News Archive

Steve Williams leads the ceremony to remember the Chorley Pals who went over the top exactly 94 years ago.

As the Town Hall clock struck 7.30am, a wreath was laid at the base of the Chorley Pals Memorial to remember the men from Chorley who went over the top at the start of the Battle of the Somme exactly 94 years ago.

Chorley Pals Memorial Secretary Steve Williams led a short ceremony attended by people from Chorley, relatives of the Chorley Pals and representatives of the Queen’s Lancashire Regiment, where the Last Post was sounded and prayers said.

The statue was erected in February this year as a permanent memorial to the 222 soldiers of the Chorley Pals – Y Company, 11th (Service) Battalion East Lancashire Regiment who served during World War One.

More pictures of the ceremony can be found on our new Flickr page.

The landscaping around the Chorley Pals Memorial is now complete

Chorley Council recently landscaped the area around the Pals memorial on the Flat Iron in the town.

Turf has been laid and flowers planted around the base of the statue, adding a splash of colour to Chorley’s new landmark.

The six Trustees behind the Chorley Pals Memorial campaign have been short-listed for a ‘Chorley Smile’ award under the ‘Pride in your Neighbourhood’ category.

In addition, Pals Co-Founder & Secretary Steve Williams has been short-listed for the Mayor’s ‘Citizen of the Year Award’.

The awards are presented annually by Chorley Council and the results will be announced at a ceremony to be held in Astley Park in Chorley on Sunday, 4th July.

Lindsay Hoyle

Chairman & Co-Founder of the Chorley Pals Memorial, Lindsay Hoyle MP, has been elected Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons.

The role is for the term of the Parliament and also involves him being Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee.

Lindsay will be in the Speaker’s Chair during the forthcoming Budget debate on Thursday, 22nd June.

Less than two months after unveiling a statue to the Chorley Pals, the charity behind the memorial have been awarded funding for a major remembrance project in the town. The Chorley Pals Memorial, founded in 2007 by the town’s MP, Lindsay Hoyle, and local historian and author, Steve Williams, have been awarded £52,500 from the Heritage Lottery Fund to pay for the development stage of the “Chorley Remembers” project.

The Memorial Arch at the entrance to Astley Park

A major feature of the two-year project will be researching and placing the names of the fallen from Chorley onto the town’s Cenotaph in Astley Park. Once initial research has been completed, an application will be made for a further £250,000 of funding to pay for the work, as well as work on preserving the 1914 -1918 Memorial Arch at the entrance to the park, improving access and interpretation around the Chorley Pals memorial site and up-grading facilities at Astley Hall where the small memorial room only features the First World War.

Other works will include encouraging individuals and groups to research their military history, stage workshops and exhibitions, and provide an education / teaching resource pack for the 56 primary and secondary schools in the town; a heritage trail, a ‘drop-in’ desk at the main library and a dedicated website. There are plans to have a Festival of Remembrance in the town during November 2011, publish a book about the men and women from the town who died in conflicts – ranging from the Boer War in Victorian times to Afghanistan today, as well as recording people’s memories on video and audio formats.

The Cenotaph in Astley Park

The official launch of the project will be in May, after the General Election. In the meantime, Project Co-ordinator Steve Williams will begin work setting up the infrastructure for the project including a working group that will include local organisations and individuals key to the project’s success. Chorley Council, who manage and maintain many of the remembrance related assets in the town, are fully supportive of the project, as are staff from Chorley Library, local teachers and volunteers from the Chorley branch of the Lancashire Family History Society, the British Legion and Chorley Ex-Services Association.

The Memorial Room in Astley Hall

Commenting on the award, Lindsay Hoyle said “I said at the Pals Memorial unveiling in February that our work will continue and we are pleased to keep that promise. The Pals statue created so much interest in the town and I know this new project will capitalise on that interest and put Chorley to the forefront in understanding and preserving its heritage”.

Echoing those sentiments, Steve Williams said “We want more people in the town, young and old, to have a greater understanding what local men and women, and their families, went through in the numerous conflicts over the years. During the last three years Chorley people have supported the Pals memorial and this new heritage project will enable them to find out more and, importantly, encourage them to get involved in learning about the town’s social and military history”.

Details can be found on a new website, www.chorleyremembers.org.uk, which will go on-line next week.

Chorley Pals Memorial Secretary and Co-Founder Steve Williams has been acknowledged as a ‘Community Hero’ by Prime Minster, Gordon Brown.

Left to right : Sarah Brown, Stephanie Driver from Lindsay Hoyle’s Parliamentary Office, Raymond Smith, Steve Williams, Pam Williams and Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.

The Brindle-based First World War historian and author was invited to 10 Downing Street recently. He and his wife, Pam, spent time in the Prime Minister’s residence along with fifty other specially invited guests from across the country – all there because of their charity and community work.

Steve Williams said “I was absolutely shocked and delighted to be invited – my wife and I had a fabulous time”.

Whilst at No. 10, Steve invited the Prime Minister to visit Chorley and see the memorial for himself. Commenting on the invitation, Steve said “Just like a politician – he didn’t say ‘yes’, but he didn’t say ‘no’ and I hope he takes up the invitation, perhaps when he is on the election trail”.

Whilst in London they were entertained at the House of Lords by Lord Hoyle, the father of Lindsay Hoyle, the Member of Parliament for Chorley.  Of the invitation, Lindsay Hoyle said “Steve deserves to be recognised for what he does within the community and for all his hard work with the Chorley Pals Memorial over the last three years”.

Following on from the unveiling of the Chorley Pals Memorial in the town, more information and photographs are emerging of the men on the memorial.

Chorley FC 1913-14. Arthur is seated third from the right (click to enlarge)

Eighty one year old Joyce Brailsford from Leyland has supplied numerous photographs of her father, Arthur Bretherton, who also played for Chorley F.C. before joining up in 1914.

He  was born in Eccleston in 1890 to his parents Henry and Elizabeth (nee Leach); they lived on The Green in Eccleston and had six children.

Arthur’s original Chorley Pals number is not recorded, possibly due to him having been transferred to 31st Division Cyclist Company on the 2nd October 1915; he went to Egypt on the 11th December1915 and duly qualified for the 1914-15 Star. However, he was transferred back to the Pals on the 22nd May 1916 as Private 27263.

Arthur Bretherton

After being wounded at Serre on the 1st July 1916, he was posted to the Labour Corps as Private 196899 and left the Army at Nottingham on the 14th March 1919.

Arthur married Mary Ball at St. Mary The Virgin Church in Eccleston in 1923.

Commenting on the find, Pals Memorial Secretary Steve Williams said “It just goes to show how the men who formed the Chorley Pals were at the heart of the town and community”.

Seeking more information about the Pals, Steve has appealed once again for relatives of Chorley Pals to get in touch – he can be contacted on 01254 854298 or via our Contact Us page.

The new Chorley Pals Memorial

Many people have been viewing Chorley’s new landmark this week, admiring the statue and looking at the 222 names of the Pals engraved on the plinth.

We’ve had many kind messages and compliments about the new statue since it was unveiled last Sunday via our website, through messages left on our official Facebook page and through coverage in the local and national media.

Thank you once again to all those who helped us to get the memorial to the Chorley Pals built, and for all of your kind support… we’re glad you like it!

Two days after turning out to witness the unveiling of the Chorley Pals Memorial, the good people of the town turned out again to pay their respects today (Tuesday) to a local soldier killed in Afghanistan.

WO2 Markland’s coffin is carried into St. George’s Church

Thirty-six year old Warrant Officer David Markland from Euxton near Chorley was killed on the 8th February whilst defusing an IED (Improvised Explosive Device). His funeral was held at St. George’s Church, where just a week ago the Chorley Pals were commemorated in a service attended by the Mayor, Cllr. Iris Smith and the town’s MP, Lindsay Hoyle – both were at the funeral today.

A card on a floral tribute left on the Chorley Pals Memorial after the funeral

After the funeral a member of the public placed a floral tribute to WO2 Markland on the Chorley Pals Memorial, joining wreaths of red poppies laid for the Chorley Pals.

The Chorley Pals Memorial charity has applied for funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund for the names of the fallen from the town in all conflicts to go on to the Cenotaph in Astley Park. A decision is expected by the 16th March and the project will be known as “Chorley Remembers”.

“At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them”.

Steve Williams
Secretary, Chorley Pals Memorial

Over 1000 people attended the ceremony in Chorley town centre today to witness Chorley’s MP Lindsay Hoyle and Sister Francis Calberbank, whose father served in the Chorley Pals, unveil the new memorial to remember the 222 soldiers of the Chorley Pals – Y Company, 11th (Service) Battalion East Lancashire Regiment who left the town in February 1915 to fight in World War One.

The new Chorley Pals Memorial

The unveiling was preceded by a parade through the town headed by a colour party and soldiers of the 1st Battalion, Duke of Lancaster‟s Regiment. They were joined by members of the local Territorial Army detachment as well as Army, Sea and Air Cadets, colours and representatives of the Royal British Legion, the Chorley & District Ex-Services Association, the Royal Air Force Association and members of the Duke of Lancaster‟s Regimental Association.

Sister Francis Calderbank and Lindsay Hoyle unveil the new memorial

Following the unveiling, there was a Service of Dedication and Act of Remembrance conducted by Rev. T.D. Wilby (St. George‟s Church), Fr. F. Marsden (St. Mary‟s RC Church) and Rev. A. Mashiter (Chorley Superintendent Methodist Minister). The ceremony ended with The Last Post, a minutes silence and the National Anthem.

The Chorley Pals Memorial Committee would sincerely like to thank the people of Chorley, the financial donors and everyone who has helped in any way over the past 3 years to make this permanent memorial to the soldiers from Chorley who went to war 95 years ago, many of whom did not return, possible.

The unveiling of the memorial to the Chorley Pals is taking place today on the Flat Iron on Union Street in Chorley by Lindsay Hoyle MP at 2.00 p.m.

A parade, led by the band and soldiers of the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, will leave the T.A. Centre on Devonshire Road at 1.40 p.m. and retrace part of the route the original Chorley Pals marched when leaving the town on the 23rd February 1915.

Before the ceremony, members of the Manchester Regiment 1914-1918 will parade in front of the memorial dressed in uniform & kit from the period, whilst local Cadets will hand out free programmes. The advice from the organisers and Police is to get there early; car parking in the town is free on Sunday.

Ceremony Details:

Steve Williams watches as the statue is lowered onto the plinth

A small crowed gathered on Union Street in Chorley yesterday afternoon (Thursday) to watch the Pals statue lowered onto its plinth in readiness for the official unveiling ceremony on Sunday.

Early in the day, Chorley Pals Memorial Chairman & Co-Founder, Lindsay Hoyle MP was on hand to formally accept the statue.

Fellow Co-Founder & Trustee, Steve Williams was invited to witness the statue being eased into position from the top of the plinth, courtesy of contractors Eric Wright Civil Engineering Ltd.

WW2 Veteran Stan Dickinson with the new statue

Normandy Veteran and Secretary of the Chorley & District Ex-Services Association, Stan Dickinson, was on hand to see the Chorley Pals statue arrive at its new home on the town’s marketplace on Thursday morning.

A regular visitor to the First and Second World War battlefields in France and Belgium, Stan laid a wreath at the Chorley Pals plaque in the trenches on the Somme during 2008.

His reaction to seeing the statue – “Stunning!”.

A foundry worker completing work on the statue

The new Chorley Pals statue was completed this afternoon and will be transported from Morris Singer Art Founders in Braintree, Essex to Chorley tomorrow.

When it arrives at the work site in Chorley, it will be affixed to the top of the plinth, work on which was completed last week.

The completed memorial will be unveiled during a ceremony this Sunday afternoon at 2.00 p.m on the Flat Iron in Chorley – we hope to see you there.

The finished plinth

Specialist stonemasons have completed work on the memorial plinth and it now awaits the statue being delivered.

Trustees Steve Williams and John Garwood visited Morris Singer Art Founders in Essex on Thursday (18th) to view progress of the eight foot high statue. There is some work to be done attaching the rifle, bayonet and helmet but the foundry are confident that everything will be ready for delivery to Chorley on Wednesday.

View Chorley Pals Memorial Parade Route in a larger map

Details of the unveiling ceremony and parade have been finalised. The ceremony will start at 2.00 p.m. with the unveiling being carried out by the town’s MP, Lindsay Hoyle.

A parade, led by the band and soldiers of the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, will leave the T.A. Centre on Devonshire Road at 1.40 p.m. and retrace part of the route the original Chorley Pals marched when leaving the town on the 23rd February 1915.

Chorley Council have agreed to cordon off half the Flat Iron car park from Saturday evening. Before the ceremony, members of the Manchester Regiment 1914-1918 will parade in front of the memorial dressed in uniform & kit from the period, whilst local Cadets will hand out free programmes.

The advice from the organisers and Police is to get there early; car parking in the town is free on Sunday.

St George's Church c. 1914

A service in St. George’s Church in the town on Tuesday, 23rd February will commemorate the embarkation of the Chorley Pals back in 1915.

The church is next to Chapel Street where the Pals marched to the railway station on the morning of the 23rd February 1915, then off to training in Caernarvon and ultimately to war.

The service starts at 11.30 a.m. and all are welcome to attend.

Linda Langford with the new display at Chorley Library

A display about the Chorley Pals has been erected in the entrance to Chorley Library, showing the history of the unit as well as progress of the memorial.

Chorley Pals Secretary, local WW1 historian & author Steve Williams, worked with Linda Langford, the Community History Manager at Chorley Library, on the project. It will there for five weeks until Friday, 19th March and it will be updated on a regular basis as the memorial project progresses.

The Library is also staging two illustrated talks. At 7.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 23rd February there will be a talk entitled “The history of the Chorley Pals” followed on Tuesday, 16th March with a talk “The Chorley Pals Memorial – from idea to unveiling” starting at 2.00 p.m.. Tickets are free, and are available from the Library by telephoning 01257 277222.

The stones for the plinth have arrived in Chorley

Work gathers pace on the Chorley Pals Memorial with the arrival of the sections for the plinth.

The stone bases for the statue arrived in Chorley on Monday from the quarry in Portland in Dorset, along with the engraved panels carrying the names of the 225 men from the town who made up the First World One unit. The eight panels were last seen by Pals Trustees and local World War One historians, Steve Williams and John Garwood, over two weeks ago. The pair had travelled to northern France to view the work at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission facility in Arras, where the completed panels were carefully wrapped ready for their journey to the site on Union Street.

The stonework will now be fitted around the plinth by specialist stonemasons – ready for the statue, which is due in Chorley in two weeks time.

The newly-erected banner at the construction site in Chorley

Banners advising shoppers and passing motorists when the memorial will be unveiled have been erected on the site in Chorley.

It is part of the publicity campaign leading up to the official unveiling on Sunday, 28th February.

Granada News broadcast a report on the new memorial on this evening’s Granada Reports.

Reporter Gamal Fahnbulleh interviewed Chorley Pals Memorial Secretary and co-founder Steve Williams about the new statue and his recent trip to France. It also featured footage of the plinth being engraved at the Commonwealth War Grave Commission’s workshop in Arras.

The report is also featured on the Granada website, and can be viewed here: http://www.itv.com/granada/chorley-pals-memorial06346/

The completed panels in Arras awaiting shipment to Chorley

Contractors, Eric Wright Civil Engineering Ltd., are on schedule with work on the Union Street site. Despite the rain, they have laid the foundations and will commence making the seven foot plinth on Thursday, 28th January.

Pals Plinth 27th January 2010

Engraving work on the eight stone panels that will form the outside of the plinth has been completed by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in Arras; the panels are due to be shipped to Chorley next Thursday (4th February).

Our new Facebook page

Chorley Pals Memorial is now on the popular social networking site Facebook.

Our page features all of the latest news, videos, photos and forthcoming events related to the appeal. To visit our page and become a “Fan”, simply click on the “Find us on Facebook!” button under the menu.

As well as being on Facebook, we’re also on Twitter and YouTube, all of which we update regularly to keep people informed of the progress of the new statue due to be unveiled at the end of February.

A BBC cameraman filming the statue in May 2009

Chorley Pals Memorial Co-Founder, Steve Williams is to do a video diary for Granada Television in the run up to the memorial being unveiled at the end of February.

The move follows the sudden and unexpected decision by BBC Television’s ‘Inside Out’ programme in the North West not to cover the project. BBC staff had planned to join Pals Trustees as they travelled to France this week to view the memorial panels being engraved, and to the foundry in Essex in early February when the statue is cast.

Work had already started by the BBC back in May 2009, filming the statue being created by Sculptor Peter Hodgkinson at his studio in Preston. Whilst Officials at the BBC in Manchester recognised that the memorial project was unique, they cited “budget restraints” and “lack of time in their production schedules” as their reasons to pull out at this late stage.

However, Granada TV News in Manchester have been quick to step in and have loaned Trustees a video camera. Shots of the memorial being engraved in France over the next few days should be aired during ‘Granada Reports’ bulletins early next week.

An early example of the "correct" Chorley crest

Concern over the motto on the badge to go on the plinth of the Chorley Pals Memorial was voiced in the local press recently.

Dating back to c1380, the original Chorley family shield did not have a scroll, so where the original “Beware” motto came from is not known but it certainly was there when the town’s coat of arms came into being on the 3rd July 1882. The change to “Be Aware” occurred in 1988 and was done by the then newly appointed Chief Executive, Geoff Davies, who apparently took it upon himself to change the motto without public consultation – his recommendation was accepted by the full Council.

As for the Chorley Pals Memorial, it will be historically correct and have the ‘old’ motto of “Beware” on it.

Chorley Pals Memorial Secretary, Steve Williams, said “It was brought to our attention back in November 2009 and Trustees immediately agreed to have a new logo done for the stonework on the memorial. We all felt that that the Pals should have the town’s coat of arms that they would have recognised back in 1914″. That work has cost the charity around a £1,000 as the work on the Pals barbed wire logo, including the Chorley coat of arms, had to be recreated specially for the stone carving machines.

The result should be there for all to see when the memorial is unveiled on Sunday, 28th February.

The site of the new memorial to the Chorley Pals

Work is scheduled to start on the site of the memorial on Union Street in Chorley on Wednesday, 20th January.

Contractors, Preston based Eric Wright Civil Engineering Ltd. will secure the site and begin work on the foundations for the plinth.

Chorley MP Lindsay Hoyle will be unveiling the new memorial

Chorley’s Member of Parliament, Lindsay Hoyle is set to officially unveil the memorial at a ceremony on Sunday, 28th February.

Trustees of the Chorley Pals Memorial voted unanimously to invite him to do the honours. Commenting on the decision, Pals Memorial Trustee & Secretary, Steve Williams, said “It is only right that our Chairman and the man heavily involved from the beginning should unveil the statue – Lindsay has done so much for this project and for the town over the years“.

Lindsay Hoyle presents John Garwood with a framed copy of the 'Chorley Pals' book cover, 4th December 2009

Co-author of a new book about the Chorley Pals, WW1 historian John Garwood was presented with a framed copy of the book cover by Chorley Pals Memorial Chairman, Lindsay Hoyle MP recently.

Since its launch on the 1st July 2009 over 300 copies of the 140 page book have been sold, adding to the appeal fund.

Trustees will be visiting Arras to see the progress of the plinth for the statue

Two Trustees, WW1 historians and authors Steve Williams and John Garwood are heading off to Arras in northern France on the 21st January.

They will visit the Commonwealth War Graves Commission office and manufacturing facility at Beaurains, near Arras and will see the 225 names of the Chorley Pals being engraved onto panels of the memorial.

Whilst in France, they plan to visit the Somme battlefield and leave a wreath at the Chorley Pals memorial plaque in the trenches at Serre.

The project is moving ever closer to completion with the appointment of local civil engineering company, Eric Wright Civil Engineering Ltd., to be the managing contractor.

The Preston based company will be responsible for the plinth design, groundworks, construction and, importantly, placing the finished statue on to the plinth. The company have experience of similar projects, having erected the statues of Manchester United heroes Denis Law, Bobby Charlton and George Best outside the famous Old Trafford ground in May 2008.

Pals Trustees John Garwood and Steve Williams (centre left) with Commonwealth War Graves Commission officials Richard Kellaway CBE and Alan Meale MP (right holding book).

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) have agreed to supply the Portland limestone for the memorial as well as engrave the 222 names onto the plinth.

The stone will quarried in England and sent to the CWGC facility at Arras in northern France to have the names engraved on the specially designed panels.

The deal was set up by the charity’s Chairman, Chorley M.P. Lindsay Hoyle, and finalised by Secretary Steve Williams at a meeting with CWGC officials in Chorley at the end of July.

BBC Television are to make a short documentary about the Chorley Pals Memorial project.

It is scheduled to be aired in the North West of England on Monday, March 1st 2010 and is being made by the ‘Inside Out’ team who are based in Manchester. They have already filmed the statue at the premises of Preston based sculptor, Peter Hodgkinson, and hope to be on hand when it comes out of the foundry in January next year. In addition, they intend to film the names being engraved onto the plinth and will be at the unveiling in Chorley on the 23rd February.

You can now keep up to date with the latest news from the Chorley Pals Memorial Appeal on Twitter.

Follow us by going to http://twitter.com/ChorleyPals.

Authors Steve Williams and John Garwood at the launch of their new book

Over forty people attended the launch of the new book about the Chorley Pals at Chorley Library on the 1st July – 93 years on from when the Pals went over the top at the start of the Battle of the Somme.

Authors Steve Williams and John Garwood were joined by a number of relatives of Chorley Pals, staying to pose for a photograph in front of a display about the Pals during the Great War. It will stay in the Library for the next couple of weeks giving people the opportunity to learn more about their local Pals Company.

Sales on the book on the day raised over £400 for the appeal, which will go to pay the original Pals names to be engraved on the plinth.

Prior to the launch the authors were on BBC Radio Lancashire’s Breakfast Show, being interviewed by Presenter Tony Livesey.

The Authors with relatives of the Chorley Pals at Chorley Library

How To Order The Book

Priced at just £12.95, copies can be purchased from any branch of Chorley Building Society and can also be purchased from Lindsay Hoyle’s Constituency Office at 35 – 39 Market Street in Chorley, direct from the Chorley Pals Memorial by calling 01254 854298 or sending a cheque for £15.95 made payable to “Chorley Pals Memorial Fund” to 42 Smithy Close, Brindle, Chorley, PR6 8NW.

The 1st of July has been chosen by two Chorley based historians and authors to launch a book on the First World War.

Steve Williams and John Garwood with the new "Chorley Pals" book

That was the day, 93 years ago, that the Chorley Pals went over the top at the start of the Battle of the Somme – one of the costliest days, in terms of casualties, in the history of the British Army. Steve Williams and John Garwood are both Trustees of the Chorley Pals Memorial and their new book, about their local Pals Company, is part of a fundraiser to pay for the names of the original 223 men to go on the plinth of a statue, scheduled to be unveiled in the town next February.

The book has 160 pages and over 300 photographs and covers the history of the Chorley Pals from their formation in September 1914 right through the Great War. There are eye-witness accounts of the attack on the 1st July 1916, maps, diaries and a complete breakdown of everyman who served in the Company – one of four units who eventually made up the 11th (Service) Battalion (Accrington), the East Lancashire Regiment – known collectively as “The Accrington Pals”.

The launch will take place at Chorley Central Library from 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday, 1st July and the authors will be on hand to sign copies of their book until 1.30 p.m. There will also a small exhibition about the Chorley Pals, which will then be on display in the Community History section in the Library for a week.

The front cover of the new book

Author Steve Williams, who is also Secretary & Co-Founder of the Chorley Pals Memorial says “The new book carries on from the excellent work done by John Garwood, over the years. He first wrote a short history about the Chorley Pals back in 1988, up-dating it in 1992. Since then the Internet has helped with research as well as more information coming from a variety of sources, including families of the original Pals. The interest in the First World War and the Pals has never been so great”.

Lindsay Hoyle, the town’s M.P. and Co-Founder of the Chorley Pals Memorial Appeal says “Steve and John have worked hard on this new book and I ask the people of Chorley to support them and the appeal by buying a copy”.

The authors acknowledge the help from the Community History section at Chorley Library and John Garwood said “We are regular visitors to the Library doing research so it was the logical place to launch to the book”.

Funding has come from the National Lottery ‘Awards for All’, with all the proceeds from the sale of the book going to the appeal.

How To Order

Priced at just £12.95, copies can be purchased on the day in the Library, whilst the book launch and exhibition being free to everyone. After the launch, the book will be on sale from any branch of Chorley Building Society and can also be purchased from Lindsay Hoyle’s Constituency Office at 35 – 39 Market Street in Chorley, direct from the Chorley Pals Memorial by calling 01254 854298 or sending a cheque for £15.95 made payable to “Chorley Pals Memorial Fund” to 42 Smithy Close, Brindle, Chorley, PR6 8NW.

The Chorley Pals Memorial have today launched a new and improved website.

The new site includes an updated appearance, search facility, interactive War Graves map and some clever “behind the scenes” technology that allows the site to be expanded and updated more easily.

In the coming weeks, names, photographs and details of every Chorley Pal will be added to the site… watch this space!

Trustees of the Chorley Pals Memorial have elected to site the memorial statue on the ‘Flat Iron’ in Chorley.

It followed a month long consultation with local people which closed at the end of May. Views on four sites were sought, with the ‘Flat Iron’ and outside Booth’s Supermarket being supported by 70% of respondents, the Square outside the Magistrates Court by 19%, whilst the junction of Market Street and St. Thomas’s Road received just 11%.

The Pals parading on the Flat Iron, 1914

The overwhelming choice of respondents mirrors the views of Trustees, who always felt that the Flat Iron was the rightful ‘home’ for the memorial. The Pals paraded there each Sunday from September 1914 through to February 1915, before going off to worship in local churches. The Chorley soldiers were regularly inspected on the Flat Iron in late 1914 and early 1915, as well as on the 31st July 1915 when they returned to the town from training at Caernarvon and Cannock Chase. Importantly, the Flat Iron was the first choice of most of the Pals relatives still living in the town.

Secretary and Co-Founder of the Pals Memorial, Steve Williams, met with Council Officials on Wednesday, 10th June to discuss the final position on the site of Chorley’s traditional Tuesday market. An announcement on the final position will be made in July following further meetings with Chorley Council. Steve Williams said “It is not as simple as placing the statue just anywhere. Public access is important as well as CCTV coverage, services above and below ground, surrounding trees, street furniture, road signs and the like – all these have to be taken into consideration. What is important is that the statue will be at the heart of Chorley for everyone to see, not tucked away out of sight in some unlit place”.

Trustees Steve Williams and Lindsay Hoyle with the model of the new statue

The full sized model is nearing completion at the artist’s studio in Preston.

The rifle has to be modelled and then the whole piece will be covered in wax and a mould made, ready to be sent to the Foundry in Essex by the start of August and the finished Bronze piece should be cast in November, being delivered to Chorley by Christmas.

The plan is to unveil the statue on the 23rd February 2010 – the 95th anniversary of when the Chorley Pals left the town to go to war.

Trustees of the memorial to the Chorley Pals are asking local people where they would like to see it located in the town centre.

1. Front of Town Hall

The statue of a First World One soldier will be seven foot high, on top of an eight foot plinth which will have engraved upon it all the names of the 230 men from the town and local villages who served in the Chorley Company and went over the on the Somme on the morning of the 1st July 1916. Four sites have been identified – two on the Flat Iron and two adjacent to the Town Hall.

2. Flat Iron

Co-Founder and Secretary of the Chorley Pals Memorial Appeal, local WW1 Historian Steve Williams said “We would welcome some input before we approach Chorley Council for planning permission. In front of the Town Hall on a newly created square would have been ideal, but apparently this is not happening for a few years so we must look at an alternative”.

3. Outside Booths Supermarket

Responses are invited back to Steve Williams on 01254 854298, by post to Lindsay Hoyle’s Constituency Office at 35 -39 Market Street, Chorley PR7 2SW or via our Contact Us page.

4. Rear of Town Hall/front of Magistrate Courts

The closing date for replies is the 1st June and appeal Chairman, Chorley M.P Lindsay Hoyle said “This is the opportunity for Chorley people to tell us before a final decision is made”.

The location for statue is expected to be announced a Press Conference in the town in late June, whilst the memorial is scheduled to be unveiled on the 23rd February next year – 95 years on from when the Pals left the town to go to War, and just three years since the appeal started.

Chorley and District Ex-Services Association have boosted the Chorley Pals Memorial appeal by making a £250 donation.

Steve Williams (centre) receives the cheque from Association Chairman, Cllr. Eric Bell watched (left to right) by Stan Dickinson (Association Secretary), John Garwood (Chorley Pals Trustee) and Laurence Perry (Association Treasurer).

The cheque was handed over to Pals Trustees, co-founder Steve Williams and Adlington based author, John Garwood at the Association’s monthly meeting held at the end of March in Devonshire Road Barracks in the town.

During the meeting, Steve Williams gave an illustrated talk to members about the Pals, and detailed the progress of the appeal. He said “We are well advanced with the statue and plinth but need to raise some additional funds to ensure that all the names of the original Pals are inscribed on the plinth. As soon as we approached the Ex-Services Association, they were forthcoming with a donation and, like us, are looking forward to the statue being unveiled in Chorley later this year”.

This is the second donation in as many weeks for the appeal, with local house builders, Wainhomes, making a donation of £500 towards the names on the plinth.

An announcement on where the statue is to be sited is due after Easter, following meetings arranged by Pals Trustees with Chorley Council and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Chairman, Lindsay Hoyle MP, said “We would like to thank the Ex-Services Association for their support and look forward to them joining us at the unveiling”.

Donations to the appeal can be made at any branch of Chorley Building Society or to Lindsay Hoyle’s constituency office at 35 – 39 Market Street in Chorley.

Steve Williams surveys the progress of the statue

Secretary & Co-Founder of the Chorley Pals Memorial, Steve Williams, viewed progress of the statue at the artist’s workshop in Preston on the 2nd March.

Work is well advanced and sculptor, Peter Hodgkinson, expects showing the final clay model to Trustees by mid-April. Thereafter it will be covered in wax for a mould to be made, ready to go the Foundry in Essex in May; it will then take about 8 weeks to produce.

The Chorley Pals Memorial Appeal hope to benefit from the generosity of visitors to an energy price comparison site during November.

The deal, brokered by Secretary and Co-Founder of the Chorley Pals charity, Steve Williams, is with the website “saveforachange.co.uk“, run by Lancastrian Alex Whyles.

Save for a Change was launched in February 2008, with a user-friendly website. The service is completely free and impartial and, for every person who uses the service to change energy supplier, a donation is made to the charity of their choice. However, to coincide with Remembrance Sunday the website hopes that visitors will donate to the Chorley Pals during the month of November.

The charity was set up in February 2007 by Brindle based WW1 Historian and Author, Steve Williams, along with the town’s MP, Lindsay Hoyle. They have already raised funds for the statue and plinth but still need donations towards having the names of all the 250 Chorley Pals engraved on the stone plinth. Plans are well advanced for the statue of a World War One soldier, going “over the top”, to be unveiled in Chorley Town Centre on Remembrance Sunday, 2009.

Alex Whyles, co-founder of Save for a Change, comments: “Having been born and raised in the area, I am well aware of the history and sacrifices that were made by previous generations and I believe that it is important to recognise those sacrifices and to also be able to give something back. Save for a Change is delighted to be able to offer their services to enable its customers to express their gratitude, by providing the opportunity to contribute towards this permanent memorial”.

Visitors to the website will see an artist’s impression of the Chorley Pals statue on the home page as well as clicking onto a link to the Pals website.

Steve Williams said “We would like to thank Save for a Change for the opportunity of receiving donations from a wider audience. Exposure for our appeal for a month on a national website is immeasurable. With energy consumers feeling the pinch at the moment and looking for opportunities to save money, they can benefit by visiting Save for a Change and at the same time make a donation to a unique project like ours”.

Echoing the sentiments, Lindsay Hoyle MP said “I am delighted that saveforachange have decided to feature the Chorley Pals Memorial and encourage people to donate to the fund. As we approach Remembrance Sunday it is extremely timely for saveforchange to help us provide a permanent memorial to the Chorley Pals who served on our behalf”.

BAE Systems, former owners of the ROF factory at Euxton (now the Buckshaw Village complex) have promised £30,000 for the 8 foot high x 4 foot wide plinth.

Their generous donation means the memorial should be erected in the town in the summer of 2009.

The campaign will now major on raising money so that the names of the original 230 Chorley Pals can be added to the sandstone plinth.

Sculptor Peter Hodgkinson revealed the first part of the statue to Trustees at a meeting in Chorley on the 18th August.

The Chorley Pals Memorial Trustees preview the top of the new statue

He has started at the top by duly completing the head and shoulders of the proposed statue.

In an interesting twist, Peter topped out the clay bust with an original steel helmet from 1916 that was found on the Somme battlefield many years later.

A five day coach trip organised and led by Steve Williams, one of the Chorley Pals Memorial appeal founders, raised £500 towards the appeal.

The coach party at Calais at the end of the Serre 2008 trip

Each of the 43 passengers agreed to £10 being added to the overall cost of the trip, with the remainder being donated by the organiser.

The trip spent three full days on the Somme battlefield, visiting many of the major sites as well as Serre where the Chorley Pals went over the top on the 1st July 1916. The trip ended at the British Memorial to the Missing of the Somme at Thiepval.

Back in May the appeal was granted £6,000 to write a book about the history of the Chorley Pals, with all monies from the sale of the book going to the appeal fund.

Local authors and appeal Trustees, John Garwood and Steve Williams, have started on writing the book. It will be based on John Garwood’s 1992 book “Chorley Pals – a short history of the Company in the Great War, 1914-19″ (copies available from Chorley Library or purchased at the gift shop at Astley Hall). The book will detail the history of the Chorley Pals from its formation in September 1914, their time guarding the Suez Canal in early 1916 and feature heavily their action at Serre on the first day of the Battle of the Somme on the 1st July 1916.

A major part of the book will be taken up with details (as available) of each and every man who served in the Pals, along with pictures. The aim is to have it ready by the 23rd February 2009 – exactly 94 years on from when they left the town to go to their training camp in North Wales and ultimately off to war.

More details soon.

At Astley Hall Chorley on Friday, 4th July Lindsay Hoyle, the MP for Chorley, announced that funds had been raised to allow the project to go ahead, as well as unveiling the image of the proposed memorial.

Painting of the proposed statue by local artist Peter Hodgkinson

The image, drawn by local artist Peter Hodgkinson, is 5 foot x 4 foot pastel drawing of a WW1 soldier in full battle kit “going over the top”. In addition, Lindsay Hoyle outlined details of the next stage of the campaign which will see the statue being unveiled in Chorley during early July 2009. The campaign will continue to raise money for a plinth for the statue which will have upon it all the names of the original ‘Chorley Pals’.

The statue will be the first World War One memorial to be commissioned and erected in the U.K. in over two decades. Whilst there are two small informal and un-official memorial plaques in the trenches at Serre on the Somme in northern France, the project is unique as it will see a major memorial to the Chorley Pals actually in the town – 93 years on from when they left Chorley to go off to war and into history. It follows on from a recently un-veiled memorial tablet to the Chorley Pals, placed on the wall of Booth’s Supermarket in Chorley by the local branch of The British Legion.

It will also be the first statue to be erected in Chorley town centre (the official town war memorial is a simple cross memorial with no names upon it, situated at the entrance to the local park). It will also be the first and only memorial to have names of Chorley men on it.

Astley Hall was chosen for the venue of the announcement, as it has a memorial room to all the men from the town who fought in the First World War. It is a suitable back drop, containing large photographs of the Chorley Pals Company – the men, their medals and memorabilia & an illuminated scroll of all the original Pals Company (215 men).

Also at the announcement at Astley Hall were Peter Hodgkinson – Preston based sculptor who has been commissioned to design the statue (his commissions include Tom Finney ‘Splash’ at Preston North End FC, Les Dawson and Wallace & Gromit). Sister Francis (Catherine Calderbank), a 92 year old nun from Chorley whose father Private Henry Calderbank survived the first day of the Battle of the Somme on the 1st July 1916, serving with the Chorley Pals; he was killed in action at Ypres in 1917. Veronica Abbott, the youngest daughter of Private Thomas Leach from Chorley who as wounded at Serre with the Pals on the 1st July 1916.

Stan Dickinson, a Normandy veteran and Secretary of the Chorley Ex-Serviceman’s Association. Steve Penlington, Chief Executive of the Chorley Building Society who are supporting / promoting the appeal locally. Members of the British legion, locally, were also there.

The Chorley Pals Memorial, a registered charity set up by the town’s MP, Lindsay Hoyle and Brindle historian Steve Williams have been awarded a grant of £10,000 from the National Lottery ‘Awards for All’ scheme.

John Garwood, Lindsay Hoyle MP & Steve Williams

The appeal aims to raise £55,000 for a suitable memorial to the 215 men from the town who joined up as ‘Pals’ in the First World War, becoming Y Company of the 11th (Service) Battalion (Accrington) East Lancashire Regiment – the famous ‘Accrington Pals’. On the 1st July 1916 the Battalion attacked the village of Serre in northern France, at the start of the Battle of the Somme. Like many others on that day, the Chorley Pals suffered a high number of casualties with 31 men being killed and three eventually dying from their wounds. Many have no known grave and are commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, close to the battlefield. A further 59 were wounded that morning, making a total casualty list of 93 out of approximately 175 from the Company who went over the top.

In the now filled in trenches from where the Chorley attacked is the only memorial to the men – a small brass plaque on a concrete plinth, placed there in 1998 and paid for by private donations. Surprisingly there is no memorial to the men in the town, although there is a room in the Astley Hall museum which has the roll of honour of the original Pals who joined up in September 1914.

The appeal is to raise funds for a memorial to the men, by way of a seven foot statue of a soldier in full kit, to be placed in a prominent position close to the town’s market. The project will be unique as it has been many years since a war memorial has been commissioned on this scale in the U.K.

The statue of Sir Tom Finney created by Peter Hodgkinson at the National Football Museum in Preston.

The Trustees have already appointed a sculptor, local artist Peter Hodgkinson from Preston who did the ‘Splash’ statue of Sir Tom Finney erected outside the National Football Museum at Preston North End’s ground in the city. He has also recently completed a statue to northern comedian Les Dawson and one of duo Wallace & Gromit. Part of the ‘Awards for All’ money will go to pay for initial design work – the drawings and subsequent model will be the launch pad for the appeal, giving local people and potential donors an idea of the finished statue.

Chorley Author John Garwood

A major portion of the £10,000 of the Lottery award will go to publishing a new book about the Chorley Pals. It is to be written by local author John Garwood, an expert on the Chorley Pals and Steve Williams, the Appeal Secretary, who is also a World War One historian having assisted BBC Television in the North West with several WW1 projects over the last eighteen months. The basis of the book will be John Garwood’s extensive archive on the Chorley Pals, as well as a book he wrote and last updated in 1992. The intention is for a limited edition of 1,000 books to be printed and sold to raise £12,500 for the appeal; it is hoped they will be available by Remembrance Day in November.

The remaining money from Awards for All will be spent on publicising the appeal to the people of Chorley and surrounding area, as well as maintaining this website – a vital resource for the appeal, at the same time making the history of the Chorley Pals available to a global audience.

Steve Williams said “The award is so vital to us and will definitely help in getting the appeal off the ground”.

It is hoped that the statue will be unveiled in July 2009, 93 years after the Pals went over the top on that fateful morning.

There are only a few places left on the five day coach trip to the First World War battlefield on the Somme in northern France.

Organised and led by WW1 historian and Brindle Historical Society Secretary, Steve Williams, it leaves Brindle on Thursday, 10th July and will stay in Arras for four nights. There will be three days visiting the major sites on the battlefield, including the Accrington Pals trenches and memorial at Serre as well as the impressive Thiepval Memorial.

Anyone interested should contact Steve as soon as possible on 01254 854298 or e-mail him via the Contact Us page.

News of the appeal being granted registered charity status by the Charities Commission this week made the front page of the Lancashire Evening Post.

Front Page of the Lancashire Evening Post, Thursday 6th December 2007

Appeal Chairman Lindsay Hoyle said: “Charity registration gives the appeal more credibility and allows us to raise the profile accordingly. Many Pals worshipped in local churches and worked for Chorley companies, so I ask them and everyone in the town to support the appeal”.

The appeal, launched earlier this year, aims to raise enough money for a permanent memorial by way of a statue of a WW1 soldier to be erected in Chorley Town Centre.

After Christmas we plan to step up the fundraising efforts aided, we hope, by a grant from the Lottery ‘Awards for All’ scheme. Other applications will be made to the Heritage Lottery Fund and the War Memorials Trust but we must show that funds have also come in from local sources.

Media interest was high when the Co-Founders, Chorley MP Lindsay Hoyle and local WW1 Historian Steve Williams launched the fundraising appeal in Chorley on Friday, 23rd February.

The date was chosen to coincide with 92nd anniversary of the day the Chorley Pals left the town to go to War in 1915.

March through Chorley launching the campaign

Lindsay and Steve walked the route taken by the Pals through the town centre, accompanied by local WW1 historian John Garwood, members of the local media and many other people from the town who joined the procession.

Speaking about the campaign, Lindsay Hoyle MP said:

“The Chorley Pals left Chorley on 23rd February 1915. The majority never returned after taking part in the Battle of the Somme. The fact that no memorial to these brave men has ever been erected is an injustice I want to see put right. I believe that local people will rally to this cause and help raise the funds we need for a statue to be erected in the Town Centre. Many residents had family members who joined the Pals and a memorial is long overdue in order to honour their memory”.