Thame Remembers

About the Project

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is the aim of the project?

To commemorate the centenary of the First World War by researching all the names on Thame War Memorials – from all conflicts – to discover more about their lives, to identify the location of their grave or memorial, and place a “Thame Remembers” cross on each resting place, wherever in the world that may be.

How many names are there?

There are at least seven memorials in the town with approximately 190 individual names. Since the project began, we’ve already identified new names and now stand at 211 (as of January 2018). We have no doubt that research will find more and we can add these to the memorial when the project ends in 2018.

Where are the graves?

Many of the graves are in France, Belgium and the UK but the remainder are spread far and wide, including Greece, Italy, Egypt, India, Iraq, Singapore, and Tanzania, plus ocean graves where the crew went down with their ships. For instance, two local men went down with the HMS Formidable, which was torpedoed on New Year’s Day 1915 off the south coast.

Where is the money coming from?

The Thame Remembers project has been fully funded by grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Oxfordshire County Council, and financial support from Thame Town Council.

How long will the project take?

The challenge to the town to deliver Thame crosses to each grave site, including war grave wrecks, goes out in July and the first crosses will be laid in Thame at a public launch event on August 3. We aim to complete the delivery of all crosses by Armistice Day 2018.

How will the crosses be delivered?

How people deliver the crosses will be up to their own ingenuity and imagination.  It could be as simple as taking a cross on a planned holiday or business trip to a region where a grave is sited. Some may wish to make a special journey. It is entirely up to them.

Is Thame Remembers paying travel costs abroad?

No. We anticipate that those who volunteer to take a cross abroad will already be planning a holiday or business trip, and we would expect the main travel cost to be funded by them. But anticipated Lottery funding would enable us to provide deliverers with the cost of travel from their holiday or business destination to the cemetery/memorial site itself.

How do people get involved?

Where can I get more information?

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