Wednesday 21 May 2014

War Memorial Gravestones in Darfield Churchyard and Cemetery

During both the First and Second World Wars re-repatriation of the bodies of fallen servicemen and women was not usual.  The Unknown Soldier, entombed in Westminster Abbey represents those buried and commemorated overseas who could not come home.  For many families, deprived of a graveside at which to mourn, one solution was to add the name of their lost son (or daughter) to the family gravestone in their local churchyard.  

The Imperial War Museum's War Memorials' Archive defines a War Memorial as "any tangible object which has been erected or dedicated to commemorate those killed as a result of war, conflict or peacekeeping; who served in war or conflict; or who died whilst engaged in military service."  This includes gravestones which commemorate a casualty buried elsewhere.  There must be a clear statement on the memorial (or in a printed document such as a newspaper report from the time) that defines the commemorative purpose of the feature and reports its erection. The full wording of their definition can be found here.

Thus gravestones which include wording such as: died of wounds received in action, killed in action, fell in France, died on active service, reported missing in action, or even killed accidentally while on active service all count as War Memorials.  The wording is a "clear statement" that the purpose of recording that person's name on the gravestone is as a memorial.

Graves which are situated on the site of the burial of a casualty, such as Commonwealth War Graves, are not War Memorials, however the Barnsley War Memorials Project is also collecting their details for inclusion in the Barnsley Roll of Honour.

Darfield Churchyard contains five Commonwealth War Graves and Darfield Cemetery contains fourteen more.

Darfield Churchyard
WW1
Leonard Hardcastle
Peter Short
Horace Venables
Joseph Wigley
WW2
Frank Arthur Purple

Darfield Cemetery
WW1
Philip Bly
George Brown
William Henry Fretwell
Harry Gomersall
WW2
George Bates
John Harrison Carr
Ernest Chambers
John Dallamore
Harold Dronfield
Fred Fawcett
John Desmond Hayes
Eric Bernard Horsman
Cyril Love
Charles Schofield


Friends of Darfield Churchyard provide a map leaflet [downloadable here as a .pdf file]to locate the memorial gravestones and CWGC burials in the Darfield All Saint's churchyard - hard copies can usually be found in a box on the sign by the churchyard gate.  Short biographies of the men can also be found in their newsletters available online.  Note that some parts of the churchyard are left overgrown to provide a haven for wildlife and so some of the memorials may be difficult to access.

In the list below, where the name is blue click to follow the link to a page with a larger photograph and more information. 

Churchyard


 Gravestone Location
Section Row No.
Soldier's Name & Regiment
Date of Death
Photograph
A on FoDCY's map
Percy Stuart Kitson

7th Bn Australian Infantry

3 September 1916
B on FoDCY's map
George Hukin Woodyatt

Royal Marine Light Infantry

6 May 1915
C on FoDCY's map
Walter Jobling

5th/6th Bn Cameronians

8 May 1915
D on FoDCY's map
Rowland Patterson

2nd Bn York & Lancaster

21 March1918
E on FoDCY's map
Arthur Marsh
23 March 1918 

John William Marrow
22 May 1918
F on FoDCY's map
William Henry Watson

13th York & Lancaster

26 September 1918
J on FoDCY's map
Harry Siddall

Royal Fusiliers

26 October 1917
K on FoDCY's Map
Ernest Needham

13th York & Lancaster

2 July 1916
L on FoDCY's map
William Ennis

7th Bn York & Lancaster

23 Sept 1917
M on FoDCY's map
Frank Shaw

10th Bn York & Lancaster 

27 July 1917
P on FoDCY's map
Francis Michael Mullin

13th York& Lancs

11 May 1918
Q on FoDCY's map
Albert Greenhow

Mechanical Transport
Army Service Corps

3 December 1918
N on FoDCY's map
Harold Horbury

Coldstream Guards

27 May 1941
167
Arnold Herbert Camplejohn
 
2nd South Staffordshire Regt

27 September 1918
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Cemetery on Saltersbrook Road

 Gravestone Location
Section Row No.
Soldier's Name & Regiment
Date of Death
Photograph
B.177
Samuel Boyce

13th York & Lancaster Regt

1 July 1916
A.59
Albert Joseph Carr

8th York & Lancaster Regt

1 July 1916
A.20
George Henry Davies

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve

5 July 1915
A 71
Abraham Dobbins

8th York & Lancaster Regt

27 August 1917
B.129
John William Corfield Fowler

23rd Manchester Regt

4 June 1916
B.70
Arthur John Howe

13th York & Lancaster Regt

1 July 1916
B.64
Thomas Murphy

2/5th York & Lancaster Regt

27 November 1917
B 255
Herbert Holmes

13th York & Lancaster Regt

1 July 1916
A.559
Arthur Sutcliffe

Royal Air Force

4 September 1943
A 780
Graham Marsden Jones

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve

14 August 1944
C.273
Harry Wilkinson

Yorkshire Regt 
(Green Howards)

11 August 1944
B 188

Joseph Beardsley

1/5th Y & L

9 October 1917
C 122
George Askin
 
2nd KOYLI

11 August 1918
B 298
Frank Roper
 
Royal Buckinghamshire Hussars

19 April 1917
G 65
Albert Frudd
 
141st Royal Armoured Corps

15 September 1944



BWMP #DRF14

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