentioned Pte Rowlands, but also a long list of other men connected to the church, some of whom are not on the Christmas card Roll of Honour above.

List of men in Barnsley Chronicle 10 April 1915

D M Rowlands (already Killed in Action)
W Dale, Royal Irish Rifles (wounded at Mons)
G Broadhead, W R Cleverley, A H Wainwright, George Scott (Barnsley Battalion)
Harold Wright, H Haigh, C Mellor, W Cooper, A Thorne, W Hewitt, H Field, Lance Corporals W Glassby and F Chappell (all of the 5th Y and L Regiment)
R Oakley, KOYLI
C Hornby, Royal Marines
S Thorne, 10th Highland Light Infantry
G Wheelwright, Yorkshire Dragoons
 

If your local war memorial doesn't have any names on it or it has not survived, don't give up, there are other sources out there, you just have to find them!