Last call for details on Ardrishaig WWI soldiers
A GROUP of Lochgilphead students are appealing for more information on fallen First World War soldiers from Ardrishaig.
After the success of the Lochgilphead 65 First World War research project last year, a group from the Mid Argyll Youth Forum has been investigating the names of soldiers on the Ardrishaig war memorial and have discovered more than they expected.
Grant Graham, S6, who has been involved in the war memorial project from the beginning, explained: ‘We started off with 40 names from the memorial stone in Ardrishaig. We then discovered a few more names on the church plaque and a 1924 book about the war listed yet more names of soldiers from Ardrishaig. So altogether we now have 54 names of fallen soldiers in the First World War from Ardrishaig.’
Having already released a book on the Lochgilphead war memorial, The Lochgilphead 65, the team plan to put the Ardrishaig project to print but one final request for information on the 54 names has delayed the development of the book.
Grant, with help from Neil Wilson, S5, set up a stall at Lochgilphead Armed Forces’ Day to help garner support for the project, with the added intention of trying to pick up any information on the soldiers.
They also displayed a plaque which will be placed in Blarbuie Woodland, next to the 110 trees the group planted earlier this year, to commemorate the fallen First World War soldiers from Lochgilphead and Ardrishaig.
The pair are conducting this project as part of their gold and silver youth achievement awards and have spent hours picking through old books and photographs.
When asked about the reasons behind starting the project, Neil commented: ‘We’re just interested in the history of the war and how it affected the area. That’s basically why we started this project.’
If you have more information about any of the named soldiers, contact Raymond Flanagan, who is guiding the project, at raymond.flanagan@argyll-bute.gov.uk.