The War Memorial at the junction of Congleton Road and John Street was the second memorial dedicated to the fallen of the First World War to be erected in Biddulph.
The first was erected in 1921 in St Lawrence’s churchyard, with the names of 73 soldiers from Biddulph and the surrounding district.
The proposal for a second memorial met with controversy, as some thought having two memorials unnecessary.
Following the donation of land at Albert Square by Biddulph Urban District Council, a War Memorial was unveiled by Corporal J J Gibson on the 29 April 1922.
Funded through public subscription, a life sized sculpture of a soldier leaning on a reversed rifle, with a jagged piece of rock carved behind, was created in Italian Carrara marble by Jonah Cottrell, who had a monumental mason’s yard on Congleton Road. The soldier stands on a granite plinth, with the names of the 73 fallen solders inscribed in gilt on the four sides.
Following World War Two, a granite plaque was placed at the base of the monument to accommodate the names of 39 soldiers who had fallen in that conflict.
At the end of the millenium a second granite plaque was placed which has the names of nine soldiers omitted from World War One, ten soldiers omitted from World War Two and three soldiers who fell in other conflicts later in the 20th Century, totalling 134.
