St Cuthbert`s Memorial Wall TabletPrint Page

The memorial tablet commemorates those from the parish who died in service or were killed in action during World War One.  

In March 1917 the church decided to build a memorial wall with a “terracotta” plaque to remember those who had been killed in the war. A memorial brick fence and plaque was designed by the architects Waterhouse and Lake. Work was supervised by the local builders and parish members Wear and Pontey.

The wall was dedicated in 1918 with the tablet containing the names unveiled on the 29th August 1920.  The upper part of the fence, and the trachyte plaque were pulled down sometime before 1965. It is likely that rusting of the exposed lintels required demolition of the open brickwork. Only the base courses of the brick fence remain as of 2009. The trachyte plaque currently resides inside the church. The plaque records 42 dead from the parish, a significant number for such a small parish.

NAMES OF NAREMBURN SOLDIERS. A brick wall erected round St. Cuthbert's Church, Naremburn, in memory of men who have enlisted from the parish, and chiefly, of those who fell in the war, was dedicated on Saturday afternoon by the Dean of Sydney, in the presence of 400 or 500 people. At the corner of the wall facing the main thoroughfare a trachyte slab has been let in, and on this the names of 43 (sic) men who have paid the great price will be inscribed.  The Dean, referring to the inscription, said it was good to record in stone the names of the fallen; but we who stayed behind must do more for the soldiers who return. We must try to make life tolerable for them; we must see that they have a chance to make a livelihood; and we must be careful for their welfare. He pleaded for the cultivation of a spirit of social unity, in our civil and industrial life, the development of the spirit or comradeship, which was manifested between the men while they were in the trenches together, and the inculcation of a spirit of work for the common good.   Captain-Chaplain Mackenzie, of the Salvation Army, also delivered an address, mainly of reminiscences of Gallipoli. Some of those whose names would be recorded on the tablet were men whom he had known, some of them he had buried. Mr. Weaver, M.L.A., also delivered an address. 
Sydney Morning Herald (NSW), 24 December 1918.

St Cuthbert's Anglican Church occupies spacious grounds at Naremburn, with frontages to the main road and a side street. The land surrounding the church has just been enclosed with an ornamental wall in O.K. brickwork. At the angle of the two thoroughfares the work takes the form of an entablature in Gothic style, which is in keeping with the architecture of the church. On the entablature of polished trachyte are 42 names of soldiers who fell on the battlefields. It was to honour the memory of these fallen soldiers that the parishioners decided to erect the memorial. General Sir Granville Ryrie (Assistant Minister for Defence) came from Melbourne to perform the ceremony yesterday of unveiling the tablet at the morning servlce. The rector, the Rev. L. A. Pearce, conducted the service, and instead of the usual sermon General Ryrie delivered an interesting address upon the life and work of the Australian soldier in Palestine. The pastor and congregation, along with the General, then proceeded to the outside of the church, where General Ryrie unveiled the tablet. The Last Post was sounded, and the National Anthem was sung.
Sydney Morning Herald (NSW), 30 August 1920.

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Dedication