The Swardeston Men Who Died in WW2. 1939-1945
Many men from the village fought during the Second World War most of whom returned but, tragically, four of them died and were commemorated after the war by the people of the village who presented a new organ to the parish church.
The new organ bore a plate (see picture right) inscribed with the names of the four dead but unfortunately the organ was removed and scrapped during some unauthorised "refurbishment" in the 1960s. The brass plate from the original organ was salvaged and attached to its replacement and a second engraved plate added to explain the above chain of events.
The linked pages, on the right, attempt to bring to life, wherever possible, these 4 men, using whatever records are still available, and provide some insight into their lives and families. In some cases we have been able to draw on information from surviving family members who are still in the area and there is much more general information available from a wide variety of sources.
This is another of those projects that can never really be finished. It is sad to reflect that much of the history we now seek has been lost or destroyed, as is so often the case, before anyone realised its true value. These linked pages (on the right) summarise what has been discovered to date and the collection and documentation of available information will continue while official records continue to be made available and there remains a chance that someone, somewhere, will see our project and realise that they do know something about one of our heroes after all and will get in touch.
If you want to know more about any of our 4 men or if you, or someone you know, might have something to add, then PLEASE get in touch via our Contact page.
We are not infallible and there are almost certainly some errors in our stories. If you have information that can correct our mistakes please get in touch via out Contact page.