Mysterious plaques found in a cellar
A chance First World War find in a cellar inspired a new project, Alan Crosby discovers
The origins of the Florence Nightingale Convalescent Home for Men at Great Hucklow, in the Derbyshire Peak District, go back to 1917, when a somewhat basic building at nearby Windmill village was adapted as part of the “national memorial to the men of the Unitarian and Free Christian Churches who fell in the First World War”. In 1930-31, new premises were built at Hucklow and these, with an adjacent property called Barleycrofts (formerly a convalescent home for women) form the core of the Nightingale complex. The site is still linked with the Unitarian Church and operated as a “not for profit” organisation “driven to improve the lives of the people it reaches”.
This mission goes back to the beginning of the project, a century ago. Each year between the wars, for example, some 1,500 deprived children were brought from cities such as Manchester and Sheffield (on open-topped lorries!) for a week’s stay, often seeing the countryside for the first time in their lives, and benefiting from the fresh air, open spaces and outdoor experience. That aim is unchanged: a commitment to social responsibility is an intrinsic part of the Nightingale Centre, which still sets aside up to 14 weeks each year to provide children in need with a holiday arranged by the ‘Send a Child to Hucklow’ organisation.
Now, the East Peak Countryside Associates Community Interest Company, in partnership with the Nightingale Centre, has received an £18,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant to explore the stories of the returning soldiers and the staff who cared for them when the centre was established in the First World War. The focus of the project is a collection of bronze plaques, recently discovered in a cellar, which name people associated with the centre. Little is known about the origins of the plaques, or of the people they name, so a team of volunteers will be investigating who they were and why they were commemorated in this way.
At the same time, the soldiers themselves will be researched and a reconstruction of their experiences, and of the staff who were at the Centre a century ago, will form the basis of a permanent display and a book. The project, launched in mid-April this year, will take 18 months. It will involve research into military history and family history, and will include living history events and the creation of a guided trail around the Nightingale Centre buildings.
I asked Richard Godley, from East Peak Countryside Associates, about the intriguing plaques. He told me that 15 have been found so far, but more may lie undiscovered in the cellars of the building. Most are about a foot square, although a couple are much larger and very heavy! They record the name of a deceased soldier, his regiment, details of his death and resting place, and a note of his work for the Unitarian Church. Richard says the discovery was made quite by accident, as the cellars were being cleared out, but this sparked off the idea of researching the stories of these men. Volunteers from the centre, as well as guests benefitting from respite breaks or who are on retreats will be invited to help when they’re staying at the Nightingale Centre. But the plan is also to introduce people to looking online and consider researching their own families. Schools which are visiting will participate and they’ll be involved in Living History sessions with Jenny Bland from the History Van. Documentary records are held at the central Unitarian archives in Leicester but internet research is key, because the people named on the plaques are from a wide area in the north of England.
15 have been found so far, but more may lie undiscovered in the cellars of the building