sharing Solihull's local history
Former Private Abraham Critchlow was the last known Solihull First World War veteran whose death was attributable to his war service. He died on 7th February 1935, aged 51, and was buried at Robin Hood Cemetery following a funeral service at St Alphege Church.
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For Remembrance Day 2025, Solihull Libraries are encouraging people to complete a Remembrance Card to commemorate a loved one who served in the Armed Forces. It could be an ancestor who died or served during wartime, or someone whose military service included only peacetime operations.
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During the Solihull Remembers project to commemorate each of the Borough’s First World War casualties on the centenary of their death, library staff worked with researchers from across the Borough, including a team from St Margaret’s Church, Olton. The names of the 52 men on the war memorial in the church were researched. It was found that there were at least 30 other casualties with a local connection whose names were not included on the memorial.
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Two local casualties of the Korean War (1951-53) are commemorated on Solihull war memorial. Corporal David Nigel Fellows, aged 20, was killed on 7th August 1951, and 24-year-old Corporal Robert Henry Smith was killed on 8th October 1951.
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Former Gunner Walter Stanley Zair died on 30th March 1923 of pulmonary tuberculosis, caused by his war service.
Stan, as he was known, was born at Lindenhurst, Trafalgar Road, Moseley on 12th February 1881 and was the youngest of the nine children of whip manufacturer, George Zair (1839-1914), and his wife, Fanny (née Blackburn) who had married in Great Barr in 1865. His siblings were:
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At 3pm on 16th October 1938, a war memorial erected by the Solihull, Shirley, and Olton branches of the British Legion was unveiled at Robin Hood Cemetery. The intention was that the The Old Comrades’ grave would provide “a resting-place for old soldiers who die friendless or whose relatives cannot afford the cost of private burial.”
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William Henry Clark, a former Air Mechanic with the Royal Air Force, died in Shirley on 25th July 1922, aged 36, leaving his widow, Lilian, with three young children aged seven, five and two.
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Major Richard Johnstone, King’s Royal Rifle Corps, died at his home in Saltisford, Warwick on 14th February 1922 as a result of contracting pneumonia. He was 47 years old and his officer’s correspondence file at The National Archives indicates that his death was attributable to his war service.
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Former Private Stephen Henry Kettle, aged 44, died on 26th January 1922 at St George’s Hospital, Doncaster, where he was receiving treatment for injuries received on active service in France. He is buried at St James’s Churchyard, Shirley, Solihull.
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On 11th April 1921, Patrick Larkin, formerly a Private with the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, died of tuberculosis at 6 Back 60, Bordesley Street, Birmingham. He was 25 years old and, according to his death certificate, had had TB for 12 months before his death. The local connection with Solihull is that he is buried at Olton Franciscan Friary.
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