THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
The Centenary is going to be a series of events that will span the duration of WW1 and will be held not just here in Britain, but in many other countries around the World. Here in Britain these are some of the major events that are scheduled to take place:-
First World War events to be commemorated.
The full order of events commemorating the First World War will span from the centenary of the outbreak of war in 2014 until that of Armistice Day in 2018. Some of the commemoration dates include:
Outbreak of war, August 1, 2014.
First day of conflict, August 4, 2014 .
Gallipoli Campaign , April 25, 2015.
Battle of the Somme, July 1 2016.
Battle of Jutland, May 31, 2016.
Passchendaele, June 17, 2017.
Armistice Day, November 11, 2018.
Some fairly large amounts of money are going to be spent, or made available to commemorate the Centenary, and there is little doubt that the lions share will be absorbed by the Capital and other major cities, Garrison towns and the like. Recognising that here in Barlick we will be quite low on the "pecking order" an idea has been put forward for an event to highlight the Centenary and at the same time reflect not just WW1, but all conflict from a more local point of view.
The recent re-dedication of the War Memorial took place on this years Barlick Heritage Weekend, this worked out well, and it has been proposed that next years Heritage Weekend should be based around not only the Centenary, but the Towns contribution to conflict in general, Military and Civilian.
This new topic is to give everyone a chance to put forward ideas, comments, criticisms or whatever, in a bid to make this planned event another success. The initial proposals are as follows:-
The event to take place over the Barlick Heritage Weekend, Sat/Sun the 6th & 7th of September 2014. This if all goes well will be a "Wartime Weekend", based mainly around the Town Centre the focal point being the Town Square with the marquee in place. In the marquee there should be ample space for promotional displays, anyone who believes that they could provide such a display, then put your idea here, or contact the Chairman of the Council, Mr Ken Hartley, or myself. There are some whom we wish to invite:- Rolls Royce Heritage Trust, The Barlick History Society, and OGFB! the latter because not is it just a local concern, it has been extremely useful in the War Memorial Projects. STANLEY, you would be most welcome, and there are others.
It may appear to be a bit early in thinking about next September, but several of us have experience of "leaving it until the last minute" when it comes to planning something like this, and will give you this example: The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight have stated that anyone who desires their participation next year, should have their requests in this month, October 2013. I will be making one.
There is plenty of scope for groups and individuals in an event such as this, the marquee itself can host a great deal. But in the greater picture, the surrounding areas could be made available and I am going to have another go at getting the "William Riley" Lifeboat here. There could be a problem here as I understand from the local RNLI that it is booked for some time next year to be in Barlick, and this is one of the problems we have, a lack of communication between local groups and interested parties! There is a definite "its ours" policy involved in some quarters, which I find less than commendable, only this week an attempt was made to arrange a meeting to plan the forthcoming Remembrance Day, dead in the water in 24 hours, not good. And this is one of the reasons for making an early start on this. But what about other possibilities, and make no mistake that there are quite a few, lets have a look at some of them.
The appearance of the Spitfire went down well, not many were aware of its impending arrival despite press involvement, and there were many who heard it and managed to get a quick look. So lets examine the possibilities of something similar for the event. I have contact details and booking forms for the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, the Red Arrows, The Tucano or Black Hawk teams from RAF Linton upon Ouse and the Tucano display team from RAF Valley, if we could get one lot on the Saturday, and another on Sunday it would be great, and there is still the RR Spitfire, the pilot says he would like to see us again. One of the things that made the last event special was the Band, and not forgetting our own Town band, there is ample room for another. If we could get 4YORKS back it would be brilliant, but I have a link to the Band of the Royal Marines as well, a concert would be great. Why then not add a choir, there are now 600 Military Wives Choirs, and yes I have a booking form for that possibility.
The target date is as far as can be determined, outside of the major events elsewhere, and by making an early start we may be in with a chance. Now lets see your thoughts on this.
First World War events to be commemorated.
The full order of events commemorating the First World War will span from the centenary of the outbreak of war in 2014 until that of Armistice Day in 2018. Some of the commemoration dates include:
Outbreak of war, August 1, 2014.
First day of conflict, August 4, 2014 .
Gallipoli Campaign , April 25, 2015.
Battle of the Somme, July 1 2016.
Battle of Jutland, May 31, 2016.
Passchendaele, June 17, 2017.
Armistice Day, November 11, 2018.
Some fairly large amounts of money are going to be spent, or made available to commemorate the Centenary, and there is little doubt that the lions share will be absorbed by the Capital and other major cities, Garrison towns and the like. Recognising that here in Barlick we will be quite low on the "pecking order" an idea has been put forward for an event to highlight the Centenary and at the same time reflect not just WW1, but all conflict from a more local point of view.
The recent re-dedication of the War Memorial took place on this years Barlick Heritage Weekend, this worked out well, and it has been proposed that next years Heritage Weekend should be based around not only the Centenary, but the Towns contribution to conflict in general, Military and Civilian.
This new topic is to give everyone a chance to put forward ideas, comments, criticisms or whatever, in a bid to make this planned event another success. The initial proposals are as follows:-
The event to take place over the Barlick Heritage Weekend, Sat/Sun the 6th & 7th of September 2014. This if all goes well will be a "Wartime Weekend", based mainly around the Town Centre the focal point being the Town Square with the marquee in place. In the marquee there should be ample space for promotional displays, anyone who believes that they could provide such a display, then put your idea here, or contact the Chairman of the Council, Mr Ken Hartley, or myself. There are some whom we wish to invite:- Rolls Royce Heritage Trust, The Barlick History Society, and OGFB! the latter because not is it just a local concern, it has been extremely useful in the War Memorial Projects. STANLEY, you would be most welcome, and there are others.
It may appear to be a bit early in thinking about next September, but several of us have experience of "leaving it until the last minute" when it comes to planning something like this, and will give you this example: The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight have stated that anyone who desires their participation next year, should have their requests in this month, October 2013. I will be making one.
There is plenty of scope for groups and individuals in an event such as this, the marquee itself can host a great deal. But in the greater picture, the surrounding areas could be made available and I am going to have another go at getting the "William Riley" Lifeboat here. There could be a problem here as I understand from the local RNLI that it is booked for some time next year to be in Barlick, and this is one of the problems we have, a lack of communication between local groups and interested parties! There is a definite "its ours" policy involved in some quarters, which I find less than commendable, only this week an attempt was made to arrange a meeting to plan the forthcoming Remembrance Day, dead in the water in 24 hours, not good. And this is one of the reasons for making an early start on this. But what about other possibilities, and make no mistake that there are quite a few, lets have a look at some of them.
The appearance of the Spitfire went down well, not many were aware of its impending arrival despite press involvement, and there were many who heard it and managed to get a quick look. So lets examine the possibilities of something similar for the event. I have contact details and booking forms for the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, the Red Arrows, The Tucano or Black Hawk teams from RAF Linton upon Ouse and the Tucano display team from RAF Valley, if we could get one lot on the Saturday, and another on Sunday it would be great, and there is still the RR Spitfire, the pilot says he would like to see us again. One of the things that made the last event special was the Band, and not forgetting our own Town band, there is ample room for another. If we could get 4YORKS back it would be brilliant, but I have a link to the Band of the Royal Marines as well, a concert would be great. Why then not add a choir, there are now 600 Military Wives Choirs, and yes I have a booking form for that possibility.
The target date is as far as can be determined, outside of the major events elsewhere, and by making an early start we may be in with a chance. Now lets see your thoughts on this.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Mails have been sent to the William Riley team at Whitby, their Centenary event begins on the 31st of October 2014 and lasts 3 days. Mails have also gone to the 2 senior members of the Barlick History Society. I have been asked if the book will ready by then, the major part of this is now in place with most of the research for the remainder already in the books database, the work on this should be complete by April next year, so it should be ready. What is needed from here on in is some input from this community, what would they wish to see, would they like to be involved? yes it is a long way off yet, and there are many things to consider in the meantime, but leave it until the last minute, and it may not be possible. We need to know ASAP. There is scope for all manner of group activities and individual interests, think about it, but do not leave it too late.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
When planning something such as this, one of the major considerations has to be what is appropriate and what is not. The Centenary itself is to mark a very dark chapter in the past, it is not a celebration of the original event, WW1. But at the same time, there will be ample opportunity throughout the Centenary to pause and reflect upon the impact of the Great War, there will be at least four Remembrance Sundays. It therefore needs to be understood that what we are trying to put together is not be a sombre occasion, we are all capable of remembering in our own ways, either as part of a group or individually. What we are looking for is a portrayal of the effects of conflict on life in general, and how it could affect a community, this by its very nature has to have a light hearted side, just as much as a reminder of what has gone before. In short, a weekend of pure solemnity is not what is required. This has to appeal to all, young and old, for the stirring of memories in those who were a part of it, and the education of they who were not, and this presents us with a much broader canvas in order to make it a memorable event. At bedtime last night I was thinking about the potential of the Town Square, alongside of which are cafe's, almost immediately I thought about Renee' and his café in, "Allo, Allo", there must surely be scope there for at least one of the cafe's to take part . At the 40s events at RR Leisure centre some would come in the garb of the day, my niece and her husband were just two of them, again there is room for such an input. Background music should not be a problem as I already know that much of it exists, I have a "Squadronaires" LP and many others. When considering such things as a Military Wives Choir, it becomes apparent that an orchestra and not a band would be more appropriate, a youth orchestra would be ideal, do they still have one at West Craven High Technology College?, or has this gone the way of many other things. At Christmas in 1974 I was in Hong Kong, and taken as a guest of a family to the Civic Hall for a concert by the "Bolton (Lancashire) Youth Orchestra" impressive would be an understatement, they were brilliant. In the coming week I will be presenting our cause to the BBMF and the Military Wives Choir organisation and working on the book now at 1941.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
First, I have had a response from the Barlick History Society, my mail has been passed to the committee members for discussion at their next meeting. Today I have sent a request form to the RAF Events Team at RAF Northolt regarding their participation in this event. The aircraft that I have highlighted are any one or combination of the following:- Red Arrows Display team, Lancaster, Spitfire, Hurricane, Dakota, Typhoon, Tucano, Hawk and Tornado GR4. In a covering letter I have pointed out that this Town has history as far as the RAF are concerned ie the development and building of the first Gas Turbine Engines for RAF use, and the Building, servicing and repair of the Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah MKs IX and X aircraft engines under Rover control, these were fitted in the Avro Anson and Airspeed Oxford aircraft. I have also mentioned that nearly 1/5th of the Men from Barlick who died in WW2 were in the RAF. Now its wait and see time again.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
I wish that all responses to my mails were as quick as the last one. I contacted the Military Vehicles Trust asking for details of their nearest club to here, the secretary got back to me in 3 minutes. I have mailed the Rolls Royce Heritage Trust with an invitation to mount a presentation or display at the event, and if we can't get the BBMF I may ask RRHT if we can get the Spitfire back here.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
I am now getting to the stage when I could do with a little help. Ideas and suggestions, anything that could be considered to make this event successful. I have just mailed the Rylstone WI, remember, Calendar Girls? Surely OGFB could participate with a presentation or something, or is it descending into a platform for personal political ideology. This is about Barlick and its past, and not just intended to be a very local event, we need to pull in interest from outside. To those of us who were born here or close by, events such as this should matter, it is intended to be nostalgic for they who remember it, and educational for they who do not, and at the same time, a bit of fun. I have a great deal of respect for the input of members who live further afield, and if any of them have ideas or suggestions, I would appreciate their contribution. Its not that I am running out of ideas, but I do have another ongoing project that needs to be finished in time. The book is now at the end of 1941 and I have gained a small amount of time, this could soon be eroded. Your Help would Be Most Welcome.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
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Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
The original 'Barnoldswick Day', which was thought up by David Stead, and the heritage themed events held last year and this have had the full support and backing of the town council and the chairman this year, Ken Hartley.
Ken has outlined the suggestions for 2014 at the town council and there's support for remembering this aspect of our heritage.
The blow to your book will need time and effort; only do what you can. Others will rally round.
Ken has outlined the suggestions for 2014 at the town council and there's support for remembering this aspect of our heritage.
The blow to your book will need time and effort; only do what you can. Others will rally round.
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
In the midst of adversity, there is always a chance that the outcome will not be good, this it would appear is to be the case with my lost book work. Despite a valiant effort by Colin, all could be gone. Yet even on a bad day the sun may shine again, and tonight it did. I had a call from the other Peter Thompson from Whitby, he coming out this way tomorrow and will be calling to see me. The good news is that as far as he can see, there is no reason for the "William Riley" not to be here for this event. This was the first item on the "can we do" list.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Yesterdays visit by the other Peter from Whitby and Val Nixon, was both pleasant and informative. The prospect of having the "William Riley" here for this event is looking very good indeed, and I now have contact details in place to help with setting this up. And there was the letter from the Palace today which has been posted elsewhere. Colin is due here later to replace my hard drive on which there is 180 gigs of info that may help to resolve the recent crisis, ref: loss of previous work, fingers crossed. Good ideas however are still needed, and anything no matter how diverse will be truly appreciated.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Possibly not a direct contribution to the WW1 centenary but I have often wondered how many people are still alive who lost a close relative in this war. My uncle was killed in France in 1917, which probably puts me in a relatively small group considering the number of lives lost. There will no doubt be many in Barlick who are in the same position as myself. I realise it would be almost impossible to trace family members unless they were prepared to register themselves in some way.
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
This is from another topic on here posted by Colin Brittain (Whitby Colin):-
"2014 marks the centenary of the tragic loss of the SS Rohilla and 84 lives, it is only fitting that this sad incident is marked and to that end a steering group was formed to plan suitable activities. The plans we have so far look promising and are intended to progress throughout the weekend of the tragic centenary.
We have created a small dedicated website that will grow in time as events are finalised and we now have a small Facebook presence.
We would like to reach out to anyone who has a connection to the tragedy, no matter how small and will be sending out personal invitations to those we already know of. If you feel you have a connection please feel free to contact me our mailing list is fluid and we are more than happy to add people to it."
This event takes place over the 31st of October, the 1st and 2nd of November in Whitby 2014 and will feature the restored lifeboat "William Riley" the boat that we may see here for our event. When the ex lifeboat cox came here to see me recently, his team were hoping to contact as many descendants of the victims as possible with a view to extending an invitation for them to attend this event. My research for the book and my local knowledge means that I may be able to help them, I already have several people in mind beyond those that they are already aware of. The same applies to the other 307 Men from the Town who died, I have the family details of all 319, and I am more than willing to assist anyone who thinks that they may be a descendant, just ask here, or call 01282 813355 or mail me at "thomosmech@yahoo.co.uk". Having the William Riley here for our event is highly possible as the dates do not coincide with the event at Whitby, an offer of secure overnight accommodation for the boat has already been made by a local garage, the next thing is to find someone to sponsor the cost of bringing the boat here and returning it to Whitby post event. Finally this topic can be considered open to all comments and/or ideas that have anything whatsoever to do with the Towns Memorial and any events that are pertinent to the same. Thank You. Thomo.
"2014 marks the centenary of the tragic loss of the SS Rohilla and 84 lives, it is only fitting that this sad incident is marked and to that end a steering group was formed to plan suitable activities. The plans we have so far look promising and are intended to progress throughout the weekend of the tragic centenary.
We have created a small dedicated website that will grow in time as events are finalised and we now have a small Facebook presence.
We would like to reach out to anyone who has a connection to the tragedy, no matter how small and will be sending out personal invitations to those we already know of. If you feel you have a connection please feel free to contact me our mailing list is fluid and we are more than happy to add people to it."
This event takes place over the 31st of October, the 1st and 2nd of November in Whitby 2014 and will feature the restored lifeboat "William Riley" the boat that we may see here for our event. When the ex lifeboat cox came here to see me recently, his team were hoping to contact as many descendants of the victims as possible with a view to extending an invitation for them to attend this event. My research for the book and my local knowledge means that I may be able to help them, I already have several people in mind beyond those that they are already aware of. The same applies to the other 307 Men from the Town who died, I have the family details of all 319, and I am more than willing to assist anyone who thinks that they may be a descendant, just ask here, or call 01282 813355 or mail me at "thomosmech@yahoo.co.uk". Having the William Riley here for our event is highly possible as the dates do not coincide with the event at Whitby, an offer of secure overnight accommodation for the boat has already been made by a local garage, the next thing is to find someone to sponsor the cost of bringing the boat here and returning it to Whitby post event. Finally this topic can be considered open to all comments and/or ideas that have anything whatsoever to do with the Towns Memorial and any events that are pertinent to the same. Thank You. Thomo.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Thomo - the story of the Rohilla was mentioned in this longish article in The Guardian yesterday. The RNLI's touring exhibition may be of interest.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/n ... ary-events
Richard Broughton
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/n ... ary-events
Richard Broughton
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- Senior Member
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Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Peter, the town council is likely to be the main organisation funding the event (subject to agreement). If there's a cost to bring The William Riley to Barnoldswick, this could be picked up by Barlick TC.Thomo wrote:the next thing is to find someone to sponsor the cost of bringing the boat here and returning it to Whitby post event
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
I have just spoken with the other Peter in Whitby, and it looks like we will be OK for the William Riley. I now awaiting a call from the BBMF having discovered that the postal address shown on the request form is not quite correct, it omits "Ruislip". I want to know if they received the request, and if not I will re-send it.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
I have just had a conversation with a charming young woman at the BBMF events HQ. They have received the application and the letter giving the broad outline of this event. This is now under consideration. Another possibility that came to light at the weekend was an appearance by the "Swing Commanders" they are not available for the 6th but have as yet no bookings for the 7th. The Allo, Allo scenario. There would now appear to be at least 4 possibilities for this, there are 2 on Albert Rd, 1 on Rainhall Rd and another at the top of Newtown. A licensed premises would be the best arrangement, but I understand that the others can cater for this if the customer provides their own bevvy! This is all still wide open to any bright ideas, and we need a little help please.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Due to other commitments this has gone on the back burner a bit, and once again I am experiencing the high degree of lethargy in respect of response that occurred during the run up to the re-dedication. During the coming week I will be re-sending all of the original mails to see if I can wake up a few possibilities. This project may be in the distant future but the groundwork needs must be laid out as soon as is possible or a complete failure could be the result, this I cannot contemplate! Ideas and suggestions are still welcome and will be for a long time yet, however, the earlier the better.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
It would appear that once more we may have a situation similar to the one that developed when we were trying to organise the re-dedication ceremony last year. This time it is all about the Towns efforts to commemorate this years WW1 Centenary. The idea proposed over 3 months ago to produce an event to coincide with the Towns Heritage Weekend, planned for the weekend of the 6/7th of September 2014. "A Wartime Weekend" has several merits in its favour, top of this list is the weather, and second is that the main venue will already be in place in the Town Square. Add to this that on those dates we stand a much better chance of attracting interesting participation than on any of the major event dates planned for the Centenary. It was decided last year that we needed to start work on this ASAP in order to make the planned event a success. One of the biggest problems we had when trying to plan the re-dedication, was getting all of the interested parties together to discuss the project. now it appears that this may happen again. Some of the local groups have their own ideas about the Centenary and it would be appreciated if all could work together rather than going off at a tangent. There is one matter here that is fairly important and concerns the Hospital Ship Rohilla, it will be the Centenary of that tragedy on the 30th of October this year which will be on a Thursday and only 10 days before this years Remembrance Sunday. An individual event to mark the Rohilla disaster on the 30th of October may be good in principle but any hope of input from elsewhere will be minimal at least as a major event will be taking place in Whitby. It has been proposed that the Wartime Weekend be made specific to the Rohilla, and I can see no reason why not. We have a very fair chance of the Lifeboat "William Riley" being here in September and also have a good chance of a display being mounted from the Museum at Whitby. All of this needs to be resolved sooner than later. Last year we were lucky in that the participation of groups from outside of the Town made the event a success, The Yorkshire Regiment and Rolls Royce at Derby played a big part. This is no time for personal agenda's, it requires that everyone pulls together and it should be up to the people of Barlick to open up and discuss the issue. Something else that has been mentioned with regard to Remembrance Sunday, is that it may not be possible to have the marquee in the Town Square. In the past if the weather was bad, the Service would be held in the Holy Trinity Church, some of us can see no problem with that, but it now transpires that some of the other faiths may not be too happy with this solution!!!!!!!!! For just one day in a year, or in this case two, can we all not put aside our differences and work together????
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
This copied from my last post elsewhere:-
Quite so David. I had a very long call from Ken on Friday during which he unburdened himself a bit. It will be my very great pleasure to help with some of the issues that he is concerned about. Whilst I have no intention of elaborating on our conversation, I get the impression that now that Ken is nearing the end of his term as Chairman of the Council, he does not wish to leave any loose ends for whoever succeeds him to sort out. Anything that concerns the Centenary is probably where I can most be of use. Near to the top of the "needs to be sorted" list is the Lifeboat William Riley, the local group who possibly have the greatest interest here, and anything concerning the Rohilla appear to have stated that the William Riley does not have its own trailer and that the Town would have to meet the cost of the hire of said trailer and a suitable vehicle to pull it, here and back. In the current local economic situation this could be a big ask. Yesterday I had a long talk with Peter Thompson at Whitby, initially to get some idea of the cost, the upshot of this revealed the following. As I always believed, the William Riley does indeed have its own trailer, what is required is someone with a suitable LWB 4 X 4 to go and bring it here and return it to Whitby post event, there is a veritable plethora of such vehicles in our area. When the William Riley took part in the Thames River Pageant it cost £800 for the hire of the towing vehicle. What is needed now I believe is an enthusiastic volunteer. I also discussed with Peter the matter of mounting a display in the marquee, of Rohilla orientated items. In Whitby they have a large collection of such things, some of them are to be exhibited at the Whitby Lifeboat Station from May to November this year as a part of their own Centenary Event. Peter is prepared to bring the remainder here and man the display himself, and I think that it would be a nice gesture if he could be found overnight accommodation at least. Peter is the now retired ex Cox of the Whitby Lifeboat and looks after the affairs of the Lifeboat Museum there, I have had the pleasure of meeting him and he is a most enthusiastic and interesting man.
Quite so David. I had a very long call from Ken on Friday during which he unburdened himself a bit. It will be my very great pleasure to help with some of the issues that he is concerned about. Whilst I have no intention of elaborating on our conversation, I get the impression that now that Ken is nearing the end of his term as Chairman of the Council, he does not wish to leave any loose ends for whoever succeeds him to sort out. Anything that concerns the Centenary is probably where I can most be of use. Near to the top of the "needs to be sorted" list is the Lifeboat William Riley, the local group who possibly have the greatest interest here, and anything concerning the Rohilla appear to have stated that the William Riley does not have its own trailer and that the Town would have to meet the cost of the hire of said trailer and a suitable vehicle to pull it, here and back. In the current local economic situation this could be a big ask. Yesterday I had a long talk with Peter Thompson at Whitby, initially to get some idea of the cost, the upshot of this revealed the following. As I always believed, the William Riley does indeed have its own trailer, what is required is someone with a suitable LWB 4 X 4 to go and bring it here and return it to Whitby post event, there is a veritable plethora of such vehicles in our area. When the William Riley took part in the Thames River Pageant it cost £800 for the hire of the towing vehicle. What is needed now I believe is an enthusiastic volunteer. I also discussed with Peter the matter of mounting a display in the marquee, of Rohilla orientated items. In Whitby they have a large collection of such things, some of them are to be exhibited at the Whitby Lifeboat Station from May to November this year as a part of their own Centenary Event. Peter is prepared to bring the remainder here and man the display himself, and I think that it would be a nice gesture if he could be found overnight accommodation at least. Peter is the now retired ex Cox of the Whitby Lifeboat and looks after the affairs of the Lifeboat Museum there, I have had the pleasure of meeting him and he is a most enthusiastic and interesting man.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
I can quite see your problem especially since there's no bespoke trailer available. Even the largest 4 x 4 could only pull about 3.5 tons. Then there is any insurance cover etc: As a regular visitor to Newgiggin by the Sea, Northumberland I've added a picture of their lifeboat they have in their heritage museum. If the "William Riley" is anything like this it would be quite a lump to be pulling about.Thomo wrote:"needs to be sorted" list is the Lifeboat William Riley,
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Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
The William Riley as stated above does have its own trailer, the total weight is 3 tons. A further conversation with Ken on Sunday revealed that we may have someone who will do what is required.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Great news Thomo, The Newbiggin museum has lots of pictures showing the woman than "manned" many of their life boats. Also, up to their waists in the sea launching them. Something we often forget about in our mechanized world.
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Thank You. This topic first appeared in October 2013 and I believe it is now time to refresh it a little. When this event was first proposed, the idea was to make it as attractive as possible without loosing sight of its purpose. I was asked if would help with the task of finding and contacting any suitable groups or organisations who may be interested in taking part. Having failed to get the William Riley here in 2013 due to it being displayed elsewhere, it took priority, happily it appears that this time we will succeed. The Rolls Royce Heritage Trust Spitfire paid us a visit last September on the morning of the re-dedication, this was apparently well received. In view of this an application was made to the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight asking for a "Fly Past", conformation that this had been received was given and is under consideration, along with no doubt 100s of others. I made the case that this Town had been involved in the production of one of the first successful Jet Aircraft, and added that men from here had died in WW2 whilst serving with the RAF. mostly in Bomber Command. Other groups contacted initially were the Historic Military Vehicles Trust, Rolls Royce Heritage Trust, and the Carlisle based group who restore and display WW2 Aero Engines. Apart from auto generated response mails, there has been no further contact, and I will shortly be having anther go at them. Other ideas that could be well received for this event are also under consideration, a Military Wives Choir should go down well, or indeed any other musical performance, the problem here is that most of these require a fee and finance is very limited, tickets would be an option but come with all manner of problems concerning organisation. One idea that apparently could be well received is the involvement of one or more of the Town Centre Cafes creating an "Allo, Allo" scenario. It is recognised that this event is to mark a very sombre part of our history, but in order to make it a local success, it need to be a little light hearted, there will be plenty of scope during the Centenary for more reflective events. The greatest single impact on Barnoldswick was when 12 Men died in the loss of the Rohilla, and the story of this sad episode will be one of the main features of this event. This part is well within our reach now with the interest shown from Whitby and what we already have to hand. There are several local groups who could make a welcome contribution, getting them interested is at present difficult, and this is no time for fringe activities.
Any suggestions or criticisms concerning this event are still most welcome. September may still be a long way off but we learned last year that its is no good leaving such things as this to the last minute
Any suggestions or criticisms concerning this event are still most welcome. September may still be a long way off but we learned last year that its is no good leaving such things as this to the last minute
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Earby History Society are producing a book about WW1 as their contribution to the Centenary. This book is scheduled to be launched on the 31st of May this year. Yesterday I received a mail from one of their members asking if I will go along and give short talk at the launch with the emphasis on the Rohilla tragedy. Too right I will, and consider it an honour to have been offered this opportunity. I lived and worked in Earby before and after joining the RN, and in the late 60s/early 70s I was employed at the then highly popular Brass Band Club, later becoming the Steward. A the time of the Falklands War I organised several events to raise money to purchase a sailing boat, "The Spirit of Freedom" for the troops to use when off duty, this was based in San Carlos Water. I just wish that our own History Society would show a little more interest in our own event. It is now many months since they were asked if they would care to mount a display, and after being informed that it would be considered, we have heard nothing.
Thomo. RN Retired, but not regretted!
Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
In an ideal world all would be well. I'm sure the reaction would be the same if a Methodist, Baptist, Catholic or Presbyterian Church, Kingdon Hall or Mosque was made available for the CofE followers to use.Thomo wrote:Something else that has been mentioned with regard to Remembrance Sunday, is that it may not be possible to have the marquee in the Town Square. In the past if the weather was bad, the Service would be held in the Holy Trinity Church, some of us can see no problem with that, but it now transpires that some of the other faiths may not be too happy with this solution!!!!!!!!! For just one day in a year, or in this case two, can we all not put aside our differences and work together????
Kev
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Re: THE 2014 WW1 CENTENARY IN BARLICK.
Thomo, You once asked for "ideas". I don't know if you consider this one suitable or even possible but in my wanderings I always take pictures of any WW1 / WW2 memorials that I come across. A collection of such pictures from neighbouring towns and villages may add a feeling of inclusiveness.
Here's one taken today in Barrowford.
Here's one taken today in Barrowford.
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