The Site

The Pound

 

The site of the memorial garden, located on the junction of Pool Road and the former Salop (now Chirbury) Road, has had a number of uses over the years. It has been the site of a lock up for miscreants and also the site of the Town Pound, where any animals found roaming were placed securely until their owners came to collect them. The original memorial garden for the town was laid out on the site of the Pound on the 6th of September 1953, and dedicated by the Bishop of St Asaph, the Rt Reverend David Bartlett.

The garden consisted of an area paved with concrete slabs, with raised beds and a memorial plaque and was the focus of the annual Remembrance Service each year, where, together with the traditional service and laying of the wreaths, the names of the fallen of the town from the two World Wars were read out.

 

 

 

 

Further research indicates a weighbridge was once in use and managed by two women:

 

In 2012, the idea was mooted that the memorial garden should be renewed. Some of the concrete slabs supporting the raised beds had moved and were potentially unsafe, there was no memorial with all the names of the fallen visible in the town the whole area no longer looked like a memorial garden; and the original plaque was only visible on close inspection of the site. In addition, it was difficult to access for those with mobility issues, with steps to each level access was difficuilt. Local people were consulted about the idea of redeveloping the site and incorporating a memorial with the names of the fallen. Work began on how to proceed, and importantly, fund the project.