The Scottish Military Research Group - Commemorations Project

lost in tilloy · Joined: 29 Sep 2007 Posts: 111

I was in a second hand book shop today and came across a centenary book relating to Inverleith Church [1881-1981]. It mentions that 97 people connected with the congregation served.

The book mentions that in 1920 the congregation agreed that an oak memorial communion table should be built. The table was designed by Mr Scott Morton and was dedicated on Sunday 28th November 1920. The inscription on the memorial read:

“Their Name Liveth For Evermore”

“To the glory of God and in honoured memory of the members of this congregation who gave their lives to their country in the Great War 1914-1918”

The names listed were:

Ian M. Aitken
James S. Dobbie
Robert Geddes
George Geddes
W. Finlay Gordon
James R. Ireland
J. Telfer Kay
A. F. Linklater
J. Russell Middleton
Alex S. Middleton
G. Hilton Middleton
Duncan McLachlan
John MacGregor
John Ormrod
T. Arthur Ritchie
Alex S. Robertson
David M. Robertson
Thomas Thomson
James B. Thornton
James D. Tough

In 1930 there was a major fire in the Church and The Scotsman reported that the communion table had been destroyed however this was not the case. The names of casualties of the congregation sustained during the Second World War were added to panels on both sides of the communion table.
They were:

Frederick C. Barwell
James P. Blyth
Thomas Castle
Peter A. M. Donald
James V. P. Falconer
Eric A. F. Gibb
Eric G. Hardy
James H. McD. Harrower
Alastair H. Hood
Alastair N. M. Leslie
Dugald McLachlan
Duncan M. Moodie
Thomas B. Moodie
Beatrice M. Penny
Harold G. Robertson
John D. Scott
J. J. M. Shaw
Richard S. Storie
Peter T. Wilkinson

Regards
LIT

ADP · Joined: 13 Jun 2008 Posts: 467 Location: Edinburgh

From The Scotsman, Thursday 11th December 1930.

INVERLEITH CHURCH

Fire Damage Unestimated

An estimate of the damage caused by fire to Inverleith Church, Ferry Road, Edinburgh, early yesterday morning, as reported in the late editions of The Scotsman of yesterday, has not been attempted.

Considerable damage has been done by water as well as by fire. The organ, which was at the seat of the fire, and which was destroyed, cost £800, when it was installed many years ago. Little remains of the roof but a few blackened rafters which were not dislodged. Part of the pulpit has been destroyed, and the communion table, which forms the war memorial, badly damaged. A clock in front of the organ gallery stopped at 1.10 A.M., about half an hour after the fire was detected.

The fire engines did not leave the building until nearly half-past four, when danger of further outbreak seemed to be at an end. Two firemen and an officer remained on duty until after daybreak.

No decision has been made so far as to where the services on Sunday next and later will be held.

ADP

David McNay · Posted: Sat Sep 18, 2010 7:11 pm Post subject:

Do we know where this memorial is now?

ADP · Joined: 13 Jun 2008 Posts: 467 Location: Edinburgh

As far as I know, Inverleith is still an active church, so hopefully the communion table is still there.

It was originally St James U.F. Church.

ADP

Adam Brown · Posted: Sat Sep 18, 2010 7:34 pm Post subject:

It is still an active church and in fact my daughters go to dance classes in the church hall. I've been inside the church a couple of times and looked at walls and windows and walked right in front of the communion table not realising it was the memorial.

Next time it is open I'll know where to look.

Thanks

Adam

JessieDenholm · Joined: 23 Jan 2009 Posts: 14 Location: Edinburgh

Five of the men named on this memorial are also on the Granton Parish Memorial. They are:-

John Telfer Kay (shown as Telford Kay on the Granton memorial). Royal Scots 9th Battalion, died 09/04/1917. He is also In the Roll of Honour of the Edinburgh Institution (later Melville College). Address of father - 10 Granton Road.

William Finlay Gordon. He is also on the Roll of Honour of the Edinburgh Institution which gives his address as Afton Terrace, Wardie. This identifies him as the son of Andrew and Mary Gordon, born 1896. The roll of Honour identifies him with a different William Gordon whose parents lived at Millport. The Granton memorial says that he was in the Royal Scots but so far I have not tracked him down on the CWGC website.

Duncan McLachlan, 1st Battalion Cameron Highlanders, died 09/05/1915. Address - 153 Granton Road

David McIntosh Robertson, 14 Battalion Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders. Died 24/04/1917. Address: 1Wardie Avenue.

Thomas Thomson. Lieutenant, Royal Flying Corps. died 25/04/1917. Address - probably 4 Wardie Avenue.

lost in tilloy · Joined: 29 Sep 2007 Posts: 111

See my comments on Davidson's Mains Parish Church. The communion table is the Great War memorial in this Church too and looks very similar to the Inverleith one. Perhaps the same man designed it.
LIT

lost in tilloy · Joined: 29 Sep 2007 Posts: 111

Adam, if you manage to get a close look at the memorial could you check that the initials next to the surname Linklater are "A F" as in the book. I'm struggling to find anyone with that name combination. I think the man should be Alexander Edgar Linklater, 9th RS, KIA 23/04/1917, of wardie. There was also an Andrew Main Linklater of Edinburgh connection who died in 1917 whilst serving in a Canadian Artillery unit.
Thanks
LIT

lost in tilloy · Joined: 29 Sep 2007 Posts: 111

I think I have identified the correct William Finlay Gordon.

The Edinburgh Evening Dispatch 23/07/1917 mentions him and the accident that took his life. The paper uses both "William Gordon" and "Finlay Gordon" when referring to him in this article and the death notice that appears a few days later.

Apparently William was a motor driver with the Red Cross. He was visiting a friend in Greenhill Gardens and they were examining an automatic pistol. They fired at a few targets and then the gun jammed. William tried to fix it but failed and passed it to his friend. As the friend sought to clear the jam the gun went off and William was shot in the chest. He died in Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary.

Both he and his friend had previously been rejected for Army service but they were about to go to France with the Red Cross. The article suggests that William had previous experience in a war zone but doesn’t specify if this was with the Red Cross or some other unit.

His father is identified as Andrew Gordon, a law agent now serving as an officer in France [most likely Major Andrew Gordon, 9th RS]. The address is Roseisle, 7 Afton Terrace, Trinity, Edinburgh which matches the medal card for Major Andrew Gordon [who is described as being deceased on the medal card although he isn't on CWGC or this Church's memorial. Suggests he may have died of natural causes after war].

That still leaves the mystery of the casualty called Finlay Gordon, Royal Scots, on the Granton memorial. The question is whether or not William Finlay Gordon was rejected outright for the Army or whether he did enlist, served for a while abroad, perhaps as Pte in the RS, but was then was classed as unfit for further military service for some reason. This may help explain the newspapers view that he had previous experience in a war zone and also why the Granton memorial has RS [Royal Scots], next to his name rather than RC [Red Cross]; unless the Granton memorial has the wrong inscription of course.
Don't you love a good mystery!

Regards
LIT

JessieDenholm · Joined: 23 Jan 2009 Posts: 14 Location: Edinburgh

LIT

That's brilliant. I've been puzzling over William Finlay Gordon for ages but it never occured to me that his might be a civilian death. I suppose that his family thought that his was a war death - without the war its unlikely that he would have had access to a pistol - and he was just as much entitled to be on a war memorial as those who had died in the forces. I am certain that he is the Finlay Gordon named on the Granton memorial - the address of the family home was then within Granton Parish. I suppose that we must give them the benefit of the doubt as regards the apparent reference to the Royal Scots. If it was a mistake, it is not the only one on the Granton memorial

Jessie

Adam Brown · Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 1:45 pm Post subject:

Andrew Grant has kindly provided photographs of the Inverleith Parish Church War Memorial communion table.

Thanks

Adam