Higham War Memorial

St John the Evangelist Churchyard, Higham Hall Road, Higham, Burnley, Lancashire, BB12 9EU

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Overview

First World War memorial, unveiled 7 May 1921, with Second World War additions. Read the official list entry to find out more.

Heritage Category:: Listed Building
Grade:: II
List Entry Number:: 1452686
Date first listed:: 09-Jan-2018
List Entry Name:: Higham War Memorial
Statutory Address:: St John the Evangelist Churchyard, Higham Hall Road, Higham, Burnley, Lancashire, BB12 9EU

User submitted image — Uploaded by crispin edwards This photo may not represent the current condition of the site
View all

Location

Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.

There is a problem

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.

What is the National Heritage List for England?

The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.

The list includes:

🏠 Buildings
🏰 Scheduled monuments
🌳 Parks and gardens
⚔️ Battlefields
⚓ Shipwrecks

Find out more about listing

Historic England Archive

Search over 1 million photographs and drawings from the 1850s to the present day using our images archive.

Find Photos

Official list entry

Heritage Category:: Listed Building
Grade:: II
List Entry Number:: 1452686
Date first listed:: 09-Jan-2018
List Entry Name:: Higham War Memorial
Statutory Address 1:: St John the Evangelist Churchyard, Higham Hall Road, Higham, Burnley, Lancashire, BB12 9EU

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

Location

Statutory Address:: St John the Evangelist Churchyard, Higham Hall Road, Higham, Burnley, Lancashire, BB12 9EU

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

County:: Lancashire
District:: Pendle (District Authority)
Parish:: Higham-with-West Close Booth
National Grid Reference:: SD8102836588

Summary

First World War memorial, unveiled 7 May 1921, with Second World War additions.

Reasons for Designation

Higham War Memorial, which is situated in St John the Evangelist’s churchyard, 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.

Architectural interest:

* an elegant cross fleurée memorial with finely carved foliate detail.

Group value:

* with the Grade II-listed buildings the Parish Church of St John the Evangelist and the School Adjacent to St John’s Church.

History

The aftermath of the First World War saw the biggest single wave of public commemoration ever with tens of thousands of memorials erected across England. This was the result of both the huge impact on communities of the loss of three quarters of a million British lives, and also the official policy of not repatriating the dead which meant that the memorials provided the main focus of the grief felt at this great loss.

One such memorial was raised at Higham as a permanent testament to the sacrifice made by the nine members of the local community who lost their lives in the First World War. It was unveiled on 7 May 1921 by Lieutenant- Colonel G G H Bolton with the dedication undertaken by Dr Henn, Lord Bishop of Burnley.

Following the Second World War, the names of the five casualties and the dates of that conflict were added to the memorial.

Details

First World War memorial, 1921, with Second World War additions.

DESCRIPTION: Higham War Memorial is located in the churchyard to the south of the Grade II-listed Parish Church of St John the Evangelist. It is also in close proximity to the Grade II-listed building, School Adjacent to St John’s Church.

It is of Bolton Abbey stone and takes the form of a tall cross fleurée with a tapering shaft, which rises from a three-stepped base. Carved in relief to the south face of the cross and upper part of the shaft is an interlacing foliate design. All lettering is incised.

The principal inscription is to the south face of the upper step of the base and reads, IN PROUD AND LOVING MEMORY OF/ THE MEN FROM THIS VILLAGE WHO/ GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE/ GREAT WAR. 1914 – 1919. The nine names of those who died are recorded below across the four faces of the middle step of the base. A second inscription is inscribed to the south face of the bottom step and reads, MAKE THEM TO BE NUMBERED WITH THY SAINTS IN GLORY EVERLASTING.

The Second World War dedication is to the south face of the shaft, below the carved decoration, and reads, 1939 – 1945/ (5 NAMES).

The whole surmounts a raised stone platform; abutting the lower step of the base to the east and west sides are small, square stone posts.

Sources

Websites
War memorials Online, accessed 21 November 2017 from https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/229214/
War Memorials Register, accessed 21 November 2017 from http://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/3430
Other
‘Higham’s War Memorial’, Nelson Leader, (13 May 1921), pp8
‘The Higham War Memorial’, Nelson Leader, (20 May 1921), pp3

Legal

This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.