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CRASTER WAR MEMORIALS

World War One
World War Two
About the Project

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About the Project

We have sought to explore all the sources open to us in order to cast light on the lives and military context of the men on the Craster memorials. These endeavours have included:

1. Taking advantage of the memories of local residents.

2. Talking, whenever possible, to descendent family members. Unfortunately, this has only been possible in a small number of cases.

3. Visiting local museums, including Bailiffgate, principally for back copies of the Northumberland Gazette, and the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers Museum at Alnwick Castle.

4. Visiting the County Records office at Woodhorn.

5. Purchasing death certificates from local Register Offices.

6. Much of our information has come via the internet:

1. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission was very helpful in providing basic information about the first war dead.

2. The National Archives - Unfortunately 60% of WW1 records were damaged during WW2 and the Craster dead seem to have been amongst those records that were lost. Access to WW2 records is restricted and thus we have not made a great use of the NA.

3. Genealogy sites such as 'Ancestry.com,' and 'FindMyPast'. These sites were absolutely esential for census, births, marriages and deaths records.

4. Wikipedia provided a huge amount of historical background.

5. A wide range of other sites, many of which are listed on this web site.

6. For those men on the memorial who fought in Canadian regiments, the excellent Canadian Government sites have provided attestation papers, some personal information and battalion war diaries.