Brown Boots.

I have just spent a fascinating and rather moving few hours at a Heritage Open Day.
Quite near to us is the Moravian village of Fulneck.
I have visited a few times, but thought this would show me something different , and it did.

As well as the tour of the village, telling us about the history and how it was first established in 1744. There was a World War One display in the church.
I got there just as a gentleman was finishing reading out some letters written by men who had lived in the village, and were serving at the front.
Three especially moving, written just after the armistice on 11/11/1918
Brought tears to my eyes.

This pair of brown boots were brought back by the father of one of the soldiers who had died.
He had been given special permission in June 1918 to travel to Rouen to visit his son who had been badly wounded.
Unfortunately his son died just hours before he reached the hospital.
He was buried there the next day, and  all that his mother and father brought back were some of his personal possessions and his brown boots. Displayed here along with letters and photographs.

The collage also shows the gravestone of the first person to be buried in the graveyard. I didn't know before, but all the graves stones are the same size, numbered,  and laid flat.

The other photo is of the oldest working fire engine in England.
Manufactured in 1822 and restored by Pudsey Fire Service in 1988.
This was in the most smallest and fascinating museum I have been in.
Beautifully presented too.

Of the many famous people who either went to Fulneck school, or was born in Fulneck,  was Benjamin Henry Latrobe. ( 1764 - 1820)
A neoclassical architect, who was born in Fulneck, and emigrated to America in 1795.
His friend Thomas Jefferson hired him as Surveyor  of  the Public Buildings of the United States 
He helped design parts of the White House, including the North and South porticoes.
More about him here

Just one other thing I learnt was about a homing pigeon called
 " Cher Ami"  which Britain donated to the US Army Signals Corps in France.
Despite being shot and wounded, blinded in one eye and losing a leg, she completed her mission and helped save the lives of 94 men of the 77th Division in the Battle of Argonne.
There is a happy ending to this one.  Army medics worked hard, and saved her life. She received medals for her extraordinary service throughout WW1.

Hope I haven't bored you with all this, but I had a wonderful time!