Nottingham Trams – A Fitting Tribute

   Representing all those unsung heroes from Nottinghamshire who served 100 years ago

A Notts amateur Historian is stepping up his appeal to have one of the new Nottingham trams named after an unsung hero who died a century ago. Andrew Adam from Southwell picked the name William Eric Woodward at random from a Nottingham City centre war memorial to see what he could find out about him.  Having researched his life he eventually turned it into a junior school presentation. ‘Eric’s story’ tracked his journey as one of the first scouts in Nottingham at Backwoods in Sherwood, his work at the John Player factory and finally to France in 1918 serving with the Durham Light Infantry. Eric lived on Gawthorne Street New Basford and the presentations were initially around the junior schools where Eric lived but then went further afield and around 2500 junior school children have now seem it.

Eric’s home, scout troop and church on Goldsmith Street Nottingham (passed by the tram) are still there 100 years on and he is also remembered on the John Players war memorial in the Imperial Tobacco factory in Nottingham where he was employed. The message in the school presentations was that essentially he could have been any of the pupils, living in New Basford with his younger sister and Mother his father having died in 1908 Eric just 15 at the outbreak of war in 1914. A number of the children who saw the presentations around Basford are currently scouts at Blackwood in Sherwood where Eric was a scout, some now tend his grave and the other war graves in the local cemetery.

Whilst Andrew appreciates that most trams will be named after ‘famous’ people he feels that, in these the five centenary years of the Great war, it would be fitting to have a tram named after Eric not as an individual but representing all those unsung heroes from Nottinghamshire who served 100 years ago. A tram not named after someone well known or famous but just one name picked at random from one of Nottinghamshire’s many war memorials, just of the many who served and died for their country, a fitting tribute.

The tram naming nomination process is now open and with the backing ,so far, of the War Memorials Trust, the local MP, current scouts at Blackwood, members of his church and the current and former employees at Imperial Tobacco Andrew hopes that we may yet see Eric’s elderly nephew (named Eric after his Uncle) naming a tram outside the church where he is remembered 100 years on.

Any support in nominating Eric representing all those who died would be appreciated. The straightforward nomination form is at www.thetram.net/name-a-tram

Corporal William Eric Woodward served with distinction and died at just 20 years old