Newcastle Evening Chronicle - Friday 04 February 1921 (page 9) reported: 'GATESHEAD WAR MEMORIAL. South Country Architect's Design Chosen. Gateshead War Memorial Committee met at Gateshead Town Hall last night, under the chairmanship of the Mayor (Ald. Clough), when it was decided that Mr. J .W. Spink, ("Eques"), of Kingston-on-Thames, be appointed architect for the War Memorial. "Eques'" design for a hollow type of memorial, with a chamber in the centre in which a roll of honour could be erected. It is to be executed in stone, and the doorway to a chamber placed the centre, with an ornamental bronze door. Recessed in the stone shaft over the doorway is a cast bronze panel bearing a male in relief symbolising "Unconquerable manhood." The whole is surmounted by an ornamental pedestal. It is proposed to use grey granite for the memorial. At the base, the monument is to be 14 feet 9 inches by 11 feet 6inches, and the height is to be 33 feet 7 inches. The cenotaph is to be placed centrally, between the two roads at the junction of Durham Road and Prince Consort Road, and will be 40 yards from the Vicarage (St Edmund's). The curtain wall, which is to be erected in the rear of the memorial, has been designed on simple lines, both with a view of economy, and in order to provide a quiet, dignified background for the rather more ornate cenotaph. The wall is to be 6 feet 9 inches in height, and is to be built in brickwork 14 inches thick, faced on one side with stone and moulded capping, similar to that of the cenotaph, and with projecting rusticated piers 2 feet 3 inches wide. This curtain wall will be broken up in bays which will give it a somewhat enclosed character, and slightly reduce its total length, and the splays are such that they will intersect the walls, which is also an advantage. The length of the curtain wall is to be 100 feet, and it will connect both walls of the Durham and Prince Consort thoroughfares. At present the fund stands at £4,800, but another appeal is to be made to the public.' https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000726/19210204/009/0009

Newcastle Daily Chronicle - Monday 11 July 1921 (page 10) reported: 'GATESHEAD’S BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE. The Gateshead War Memorial Committee are collecting the names of all Gateshead men who lost their lives in the war, and already about 1,400 names have been received by the joint secretaries, Mr. George Gill, of West Street and Major Crouch, of the Drill Hall, Alexandra Road. Every effort has been made to see that no name is left out of the Book of Remembrance, which is to find a resting place for all time in the war memorial to be erected at the junction of Prince Consort Road and Durham Road. The committee feel that there are still some names missing of Gateshead men who made the supreme sacrifice, and they will be glad if relatives or friends will forward any particulars they may have regarding soldiers of the town who lost their lives and whose names have not already been sent in'. https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001634/19210711/226/0010

Newcastle Evening Chronicle - Monday 15 May 1922 (page 6) printed a lengthy report, which began: 'THE CENOTAPH AT GATESHEAD. Unveiled by Major-General Sir Percy Wilkinson. The ceremony of unveiling Gateshead war memorial on Sunday, a massive cenotaph erected in a commanding position on the main entrance to the town from the south, was witnessed by many thousands of persons. In addition to the public, the 9th D.L.I. (T.F.) were present in full force, also contingents of the N.F., R.N.V.R., Scouts, Girl Guides, and nurses, under Colonel Henderson. Others present included the Mayor (Ald. Sir John Maccoy) and members of the Council, the Bishop of Durham, Major-General Sir Percy Wilkinson, Admiral Slayter, Colonel F.H. Simpson, Colonel Stephenson, Colonel W.C. Blackett, and Colonel Spence. Ald. W. Clough, who was Mayor when the memorial project took shape, presided, and said the scheme had cost £5,000 and the memorial was opened free of debt. It commemorated between 18,000 and 20,000 serving soldiers, of whom 1,700 did not return. He concluded by handing the memorial over to the Mayor, who, in accepting it on behalf of the town, said he hoped succeeding generations when they looked upon it would remember what their forefathers had done for them. Sir Percy Wilkinson unveiled the memorial. He said the memorial must not only be a shrine kept in green for ever what the men had done, but for a place where the young should come and learn the two great lessons of patriotism and self-sacrifice. And it must be remembered that duty to the deceased was not fulfilled unless we remember those still bearing the burden, the widows, the orphans, wounded, sick and unemployed. Only in that way could we show our belief in the great cause for which the men gave their lives. The Bishop of Durham dedicated the cenotaph, and remarked that he was glad the memorial was definitely associated with an act of religion, for the dedication meant belief in the life everlasting. The soldiers fired three volleys, and then followed the "Last Post", and "Reveille"... ' [The report mentioned that, after the main ceremony, Sir Percy unlocked the door of the vault 'and a small party went inside and saw the ever-burning lamp kindled, afterwards inspecting the Book of Remembrance, which reposed on a stone lectern']. https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000726/19220515/006/0006

Carter Postcard Collection

Gateshead Post, Thursday 30 July 1981 (page 21) reported: 'RETIRED AIRMAN SAM SEARCHES IN VAIN. RETIRED airman Sam Harris came to Gateshead to pay his respects to friends killed during World War Two. But he was shocked to find there was no memorial to the dead of the 1939-45 war. And the key to the Cenotaph, which was rededicated in 1966, was missing. Mr Harris, who was a flight lieutenant during the war, spent over five hours in Gateshead. With his wife, he broke a journey home holiday to Keighley, West Yorkshire, to pay his respects. But their search which started at 9 a.m. was fruitless. Mr Harris was looking for a memorial to Jack Stalker, who was killed when his Stirling bomber crashed in November 1943. MISSION Reported missing in 1944 was his friend Gordon Cormie, who had been on a bombing mission over the Balkans. Both men lived within a few doors of each other in Gateshead. Mr Harris found memorials to the Gateshead dead of the First World War, the Boer War, and the Durham Light Infantry. But there was nothing to commemorate the fallen of the Second World War. His search led him to Gateshead Library, where the local history section discovered that the Cenotaph was rededicated to the dead of both wars in 1966. He was shown a roll of honour for the first war, and staff thought that the roll for the second war was in the Cenotaph. But they were unsure where the key was. Staff at the Shipley Art Gallery were helpful, but could shed no light on the mystery. They volunteered to make inquiries, and Mr and Mrs Harris spent an hour touring the gallery while the search went on. By midday a key had been found - but failed to open the cenotaph door. The Harrises were then directed to the Town Hall and then back to the town library, where staff thought they had found the key. But it turned out to be the same key as before - and once again failed to open the Cenotaph. So Mr Harris left for home, without finding the roll of honour - where he hoped to check if Gordon Cormie had survived. "I would like to know if Gordon died in the Balkans," he said. And I would also like to know if there is a roll of honour - it should be on display for all to see.” Following inquiries by the 'Post', it appears that a Roll of Honour was never compiled for the Second World War. Staff at the library have found the key to the Cenotaph since Mr Harris' visit, but the memorial contains only a Roll of Honour for the first war. "The lock on the Cenotaph was changed two years ago after a break-in," said Mr Tom Marshall at the library. "We tried the old key during Mr Harris' visit, and have since found the new one. But we can find no trace of a roll of honour for the second war, and can only think that one was never made." If anyone does know what happened to Gordon Cormie, or to "Geordie" Heddon of Newcastle, Mr Harris would like to hear from them. He can be contacted through the 'Post'.' https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0004697/19810730/021/0021

North East War Memorials Project; has extensive information about the history of the Cenotaph (including a copy of the Souvenir Programme, re the unveiling in May 1922, etc). https://www.newmp.org.uk/memorial/cenotaph-1914-18-1939-45-roadside-g39-001/