Dear List, I am researching the names which appear on the Stoke Climsland (Cornwall) WW1 memorial. I've just started and intend using sources such as the CWGC, medal rolls, Canadian attestation papers etc. Some listers may very well have gone down a similar path elsewhere before and I would appreciate any guidance/tips that could be passed my way. One basic question that struck me immediately is "who decided on what names go on the memorial?". Has anyone any knowledge of the process followed? Regards, Derrick Parsons

Derrick, Try the local County Record Office. Each parish with a memorial had a memorial committee. The minutes of the committees have survived in a number of cases. This can give an invaluable insight into how names were chosen and how the memorial was funded. For the one I researched there were also the original plans, which had to be altered because the work was going to be too expensive. Do not be surprised if some of the names appearing on your local memorial appear on other memorials. This was quite common. Check with the County Record Office and main library and local newspapers to see what may be there in terms of reports of deaths and wounded. Again quite a bit of biographical information can be found. However they have to be double checked as we are talking newspapers here! The papers often carried photographs which can be a good source. Some newspapers published a photographic supplement on a weekly basis. Check to see if this applies in your case. Speaking of newspapers, write to the editor of your local paper. They could publish a letter from you saying that you were seeking information and they may do more. I managed to get two articles out of this and a number of people contacted me and were kind enough to lend me some brilliant photographs to copy. Obviously this time of year is a good time to write, with Armistice Day being close. Whilst this may sound obvious, check to ensure that someone hasn't been and done the research before. If there is such research you may well find it in your County Record Office. Whilst it is true that most War Diaries do not mention soldiers killed in action by name, they do sometimes, particularly if there is a gallantry award. War Diaries frequently mention officers killed in action, even the youngest and newest subalterns. War Diaries are at the National Archive at Kew. If that is too far away for you, try a researcher. Compared to the cost of travel and perhaps an overnight stay, their fees are very competitive. There are at least two good researchers who subscribe to this list. If you have any submariners, get in touch with the Submarine Museum. They have a wealth of information and a number of photographs. For "my" submariner for a very modest fee I was provided with a copy of a picture of the crew. I was able to tell them the name of my submariner and identify him in the photograph. I was also provided with a photograph of the submarine. Don't forget Soldiers Died. It is a good resource to check and cross reference with CWGC. I hope that this may give you a few pointers. Best wishes, John Watts Worcester. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Derrick Parsons" <derrick.parsons@btinternet.com> To: <GREATWAR@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, November 07, 2006 6:46 PM Subject: [GREATWAR] Researching WW1 War Memorial > Dear List, > > I am researching the names which appear on the Stoke Climsland (Cornwall) > WW1 memorial. I've just started and intend using sources such as the > CWGC, medal rolls, Canadian attestation papers etc. > > Some listers may very well have gone down a similar path elsewhere before > and I would appreciate any guidance/tips that could be passed my way. > > One basic question that struck me immediately is "who decided on what > names go on the memorial?". Has anyone any knowledge of the process > followed? > > Regards, > > Derrick Parsons > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message