Press Release: 100 Years Ago: Salford at War
To commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of World War One, Salford Museum and Art Gallery, working in partnership with the community has put together an incisive exhibition, focusing on people with a connection to Salford and their stories.
People from the community have volunteered to research and write about different aspects of the war and their family members. Such as Charlie Hunter, a Salford Pal who fought at the Somme, Dr James Niven, who helped to fight the Spanish Flu epidemic, Jack Trenbath, a Salford soldier that fought in the trenches and Minnie Wood, a nurse trained at Salford and was awarded the Royal Red Cross and OBE.
These are just some of the stories, during World War One many local men served in the armed forces, whilst men and women helped with the war effort at home. Salford was renowned for its Pals Battalions and raised four, which was more than many larger British cities. Pals Battalions were a way of encouraging men to recruit into the army with their friends from the same area, occupation or club. Over the four year conflict 15,000 served in the Salford Pals. On the first day of the battle of the Somme, 1 July 1916, almost 1,000 men from three Salford Pal battalions were lost in one day. Just part of the sacrifice that was made locally.
As well as these stories you will be able to view diaries of soldiers and letters sent home from the front line. To try and bring this period to our younger generations we will be recreating a recruitment office for children to experience what it would have been like.
So to learn more about how Salford contributed and the sacrifices made come along to the exhibition, on display at Salford Museum and Art Gallery from Saturday 15 March 2014 to Sunday 15 November 2015.
Contact for further information, images, quotes etc
Notes for the editor:
Salford Community Leisure provides sport, leisure and cultural services in the city. We manage a wide variety of facilities and activities across the eight neighbourhood areas within the city, including sport and leisure facilities, community centres, libraries, community use high schools, museums and the Music and Performing Art Service.
Salford Museum and Art Gallery presents an exciting programme of permanent displays and changing contemporary exhibition together with a range of events and activities guaranteed to inspire.
Ordsall Hall - Salford's Grade 1 listed Tudor manor house - was first recorded in 1177. Since then, it has been home to medieval gentry, Tudor nobility, Catholics loyal to the crown, butchers, farmers, an Earl, an artist, priests, scout troops, mill workers, cows and several ghosts!
Today, it is an engaging heritage site open to visitors 5 days a week throughout the year. Surrounded by landscaped grounds, it boasts hands on exhibitions, immersive room settings and a small cafe.