Cheltenham’s unique WWI Battlefield Crosses Museum – home to the surviving wooden grave-marker crosses of Cheltenham soldiers who fell on the battlefields of France and Belgium during the Great War – now has its own website thanks to sponsorship by the local funeral service, Mason & Stokes.
The new website presents the story of how the 23 remaining wooden crosses were rescued through the intervention of Cheltenham Civic Society member, Freddie Gick. Working with the Civic Society, he obtained a grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund for the crosses to be professionally conserved.
As part of the project, students from Pittville school helped to research the stories of the soldiers the crosses commemorated, and those stories have all now been added to the website.
Following the conservation work, there was a 3-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Then in 2023-4, fundraising by Civic Society member, Colin Smith, brought in donations from a wide variety of local individuals and organisations. That enabled the Civic Society, with help from many volunteers, to create the museum in a former gravediggers’ hut in Cheltenham’s Bouncers Lane cemetery that had been provided by Cheltenham Borough Council.
Colin Smith went on to raise donations from Mason & Stokes to fund the new website and from the Spirax Group to fund the ongoing maintenance of the museum.
Jessica Bryars of Mason & Stokes, said: “We are honoured to be able to support this incredibly important project. The website will also enhance the visitor experience at the museum as QR codes will soon be added next to the soldiers’ crosses – taking people directly to each soldier’s story on the website.”
Cllr Paul Baker, cabinet member for waste, recycling, and green open spaces, said: “Creating a dedicated website is a brilliant way to share these powerful stories more widely. It’s a lasting tribute to Cheltenham’s fallen soldiers and a credit to everyone who’s helped bring this project to life.”
Civic Society Chair, Andrew Booton, said: “The new website is a beautiful and fitting tribute to commemorate the fallen soldiers of our town. The stories of the soldiers that are now online will enable interested people from all over the world – who otherwise may be unable to visit Cheltenham – to learn more about the ravages of World War One and some of the 1,297 local men and women who died on its battlefields.”