EIGHTEEN years’ work by local historians has culminated in a new roll of honour remembering Oakworth’s war dead.

The Men of Worth project has carried out extensive research to ensure the huge plaque contains every relevant name.

The roll, which lists men and women from the village who served in the First World War, is now on permanent display at Oakworth Community Hall.

It was unveiled at a public ceremony in the building – formerly Holden Hall – immediately following the village’s Remembrance Sunday service.

The unveiling was carried out by Men of Worth founder Andy Wade and Oakworth Gala Queen Hannah Morris.

Mr Wade said copies of the roll would be lodged with Keighley Library and the Imperial War Museum.

He said: “There are 475 names on it, 88 of which are those who died in the war, and every one was connected with Oakworth at the time.

“This is the end result of around 18 years of research into the men and women of Oakworth who served in the Great War. We’re all very pleased with it.”

The Roll of Honour takes the form of a framed, mounted and glazed list of names, surrounded by various shields, flowers and symbols that have symbolic links to the war or Oakworth itself.

Mr Wade said the criteria for inclusion in the original Oakworth war memorial was people born in the village, or who had lived and worked within the boundary.

The same criteria was applied for the new roll of honour, as the Men of Worth Project searched for people missed the first time round.

The volunteers used many sources: existing war memorials and smaller rolls of honour; archives of births, marriages and deaths; census records and electoral rolls.

Mr Wade said “We scoured local newspapers for further information on these people. Each person’s records have been painstakingly examined to ensure they did serve.

“In recent years the Great War Centenary has seen the release of many otherwise difficult to access archive records. These included women who served with the Voluntary Aid Detachment of the Red Cross and St John Ambulance Service, which has enabled us to mark their war service and add their names to the roll of honour.”

Notable names include Bombardier Lawrence Wood, among the first from the district to die in the First World War, on August 23 1914 at Mons when the British army first fought the German army.

The last man to be commemorated was Private Herbert Moore who, although named on Oakworth’s war memorial for many years, was not recognised by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission as he died of kidney failure after the war ended.

Men of Worth research showed that the kidney damage was caused by his time serving with the Machine Gun Corps.

Mr Wade added: “One of the notable Oakworth women who served was Margaret Burwin, who was married to David Burwin who owned the shuttle works in the village.

“Margaret served overseas in Italy and France for several years with the YMCA, serving hot drinks, food and comfort to soldiers.

“Another local woman was Nurse Susan Creek who gave her time freely at Spencer Street Auxiliary War Hospital, located behind the library in Keighley. She also collected eggs, donated by local farms for the soldiers who were being treated at the Keighley hospitals.

“Susan’s son John Albert Taylor Creek had joined the Royal Navy in 1915 and survived the Great War, but continued to serve with the Navy right through to his death in World War Two when his ship HMS Neptune sank after hitting sea mines in 1941, with just one survivor out of a ships complement of almost 750 men.

“Susan and John are also remembered on our roll of honour.”

Funding for the roll of honour, and the research leading up to it, came from the Oakworth Forward group, Keighley Town Council and Oakworth Village Society.

Dockroyd Graveyard, which is near Oakworth Community Hall, was the scene of a poignant event the following day, commemorating Armistice Day, when poppies were placed on the family graves of five soldiers who died serving their country.

The First World War claimed Privates Joseph Simpson, Lance Corporal William Norman Coates, and Second Lieutenants John Paget Sugden and John Clifford.

Private Arthur Moore died during the Second World War, as a prisoner of war in Burma in 1943 while serving with the Federated Malay States Volunteer Force.