Welcome to the Storrington and District Museum

First World War Centenary

Before the end of the First World War two local Storrington sisters, Mrs Powell and Miss Petre, commissioned a Roll of Honour for the fallen of the village or for those closely associated to it, including the students of the College, a local institution in Church Street, which coached for entry into the Services and universities. A local artist, Mr Paul Hardy, painted a 3 feet by 2 feet panel enclosing the names within a painted representation of St George in armour. The panel was fixed on the wall of the White Horse Hotel and was unveiled by Miss Petre. Eventually, the Roll become three panels.

At some later stage in the latter part of the 20^th Century, the panels were removed from their wall and lost. Two of the panels have recently been re discovered and the hunt is on for the third.

In the meantime, a local group had been formed and, with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, researched the names on the two discovered panels and attempted to find the names of those men who might have been listed on the third. With the consent of the land owner gained and permission from the local planning authorities, the re-created panels were returned to their original position in the village Square on 11^th November 2014.

Storrington Remembering

 John Cunliffe Pickersgill Cunliffe

Captain with the 6^th Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment, John C Pickersgill Cunliffe died on 4^th June 1915 in the Dardanelles and is commemorated on the Helles Memorial in Turkey, the Storrington and Haileybury War Memorials, The Storrington Roll of Honour and in the Storrington Book of Remembrance.            

John Cunliffe Pickersgill Cunliffe was born on 27^th January 1884 and baptised on 1^st March in the same year at St Mary, Oxted Surrey, the son of Charles Pickersgill Cunliffe and Evelyn Audrey Pickersgill Cunliffe nee Masters, the first of their 4 children.

John was given the same name as Charles’ father and their second son, who was born in Sullington, was given the name Evelyn Edward Pickersgill Cunliffe. The 1891 census shows that the 3^rd child, a daughter called Valentine, was also born in Sullington. By the time of the 1891 census the family (with their servants) were residing in Burgate, Godalming, Surrey although Charles was not present on the night of the census as he was visiting the Felton family at Sandgate House, Sullington. On the 1891 census his occupation was shown as “brewer” although by 1901 he was describing himself as being of “independent means”. The 1901 census shows Charles and Evelyn and their two daughters were living at Beacon Park, Frensham (near Farnham) Surrey (where Charles died on 26^th September 1905 aged 42) while both boys were at Haileybury College in Hertfordshire. 

Haileybury was originally built by the East India Company as a training college for civil servants to staff India. It had closed in 1854 but re opened 4 years later as a public school The school’s records of the men listed on its War Memorial show that John was at the school from 1896 until 1902, although De Ruvigny’s Roll of Honour 1914-1918 says that John joined the Sussex Militia in 1898 (aged14?) and served with them in the Boer War 1901-2. The Roll of Honour site for Sussexsays that the 3^rd Battalion volunteered for overseas service and embarked for the Cape on 29^th March 1901 where it undertook duties on lines of communication, security and as convoy guards, returning on 11^th September 1902. De Ruvigny also states that John was gazetted to the 2nd Worcestershire Regiment on 4^th July 1903 as Lieutenant. The 1911 Census shows him as being with that Battalion in India aged 27 years, the 1911 census also showed John’s mother (who dropped the “Evelyn” and was enumerated as Audrey) living at Cobb Court Cootham with her daughter Valentine. It is this address that is shown as his residence on the Probate Calendar of 1915.

De Ruvigny’s Roll says that John retired from the Army on 1^st July 1913 and took part in the Cape to Cairo Motor Expedition.

 (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/10174069/The-African-expedition-doomed-for-disaster.html )     

On the outbreak of war he rejoined his old Regiment and embarked for France on 27^th August 1914. He was promoted to Captain on 1^st September and was injured on 24^th October near Lille, being invalided back to England. He had recovered by 12^th May 1915 and embarked to rejoin his Regiment in the Dardanelles where he was shot in the head on 4^th June while exhorting his men to advance.

John was awarded the 1914 Star, the Victory and British War Medals.

 Taken from the Helles Memorial

 Helles Memorial, Gallipoli