Appeal to find memorial to Admiral Benbow
Tuesday 9th March 2010, 8:00PM GMT.
An appeal has been launched to find a memorial to one of Shrewsbury’s most famous sons.
Vice Admiral John Benbow was born in Coton Hill in 1653 and rose up through the ranks of the Royal Navy.
Andrew Finch, from Wattlesborough, near Shrewsbury, today called for people to come forward to help find a display case containing items linked to Benbow which used to be kept in the old Furrows garage in the town.
Mr Finch said he felt the former officer had been “forgotten” in his home town.
He said: “Vice Admiral Benbow is one of Shrewsbury’s most famous sons yet his birthplace has all but forgotten him and fails to honour this man with any recognition or any form of statue.”
Mr Finch said there is a memorial to Benbow at St Mary’s Church and at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich.
He said years ago there was a display at the old Furrows garage but it disappeared when the site was redeveloped in 2004.
He said: “One wall was partly made up of a wall of Benbow’s birthplace. Within that wall was a glass case and in that case was a section of sycamore tree with a key hanging from a rusty nail. It was said that this is where Benbow hung his house key before running off to sea.”
More on next page
Pages: 1 2
Shropshire Star on Twitter
Keep updated with the latest breaking news and content on our Twitter feed.
Lifestyle
Interactive Dining Out map
Hundreds of reviews by the Shropshire Star and Express & Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.
Entertainment
All the film reviews
Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases.
OUR NEW APP
Get the new Shropshire Star app
Download the Shropshire Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.
shropshirestar.com
Popular sections
Useful links
To all who have passed on the relevent informtion thank you . Some very interesting facts have come to light .
Report abuse
I too am one of Shropshire’s forgotten sailors, mind you I was not an Admiral.
I joined at H.M.S.Ganges in Shotley Gate, Ipswich, and there you are put in what are called Divisions, I was not in it but one of the Divisions was called Benbow, so he must of been famous in his day as these divisions were all named after Admirals.
Duncan- Hawke- Anson (mine )-Frobisher etc.
John Cherrington
Sussie
Report abuse
Isn’t it still on the old forrows site, i thought shropshire homes put it between the steps at the front of the development.
Report abuse
Adml Benbow remembered also via the sea shanty named after him, describing how his two ship captain subordinates, Kirkby and Wade, fled in the face of the French men’o'war and left Benbow in HMS Ruby to fight alone. During the ensuing battle he lost his legs to chain-shot, yet insisted on being placed on the deck from where he might face the enemy until he died, being buried in Kingston, Jamaica. A cracking good song, my version by Kimber’s Men.
Report abuse
hi, i live at benbow quay and yes the tree with the key hanging on it is displayed behind the fountains, inbetween the wishbone staircase.
Report abuse