As a contribution to the centenary commemorations of the First World War, Wilmslow Community Archaeology have compiled an index of every soldier mentioned between 1914 and 1918 in the Wilmslow Advertiser.
The index covers enlistments, marriages and children born to visits and letters home, as well as far too often woundings, requests for information on missing or captured soldiers and deaths, obituaries and commemoration notices.
The volunteers each took six months of the newspaper and recorded every time a soldier is mentioned between the outbreak of the war in 1914 to New Year's Eve in 1918. Those mentioned were not only from Wilmslow but also included soldiers from Crewe, Stockport, Altrincham, Knutsford and Macclesfield.
Birgitta Hoffmann explained "The listings allow the extended searches on soldier's continued engagement with their local communities and the allow a fuller picture of their lives beyond their service in the trenches.
"We hope that this Index will allow further and successful research into the life in East Cheshire during WWI and hope that it will make the subject accessible to a wider part of the community."
On Monday, 9th November, Wilmslow Community Archaeology opened their Remembrance Day exhibition in the Reference Room of Wilmslow Library and formally hand over the Soldier's Index to Wilmslow Library.
Speaking at the event, Birgitta said "For most of the people in here from Wilmslow and the villages around they became soldiers but they remained local and remained part of the community.
"We hope that by putting the index together and by actually giving people the opportunity to see how this developed over the five years we will do these men a bit more justice and show for them and their families that while in the end they paid a very high price, not just by dying but what his document shows is there were large amounts of men coming back very badly wounded, they did also remain part of Wilmslow and part of the community here and that that in many ways defines them more."
On receiving the Soldier's Index, Library Manager Gaynor Wason said "It's a very valuable addition to our local area studies and our plans to develop it."
"We do have all the information on microfilm but they don't last so this preserves it as a permanent record."
In addition to the copy of the indexes which will be lodged with Wilmslow Library, Wilmslow Community Archaeology will also make copies available for sale with £3 from every sale going to the Poppy Appeal. (RRP £20 digital copy/ £45 for the 5 volume printed version).
Photo: Birgitta Hoffman (left) hands over a full copy of the Soldier's Index to Gaynor Wason.
