Thurnscoe War Memorial

Summary

First World War memorial, 1920, with later additions.

Reasons for Designation

Thurnscoe War Memorial, situated in Thurnscoe Park, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic Interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on the local community, and the sacrifice it made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Sculptural interest: by a prominent regional company, Messrs Tyas and Guest (of Swinton), responsible for other listed war memorials.

History

Thurnscoe War Memorial was designed by Captain M Tyas and executed by Messrs Tyas and Guest of Swinton at a cost of £750, the bulk of which sum was raised by the Hickleton Main Colliery and its workmen. The memorial was unveiled on 2 October 1920 by Mrs Thornley-Taylor in the presence of Mr GH Hirst MP, commemorating 76 local servicemen who died during the First World War.

A large metal plaque depicting an angel was added to the front face of the memorial, covering the original surface on which names had been inscribed. Additional new plaques were added in 2006 and 2007. In 2008, conservation and repairs were funded by War Memorials Trust.

The firm of Messrs Tyas and Guest were responsible for a number of war memorials, including the Grade II-listed monuments at Stainforth and Coronation Park, Conisburgh, both of which feature similar statues of soldiers raised on tall, square, columns.

Details

The memorial stands in Thurnscoe Park. It comprises a statue of an infantryman in uniform holding his rifle, standing on guard. The figure is elevated on the limestone capital, decorated with dentiles, of a Classical pillar in sandstone, which rises from a square limestone plinth. The plinth is surmounted by recumbent fasces and stands on a three-stepped square base.

The front face of the capital is incised THE/ GREAT/ WAR framed by 1914 1918. On the front face of the pillar is a brass plaque depicting the figure of an angel standing on an outcrop of rock, holding a sword in one hand and an upraised laurel wreath in the other. The wings and the sword are outlined in white enamel and the laurel wreath in green; the rest of the figure is outlined in black. A large plaque on another face of the pillar records the names of those who fell in the First World War.

The inscription on a bronze plaque on the front face of the plinth reads ERECTED/ BY PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION/ TO THE GLORIOUS MEMORY/ AND IN RECOGNITION OF/ THE SUPREME SACRIFICE/ MADE BY THE ABOVE NAMED/ PERSONS OF THIS PARISH. Plaques on the other faces of the plinth record additional names and dedications to both the Second World War and the Falklands Island conflict.

Originally the memorial was surrounded by a low kerb with eight low pillars carrying an enclosing chain. These have been replaced with four low corner walls made of brick. Behind the memorial, at the edge of the surrounding path, a new stone commemorating the centenary of the start of the First World War has been laid in front of a square enclosure, designed for the display of Royal British Legion crosses and poppies. The brick walls and the new, separate, stone with enclosure, are not of special interest.

This List entry has been amended to add sources for War Memorials Online and the War Memorials Register. These sources were not used in the compilation of this List entry but are added here as a guide for further reading, 31 January 2017.

Sources

Websites
War Memorials Trust, Grants Showcase - Thurnscoe, accessed 15/10/2015 from http://www.warmemorials.org/search-grants/?gID=557
Barnsley War Memorials, accessed 15/10/2015 from http://barnsleywarmemorials.weebly.com/thurnscoe.html
War Memorials Register, accessed 31 January 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/28132
War Memorials Online, accessed 31 January 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/96084

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