In 1950 the Borough of Hornsey created the Garden of Remembrance on the site of the demolished 1832 St Mary’s church to commemorate the sacrifice of the casualties of the two twentieth century world wars. The Garden was marked by a sign (which later disappeared) at the central entrance to the churchyard from the High Street.
It was a long held ambition of the FoHCT Chairman Peter Sanders to replace the sign and restore the High Street entrance to its originally designed appearance. The Hornsey Ward Budget grant in 2016 provided funds for new signs and information boards and enabled the purchase of a replica board that was made by Fitzpatrick Woolmer. An original image of the sign was discovered by Frances Colquhoun in a sequence of Hornsey Council’s 1950’s film ‘Beauty in the Borough’ (part of the Bruce Castle Museum’s collection). Frances obtained a still from the film and this provided enough information for Peter Sanders to reproduce the original artwork.
The sign was installed by the Friends and unveiled by Councillor Adam Jogee at 5:30pm on the 16th December. Following the unveiling the sign was dedicated and blessed by Father Bruce prior to the Carol Service. The four pictures show the new sign in place with Councillor Adam Jogee performing the unveiling, Father Bruce, Peter Sanders and Councillor Jogee following the dedication.
