A war memorial at Newton Heath TrainCare Centre in Greater Manchester is to go on display at Bury Transport Museum next month.
The memorial honours 117 men from the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Carriage & Wagon Depot who lost their lives during the First World War (1914 – 1918).
It is being re-homed while essential repairs are made to the roof of the shed that houses the memorial at the Newton Heath depot.
Work to carefully dismantle the memorial has begun this week ahead of its transfer to the Bury Transport Museum.
The 117 men were part of a 37,000-strong workforce at the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Company in 1914 and among the 10,000 of them who volunteered to fight for King and country. Sadly, 1,422 of them lost their lives.
Having been unveiled at the depot not long after the war ended, it remained at Newton Heath until the original building in which it was housed closed in 1928.
It was moved to Newton Heath Town Hall but was again dismantled when the town hall itself closed down and wasn’t rediscovered until the 1990s when a British Rail employee found it in the under croft of Manchester Piccadilly station.
Its historical significance recognised, the memorial was safely stored at East Lancashire Railway for 20 years before being rededicated and unveiled at Newton Heath TrainCare Centre in 2019.
Neville Dyson, Northern’s TrainCare Centre manager for Newton Heath, said: “The memorial is very special to all of us here at the depot.
“It is kept in pristine condition and provides a focal point for the annual Remembrance commemorations.
“While repairs are made to the roof, it would be irresponsible to keep the memorial in-situ due to potential damage it could face and we are grateful to Bury Transport Museum for providing a temporary home.”
Details of when the memorial will be unveiled at Bury Transport Museum will be released shortly.
