South Yorkshire Times, October 30th 1943

Roll Of Honour

Unveiled by Dearne Council

Country Councillor A. Fouchard, (second from left), unveiling the roll of honour. With him are (left to right), Coun. J. Petty, Mr. F. Hawksworth (Clerk), Mr. G. H. Allemby (Sanitary Inspector), and Mr. W. H. Adams (Surveyor).

A mahogany roll of honour, on which are inscribed the names of 23 employees of Dearne Urban Council serving with the Forces, was unveiled on the wall of the Council Offices, at Bolton, on Tuesday by County Coun. A. Fouchard, Chairman of the Council. The roll is a gift to the Council by Mr. Oscar Weaver, of ‘‘Manora,” Rockingham Road, Swinton, whose son, Cpl. Francis George Weaver, worked in the Surveyor’s department of Dearne Council, and is now with the Royal Engineers in North Africa.

Two casualties mentioned on the roll are Pte. Frank Clarkson (R.AM.C.), who was on the outside housing staff, and is missing believed killed, and Flight-Sergeant-Navigator Tom Chambers, of 3, Harewood Road, Doncaster, who has been killed in action with the R.A.F.

Another man on the roll, who has been missing twelve weeks, is Sergeant-Air Gunner David Griffiths (R.A.F.), son of Coun. D. Griffiths, a member of the Council. He was in the Clerk’s department of the Council.

In unveiling the roll of honour, Coun. Fouchard thanked Mr. Weaver for the gift. He referred to Mr. Frank Clarkson, and said he was the son of their road foreman, and while protecting the shores of this country had unfortunately lost his life. Mr. Chambers was Assistant Surveyor to Mr. Adams and a lad of promise. They deeply regretted the loss of these two men, and he moved that they forward to the relatives of these two men letters of sympathy and that it be recorded in the minutes that they had done a noble duty. Members of the Council stood in sympathy.

Coun. Fouchard went on to thank Mr. W. H. Adams (Surveyor) for having the roll of honour placed in the Council Chamber. He said that in 1938 they were told that we had saved the peace, and then a short time afterwards the country was involved in the greatest war it had ever known. Had it not been for the spirit of the young men and women of this country we should have been in a deplorable position to-day. The Council’s employees, whose names were on the roll of honour, had rendered all service possible to prevent the shores of this country being raided by a gang of madmen. He did not want members of the Council and the local public to think that they were unmindful of the gallant service of men and women in the district who were not employees of the Council. He hoped there would be some memorial to those who had lost their lives and others who had rendered service to the country from the district and that this memorial would be placed in a suitable building where the weather could not damage it. Mr. Adams had approached Mr. Weaver who had readily agreed to give the roll of honour.

It was agreed that the thanks of the Council be conveyed to Mr. Weaver for his gift.