Names added to Chorley War Memorial in time for Remembrance Sunday

Names of two men who fell in The Great War and World War Two have been added to the panels around the War Memorial in Astley Park.

Relatives of Seth Hargreaves and Eric Wright contacted our sister project Chorley Remembers asking for the names of their loved ones to be included, and after research by Project Manager Steve Williams, Chorley Council added them to the memorial in time for Remembrance Sunday.

Sergeant Seth Hargreaves joined up in Chorley on the 3rd September 1914 and eventually joined the 10th Battalion of the Loyal North Lancs. Regiment.

He was killed on the Somme battlefield on the 11th August 1916, aged 33; he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme.

The War Dairy for his Battalion records that they were in action on the 11th August 1916 attacking German trenches at Bazentin-le-Petit. The action started at 2.00 am and ended with the capture of German trenches on the Martinpuich Road, five hours later at 7.00 am; one Officer and 20 other ranks were killed (one being Sgt. Hargreaves).

Family members, still in Chorley, recall being told that Seth was quiet short and jokingly wanted to be a jockey; he was photograph with a few of his mates captioned “Jockey Club”.

Sergeant Eric Wright joined the RAF in October 1941 and served as an Air Gunner on Halifax bombers in 78 Squadron based out on Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire, being shot down over the Netherlands on the 12th June 1943.

He is buried in Terschelling cemetery, located on one of the Wadden Islands off the Dutch coast.

Born in 1924, he was educated at Balshaw’s Grammar School in Leyland, and went to work in the family wholesale grocery business W M Wright Ltd. in Lord Street, Chorley.

Chairman of Chorley Remembers, Lindsay Hoyle MP said: “It was brought to our attention there were two names that didn’t appear on the war memorial that should be there. We are delighted we were alerted and we have now included the names.”

He added: “it is important that everyone who serves on our behalf and pays the ultimate sacrifice is recognised in this way, and we encourage people to contact us and let us know.”

Chorley people saw the names on the War Memorial for the first time on Remembrance Sunday last year.

It now commemorates 740 men from the town who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars.

Funding for the work came from the Heritage Lottery Fund and from the Chorley Remembers Appeal Fund, set up by Trustees of the Chorley Pals Memorial in 2010.