Mystery of WWI memorial 'found in skip'

The mystery plaque was brought to a church five years ago, reportedly by a stranger who found it in a skip

A plaque commemorating 31 fallen World War One soldiers remains shrouded in mystery after being "found in a skip".

Its curious journey also involved a five-year stay in the organ loft of a Birmingham church before a man learned of it by chance and decided to trace its past.

Despite the best efforts of amateur historian Rob Rolfe, the memorial's origins are still unclear.

But it is set to form a centrepiece of a Remembrance Sunday service.

Ahead of its display in November, Mr Rolfe has managed to identify all 31 soldiers and discovered they came from the same Birmingham area.

Having traced some of their relatives to Australia and Canada, he hopes to learn more about the men and where the plaque was first on show before being discarded.

Rob Rolfe wants to discover the plaque's origins

Mr Rolfe, 64, is a member of the congregation at Emmanuel Church in Wylde Green, Birmingham, and caught wind of the mystery from a discussion between clergy about plans for Remembrance Sunday.

The pastor at nearby Banners Gate Community Church spoke of a war memorial about which little was known, save for talk of a stranger taking it there, having reportedly found it in a skip.

It came to Banners Gate five years ago and was kept in the organ loft.

The plaque was recently transferred to Emmanuel Church when clergy wondered whether Mr Rolfe could shed light on its past, having researched the men featured on the war memorial at his own church.

He has spent the last few weeks trying to get to the bottom of the mystery, beginning with the names of the fallen who, he discovered, all came from the Balsall Heath and Moseley area of Birmingham.

It is from those locations that he expects the plaque originated, but so far, community searches and discussions with local history groups have proved fruitless.

Private 6714 Joseph Storer was one of the soldiers Mr Rolfe managed to identify

"I'm hoping someone will see it and just suddenly think 'I've seen that before' and get in touch," Mr Rolfe said.

"Eventually, it would be great to get the memorial put on display, perhaps in the area local to where the men were from."

In the meantime, he is content with it going on display at Emmanuel Church for Remembrance Sunday while the conflict is in its centenary period.

Mr Rolfe scoured old newspaper cuttings to find references to the fallen soldiers

News of the dead from 100 years ago

Three of the 31 are Alfred Theophilus Stone and his brothers Sidney George and William John - a trio whose relative Mr Rolfe has traced to Canada.

The men are the half-brothers of Ontario resident Stephanie Stone's father - she was born about a quarter of a century after their deaths.

She said she was shocked by Mr Rolfe's correspondence, adding: "I thought 'oh my goodness, I have to call him' and I did.

"I think the fact the plaque has been rescued from a skip suggests it may have come from a building that was being refurbished or even demolished, so it may be that its original home has either been changed significantly or simply doesn't exist anymore.

"It would be wonderful for me and for all the families referenced on the plaque to not only find out where it has come from, but also to see it on display somewhere relevant to where the men were from."