An ambitious project to put stories to the World War I names on Redlands’ cenotaphs has become a lasting tribute to the fallen at Cleveland Library.
A special presentation of memorabilia collected as part of a collaboration between University of the Third Age Redlands, Redland Museum and Redland Libraries is now available to schools and the public. The collection celebrates the centenary of World War I and uncovered accounts of outstanding bravery and heart-wrenching ordeals of the fallen.
Local History and Heritage Librarian Leonie Taylor, who led the research, said for the first time since World War I, real stories behind the names on the city’s cenotaphs could be told.
“The goal of this project was to make these men more than anonymous names on a memorial – to remind us that they were real people with real hopes and dreams,” Ms Taylor said.
“Take the story of Algernon Cook, a carpenter, who married Ormiston girl Jane Ramsay. Algernon enlisted on November 3, 1915 at the age of 33, joining the 41st Battalion, B Company, and left for battle in May the following year. He served on the Western Front before being killed in action in Belgium on June 11, 1917. Algernon had a son, George, but sadly he never saw him. He was killed when George was just 8 months old.”
Ms Taylor said the task of finding the information was “quite a challenge”, but help from Redland Genealogical Society and community members unearthed photographs and information on all but a few of the soldiers. The presentation is available to local schools and via the libraries’ online catalogue.
