Today, Blaina First World War Research Group visited Saint Peters Church in Blaina to investigate and record war memorials inside the church. Saint Peters Church is a modern, utilitarian building devoid of many architectural features that are normally associated with Anglican churches. It was built around 1970 to replace a rather more grander structure, which was opened on 12th July 1857; this building became unsafe due to ground subsidence caused by underground coal workings and was demolished to make way for the current church building. We expected only to find one war memorial within the church, which was dedicated to the memory of men of Saint Peters Church congregation who were killed in the First World War. Upon our arrival at the church, a second memorial turned up unexpectedly. This second memorial plaque had apparently been in storage for a number of years and had something of an unusual touring history. The second memorial was dedicated to the memory of men of the locality who were killed in the First World War and contained a list of a larger number of names, many duplicated on the first memorial plaque. We understand that this second memorial had originally been displayed at the old Saint Peters Church but had been removed for safe keeping after the building was closed before its demolition. This second memorial had been kept and displayed at Ebenezer Chapel, Westside, Blaina until at least 2002 but its whereabouts were not known since the subsequent closure and conversion of Ebenezer to a residential dwelling. Fortunately, the second memorial is safe and for now, at least temporarily, is back at Saint Peters Church although it has yet to be fixed to the wall and displayed. Another possibility would be to have the memorial moved to Blaina Heritage Museum. This story only goes to underline the vulnerability of our First World War heritage and the need for this project.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 22:08:37 +0000
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