This memorial remembers the 17 airmen who died while training on Port Meadow flying aerodrome in the First World War. It is situated in the former bathing area near the carpark, and was unveiled on 23 May 2018 by Tim Stevenson, the Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire.
The plaque on the front of the memorial (above) shows the emblems of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Air Force, and the text below reads:
In grateful memory of those / who served in or with the / Royal Flying Corps and later / the Royal Air Force, and who / died in flying accidents in / 1917 and 1918 while stationed / at or visiting the flying training / aerodrome south of this point / on Port Meadow / ERECTED IN MAY 2018
The plaque on the memorial is shown below. This image is followed by a transcription, with links for each airman to (1) his page on the Commonwealth War Grave's Commission website (CWGC) and (2) a PDF biography by Peter Smith
Per Ardua Ad Astra |
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Lt. E.D. WALLACE (CWGC page) → Biography |
Capt. G.E. THOMSON DSO, MC (CWGC page) → Biography |
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Lt. G.C.N. COOKE (CWGC page) → Biography |
Capt. E.E. FRONEMAN MC (CWGC page) → Biography |
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F/Sgt. A.G.B. RODGMAN (CWGC page) → Biography |
Lt. W.F. BEACHCROFT MC (CWGC page) → Biography |
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2nd Lt. J.R. NICKSON (CWGC page) → Biography |
2nd Lt. C.J. BUCKLAND (CWGC page) → Biography |
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Lt. E.H. WESTMORELAND (CWGC page) → Biography |
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2nd Lt. A.B. ANSTEY (CWGC page) → Biography |
2nd Lt. J. PACKER (CWGC page) → Biography |
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2nd Lt. S.L. STERN (CWGC page) → Biography |
Capt. L.S. ARBUTHNOT (CWGC page) → Biography |
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Capt. E.F. NORRIS (CWGC page) → Biography |
2nd Lt. A.V. SCHOLES MM (CWGC page) → Biography |
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2AM. R.R. HUMPHREYS (CWGC page) → Biography |
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BBC Oxford: “WW1 memorial: Port Meadow stone marks men killed near airfield”
Oxford Mail, 24 May 2018: “Memory of 17 airmen 'lost in the mists of time' to live on in Port Meadow”
Short film of the ceremony by Tony Hadland
Bristol Scout C biplane (RNAS No. 1264) at the ceremony
The Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire unveils the memorial
The plaque on the nearby Airmen's Bridge (which is not a war memorial and has no connection to the men remembered here) refers to two officers of the Royal Flying Corps who in 1912 crashed in their monoplane to the north of that bridge, which was renamed in their honour.
This memorial on the Database of the Imperial War Museums: RFC/RAF Port Meadow Airfield, Wolvercote
War Memorials Online: WMO258715
