andyspiller Posted 21 May , 2004 Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Came across this description for this cemetery "on a screen wall are panels bearing the names of casualties buried in four cemeteries in the neighbourhood, whose graves were destroyed by shell fire" How unusual is this as the non-existant cemeteries are named? Regards Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Morgan Posted 21 May , 2004 Share Posted 21 May , 2004 It's not that unusual for non-existent cemeteries to be named in this way. Usually there are Special Memorials, which look like the usual gravestones, but which are usually set apart from the rest of the graves in some way. They commemorate soldiers who previously had known, marked graves which have now been lost, and there's usually a small stone nearby giving details of the lost cemeteries. These stones also have the inscription, "Their Glory Shall Not Be Blotted Out." The phrase was selected by Rudyard Kipling, and these memorials are often called "Kipling Memorials." Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyspiller Posted 21 May , 2004 Author Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Tom Its just that the CWGC register tells us which cemetery each chap was buried in. First time I have come acrross entries like this. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Morgan Posted 21 May , 2004 Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Sorry, Andy, I misunderstood. I thought you were referring to the memorials. I have seen register entries which mention the names of lost burial-places. You can also see lost cemetery details in soldiers' entries in the CWGC online database. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyspiller Posted 21 May , 2004 Author Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Tom Shame the CWGC does not do the same thing for concentration cemeteries like Tyne Cot. I would love to know where Gt uncle Bert was originally buried - all the CWGC will say is "As the majority of the burials in Tyne Cot Cemetery were brought in from the battlefields of Passchendaele and Langemarck, and from a few small burial grounds, it is more than likely, going by the location his grave, Rifleman Spiller was concentrated into Tyne Cot Cemetery". Regards Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Denham Posted 21 May , 2004 Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Andy If you ask CWGC nicely, they will look up the original burial return (if it still exists) and tell you the original burial place - assuming it has been recorded. Where a known grave has subsequently been lost, the original burial place is nearly always mentioned and will be found carved on the 'Alternative Commemoration' headstone or on a nearby block - known as a Duhallow Block. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyspiller Posted 21 May , 2004 Author Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Terry I have written back to Mrs Wilson @ CWGC and lets see what happens. It is just that 16/8/17 is a 'special' day for me as Bert was killed and Harry was taken POW. Family hearsay suggests that although they were in the same Bn they were in different companies. It is all the more poignant as I have the original letter written by the Bn Adj to my Gt-grandmother (dated 16/9/17) with regard to her enquiry about her two "missing" sons. Kind regards Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Miller Posted 21 May , 2004 Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Andy - I'm afraid this is a completely useless posting, but I have to tell you that when I read your original post to the thread, I thought to myself that that kind of memorial seemed familiar. So, I spent a few moments thinking about it, and remembered where I'd been and seen that sort of thing. Then it dawned on me that I had actually seen it in London Cem itself! Ooops. At the time, I was more concerned with Telegraph Hill which was on the other side of the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyspiller Posted 21 May , 2004 Author Share Posted 21 May , 2004 Hi Jon I'm sorry - it is is not totally useless - you have taken time to read the thread and have made a considered reply. As you may have gathered I have not come across this kind of sub-indexing on the CWGC site before and would also like to get more info from them on my own great-uncle. Thanks for the support! Kind regards Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyspiller Posted 26 May , 2004 Author Share Posted 26 May , 2004 Pals To close this one off, I have rec'd a reply from CWGC about Tyne Cot. "Dear Mr Spiller I regret that the supporting documents relating to our First World War records are not complete and in the case of Tyne Cot Cemetery we have no records of any previous places of burial. " Oh well... Regards Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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