STOCKWELL'S HEROIC DEAD. Royal Unveiling of Imposing Monument. One of the Finest of London's War Memorials. That which, in its genesis, was to have been a worthy memorial to the brave men of Stockwell who made the supreme sacrifice on their country's behalf in the Great War has, by the process, partly of postponement and partly of development, become a worthy memorial to the glorious dead of the entire borough. During three years the Stockwell War Memorial Committee have been enthusiastically engaged in raising funds for a clock tower which a public meeting decided should be erected on the once derelict district eyesore known as the Triangle, situated at the important junction of Clapham Road, Stockwell Road and South Lambeth Road. As time went on the idea was developed, and with the abandonment of the Borough Nursing Home, which at one time was suggested as a permanent memorial to Lambeth's heroic dead, the Stockwell scheme became considerably enlarged, and further appeals were made to meet the increasing cost. The entire memorial scheme has involved an expenditure of roughly £5,000, and the result is a very imposing clock tower at the apex of the triangle, massive in proportions, and rising to a height giving dignity and importance to the erection. The clock itself is the generous gift of Dr. Caiger, of the South West London Hospital, one of the many parents from whom the irrevocable toll was exacted. The site itself has been laid out as a public garden by the Lambeth Borough Council at a cost of something approaching £1,000, but in its completed state there can hardly be two opinions that the money on a [sic] public improvements in the borough was never better spent. The green turf, the smart trees, and the travelled paths have invested the site with a beauty which will be appreciated by the residents for generations to come, and adds to the utilitarian aspect of the memorial. In the laying out of the ground the Borough Engineer deserves great credit for the transformation he has been able to effect at this spot. Upon the chairman of the committee (Capt. Wallace M. Young), and the hon. secretary, Mr. Samuel Bowller, tremendous demands have been made, but in their efforts to reach the ideal which they set before themselves they had the unstinted co-operation of the whole of the members of the committee, and were able to rely upon a great deal of public support in raising funds, especially in what may be regarded as the more or less adventitious methods which had to be adopted during the winter months, when successful dances were held in aid of the funds. The result of the memorial as it stands to-day is such as to remove any slight criticism which may still exist as to schemes undertaken to complete the memorial and to secure for the committee the unqualified approval of the entire borough. Read the rest of the article |
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 THESE WERE OUR SONS: Stories from Stockwell War Memorial by Naomi Lourie Klein. Every name is listed, with biographies for all those identified. The introduction gives an overview and the story of how the memorial was erected. £3 from every copy sale goes directly to the Friends of Stockwell War Memorial and Gardens Available from www.elefantbooks.com. £8.99 plus £2.75 p&p Special deals for SW8 and SW9 residents ♦ Charles Parker - family man and engineer ♦ The four Rance brothers ♦ Triple tragedy: the Desaleux brothers ♦ Samuel Levy's wife ♦ Frank Mason, 16, the youngest ♦ Cecil Philcox - Military Cross winner ♦ Chris Dartnell - shell shocked ♦ Cecil Philcox - killed in training ♦ Harold J. Hill - a riddle solved ♦ Harry Albert Nixon - syphilis treatment and conduct charges |
Brixton Free Press 5 May 1922 |