Looking back with Ian Scott: Remembering Grangemouth's World War I dead

Communities across our district chose a number of ways to recall those days and the local men who died in Flanders, Gallipoli, Greece and elsewhere. Falkirk corrected a long standing omission by putting the names of the fallen on the Dollar Park Memorial. Several others produced books listing the soldiers names from the local War Memorials – Larbert, Bo’ness and Muiravonside – among them. I was involved in a small way with all of these and with another linked to Trinity and Erskine Churches. The latest book has been published this week and it is devoted to Grangemouth where the Memorial in Zetland Park bears the names of 278 men who did not return to their homes.

The man behind the book is Portonian Alex Grant who has spent many decades collecting medals from the conflict and this led to a detailed study of the 278 as well as others who died but whose names are not on the memorial. He also includes more than 200, including one woman, who had some family or work connection with the town. Where possible the individual records are enhanced by photographs of the men taken from the archives of the Falkirk Herald. It is hard to see the images of these young fresh faced volunteers (and later conscripts) without a deep feeling of remorse for such a waste of life – moulders and miners, patternmakers, joiners, bricklayers, teachers and shipping clerks, sailors and stokers. In fact men of all trades and none wrenched from their town and families to answer the call from those whose job it was to make such dreadful decisions.

To supplement the story of the fallen Alex has been assisted by Jim Pringle, a history teacher with strong family links to Grangemouth - and I may say, to the Mighty Falkirk Bairns! Jim has written a very interesting account of the town on the eve of war as the population prepared to celebrate Children’s Day 1914. He has also contributed the Foreword to the book as well as much information on the War Memorial which was unveiled on September 22, 1923.

Without doubt the cenotaph is one of the most striking to be found anywhere in Scotland. This is partly because of its beautiful setting in Zetland Park but also because of the sculpture which surmounts the 27 foot structure. One of Scotland’s greatest architects Sir John James Burnet was engaged to create the memorial and it was his idea to place a British lion in the process of rending a German eagle. The superb carving is the work of sculptor Alexander Proudfoot. One hears from time to time of public annoyance at the triumphalist nature of this imagery but in truth there is very little evidence that individuals or groups raised objections either at the time or over the years since the unveiling. The whole project cost £4168 and over 3000 people attended the unveiling performed by General Sir Ian Hamilton.

Now thanks to Alex Grant the people of Grangemouth will be able to discover so much more about those who died instead of just reading a long list of names carved on stone plaques.

The book is available from [email protected] or from the local history society on [email protected]