Worle War Memorial, Weston-Super-Mare, North Somerset

Entry Name: Worle War Memorial

Listing Date: 6 June 2017

Grade: II

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1446117

ID on this website: 101446117

Location: Worle, North Somerset, BS22

County: North Somerset

Civil Parish: Weston-super-Mare

Built-Up Area: Weston-Super-Mare

Traditional County: Somerset

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Somerset

Tagged with: War memorial

Summary

War memorial of 1922, with further inscriptions added after the Second World War and in 1993; gates replaced in 1959.

Description

War memorial of 1922 with further inscriptions added after the Second World War and in 1993; gates replaced in 1959.

MATERIALS: constructed of roughly-dressed limestone rubble with freestone dressings, under a gabled roof of plain tiles. The clock tower and its roof are clad with oak shingles.

PLAN: the building is rectangular on plan and the clock tower stands some 9m high.

DESCRIPTION: the memorial takes the form of a small one-storey building, similar to a lychgate, with a stone plinth and moulded, pointed-arched entrances with mid-C20 decorative wrought-iron gates to the front and rear. On either side of the archway is a single light with metal screen. Above the archway in the S gable is an inset stone tablet which carries the inscription, in painted black lettering: TO THOSE OF THIS / PARISH WHO DIED / & FOUGHT IN THE / GREAT WAR / 1914-1918. Rising from the roof is a two-stage clock tower which has a clock face and small louvered opening the front (S) and a pyramidal roof with a finial. Within the building are small corner seats. The W wall has a marble plaque inscribed: IN MEMORY OF / THOSE OF THIS PARISH WHO FELL IN THE GREAT WAR / 1914-1918 / (NAMES) / “THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMORE”. Attached to the E wall is another marble plaque which is inscribed: IN MEMORY OF / THOSE OF THIS PARISH WHO MADE THE SUPREME SACRIFICE / IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR 1939-1945. / H.M. FORCES / (NAMES) /CIVILIANS / (NAMES) / “SPLENDID YOU PASSED INTO THE LIGHT / THAT NEVERMORE SHALL FADE”. A third marble plaque reads: OTHER CONFLICTS / (NAME).

SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: to the front of the war memorial are flanking dwarf walls of stone rubble with freestone coping.

This List entry has been amended to add the source for War Memorials Online. This source was not used in the compilation of this List entry but is added here as a guide for further reading, 3 July 2017.

History

The great age of memorial building was in the aftermath of the First World War. The war memorial in Worle which commemorated twenty eight men who had lost their lives during the First World War was dedicated on 14 September 1922. It was designed by T Bradford Ball of Weston-super-Mare, and the building work was supervised by William Huish, assisted by local labour. The memorial cost £500 which was raised by public subscription.

A further plaque was added later in memory of the eighteen servicemen and six civilians, both men and women, who died during the Second World War. The original oak entrance gates were vandalised in 1959 and were replaced with wrought-iron ones designed by the Frome Metal Workers’ Guild Ltd; seats were also installed. A re-dedication service was held at the same time. In the late C20 a plaque commemorating a soldier who lost his life during active service in 1993 was also added. The clock was repaired in 2010.

Reasons for Listing

Worle War Memorial, unveiled in 1922, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:
* It is a poignant reminder of the impact of the First and Second World Wars on the community and commemorates its fallen servicemen and civilians;

Architectural interest:
* In the form of a building surmounted by a clock tower, it is an unusual, well-carved and architecturally distinctive tribute to the Fallen.

External Links

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.