Fence Houses War Memorial including wall, piers and railings

Summary

First World War memorial, 1922, with later additions for the Second World War.

Reasons for Designation

Fence Houses War Memorial, which stands on South Crescent, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as an eloquent witness to the tragic impact of world events on this local community, and the sacrifice it has made in the conflicts of the C20;
* Architectural interest: an unusual yet accomplished and well-executed war memorial in the form of a Classical sarcophagus.

History

Fence Houses War Memorial was unveiled at an ecumenical service on 23 September 1922 by Lord Joicey and dedicated by Reverence AF Gadd, Rector of Burnmoor. It commemorates those local servicemen who died in the First World War and was adapted to mark Second World War losses after that conflict. Some 1,500 men from the district served during the First World War, of whom c125 died.

The memorial cost £480 and the plot of land was given by Lambton and Hetton Collieries. It was designed by Cowe and Lawson of Chester le Street and built by SE Smith of Ropery Lane, Chester le Street. The memorial was repaired in 2003 by Abbey Stonecraft.

Details

The memorial stands at the roadside on South Crescent. It takes the form of a Classical sarcophagus, built of Greenlane freestone. The monument, rectangular on plan, has an entablature with a frieze of triglyphs and metopes, above which is a band of Greek key ornament and corner acroteria. Surmounting this is a corniced sepulchral block on which is carved LEST WE FORGET.

To the front, a pedimented niche decorated with rosettes and spiral designs carved in low relief houses a plaque of pink Balmoral marble. On that the principal dedicatory inscription, incised and gilded, reads IN HONOUR/ OF ALL THOSE GALLANT MEN OF/ FENCE HOUSES/ AND DISTRICT/ WHO GAVE UP THEIR LIVES/ IN THE GREAT WARS/ 1914 – 1918/ 1939 – 1945.

Two small rectangular plaques have been added to the front face of the memorial. That to the left is ornamented with a depiction of Great Britain and the inscription THIS PLAQUE HONOURS/ BRITISH ARMED FORCES/ KILLED IN ACTION/ SERVING THIS NATION/ 1945 – PRESENT DAY/ “THEY LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES/ IN THE DEFENCE OF THIS KINGDOM.” That to the right is ornamented with a cross and reads THE PEOPLE OF FENCE HOUSES/ WISH TO EMBRACE/ BRITISH ARMED FORCES/ WHO LOST THEIR LIVES/ 1945 – PRESENT DAY/ IN THE TRIBUTES AND THOUGHTS/ EXPRESSED ON THIS MEMORIAL.

The memorial is raised on a single step in a paved area, with a low stone wall to the rear abutting to either side. The far ends of this wall end in stone piers with pyramidal caps, from which railings, on a low stone kerb, curve around to stone piers with plain square caps at the pavement edge. The wall, piers and railings contribute to the special interest of the war memorial and are included in the listing. The pavement is excluded from the listing.

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, 23 November 2017.

Sources

Websites
North East War Memorials Project, accessed 21/06/2016 from http://www.newmp.org.uk/detail.php?contentId=9438
War Memorials Register, accessed 16 June 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/72344
War Memorials Online, accessed 23 November 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/253812

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