A TOWN spoke up for its fallen and their sacrifice as calls were made to secure the future of a forgotten war memorial.

When Paul Jevdet’s plea for information on the First World War memorial he found in his back garden went out in the Adver on Saturday, his telephone did not stop ringing.

The first man to call was town historian Mark Sutton, co-founder of Swindon Heritage magazine, who has long been associated with the military history of the town.

Mark already knew all 19 of the names on the plaque and much of their history, as well as the plaque’s origins at the former Trinity Methodist Church, in Cricklade Road, next to Paul’s house.

“This is a piece of Swindon history and it had gone missing,” he said. “These 19 men form a chink in the town’s history and it’s important to Swindon they are remembered.

“That would’ve gone forever and people wouldn’t have known anything about them or the community they came from.

“As they reappear we can put another piece together.”

The monument was collected on Saturday afternoon and taken to Radnor Street Cemetery, where it will stand alongside a number of similar Great War memorials to the town’s fallen.

Paul said he had received more than 40 phone calls off the back of the article, with Mark also receiving a volley of messages from residents keen to preserve the marble creation.

Mark was able to share some of the young men’s lives with Paul when they met on Saturday, including Sidney Curtis’s own residence in St Paul’s Street, across the road from Paul.

The four Morses on the plaque were brothers and all attended the same Sunday school at Trinity.

Mark said theirs and the others’ deaths would have rocked the town at the time, given how tight-knit the community was, and compared the effect to the modern day repatriations through Royal Wootton Bassett.

“It shows you how Swindon was a real community. Everyone, at that time, knew each other,” he said.

“That must’ve affected the town greatly. They all knew each other.

“When you look at the eight coffins which passed through Royal Wootton Bassett, that really affected people in Britain.

“These were eight hearses for people from all over the country.

“Imagine 19 hearses coming through Royal Wootton Bassett from one town. How that must’ve affected people. Imagine that Sunday school, with four brothers all gone.

“Most don’t have anything like a grave or a funeral. How that must’ve affected not only the families, but the community as a whole.”

Paul said: “It’s brilliant news. The newspaper did such a good job with putting the word out.

"I’m really pleased with the outcome and I’ve got a little bit of knowledge out of it.”

The plaque will remain available for public viewing at Radnor, where open days and formal memorial events are regularly organised by Mark.