Memorial Archway, Gates, Railings And Boundary Wall To Newbiggin Memorial Park

The memorial archway, gates, railings, and boundary wall form part of Newbiggin Memorial Park. Constructed in 1924 by Messrs Cackett and Burns Dick for the War Memorial Committee, the archway commemorates the First World War. The archway is built of Portland stone and features bronze elements. The plain monumental stone blocks form the jambs and lintel of a square opening, through which decorative bronze gates hang. The words "MEMORIAL PARK" are incised on a rectangular panel above the archway. A projecting stone band with a stepped parapet sits above the arch, carved with a laurel wreath in half relief. Applied bronze letters above the archway form the dedication “To the glorious men of Newbiggin-by-the-Sea who made the supreme sacrifice in the Great War,” flanked by the dates 1914-1918 and 1939-1945.

Original curving sections of decorative bronze railings exist to the right and left of the archway, alongside stone memorial garden boundary walls with pillars at angles. The remaining railings, replaced in 2005, are not of special architectural or historic interest.

The memorial garden was created by public subscription on land donated by local freeholders. The gateway was designed by Messrs Cackett and Burns Dick of Newcastle, built by Mr Gibson of Newbiggin, with stone walling and pillars constructed by Messrs Finlay and Robinson of Woodhorn. The plaque on the archway was unveiled on 8th November 1924 by Major N Southern and dedicated by Canon Rhodes, Vicar of Woodhorn, with the bronze gates unlocked by Mr Cutter of Newbiggin Urban District Council. The Memorial Park was restored in 2005 and rededicated in the presence of the Duke of Kent; a commemorative stone marks this event. The archway and boundary walls together are an attractive memorial to those who died in both World Wars.