Plaque

Chalk Farm bus garage - WW1 (at Pemberton Gardens)

Inscription

To honour the memory of our comrades who gave their lives in the two world wars:

1914 - 1918
{list of 30 names, see Subjects commemorated at Chalk Farm bus garage}

1939 - 1945
{list of 10 names, see Subjects commemorated on the WW2 page for this memorial.}

A good life hath but a few days, but a good name endureth for ever.

The names are those of men who worked at the Chalk Farm bus garage, died in WW1 and whose names were listed on a white plaque that was erected there in 1920, and has since been lost. This is not that plaque. It is the wrong shape, wrong colour, post-WW2 and looks quite recent, 1970-2010, at a guess.

We think the original Chalk Farm plaque was lost or broken, and that at some time after WW2 a replacement was made and the opportunity was taken to include the WW2 names. When the Chalk Farm garage closed in 1993 the new plaque was moved to Pemberton Road (probably the nearest garage). See the Chalk Farm page for the WW1 names.

We spotted that there are a few spelling differences between the names on this plaque and those printed in the T.O.T. report of the unveiling of the original plaque. We've noted those differences on the individual pages for each of the names.

Site: Holloway bus/tram garage - Pemberton Gardens - war memorial (3 memorials)

N19, Pemberton Gardens

There have been two bus/tram garages called Holloway. The garage here in Pemberton Gardens was called Holloway Tram (Bus) Garage, except 1950-71 when it was called Highgate. The 5th photo at Warsaw 1948 shows it at that time. The one in Holloway Road was called Holloway (Road) Bus Garage until it closed in 1971.

This garage occupies the space between Pemberton Gardens, Pemberton Terrace and the railway tracks.

Some history of this garage from British Tram Online News: "Holloway Tram Depot was a very large depot which opened in two stages on 28th November 1907 (east side) and 30th November 1909 (west side) by the LCC. Access was via Pemberton Road from Holloway Road and exit was via Monnery Road to Junction Road, Upper Holloway. After it passed to London Transport on 1st July 1933 most of the tram routes operated were converted to trolleybuses, the three routes (31, 33 and 35) than ran through the Kingsway tram tunnel continued to be operated from Holloway and were the only tram routes left in North London after 1940. Trolleybuses were operated from 10th July 1938 to 25th April 1961 and trams finished on 6th April 1952 when the Kingsway Tunnel was abandoned. The depot was renamed Highgate in 1950 to avoid confusion with the nearby Holloway bus garage but in 1971 it reverted to Holloway again after the bus garage had closed."

Our thanks again to Simon Murphy, Curator at London Transport Museum, who has been very helpful as we untangled these garages and plaques.

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This section lists the subjects commemorated on the memorial on this page:
Chalk Farm bus garage - WW1 (at Pemberton Gardens)

Subjects commemorated i

World War 1

We'd always assumed that this war was known as the Great War until WW2 came a...

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This section lists the other memorials at the same location as the memorial on this page:
Chalk Farm bus garage - WW1 (at Pemberton Gardens)

Also at this site i

Chalk Farm bus garage - WW2

Chalk Farm bus garage - WW2

See the page for the WW1 section of this plaque for more information about it...

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Holloway bus/tram garage - Pemberton Gardens - rolling stock - WW1

Holloway bus/tram garage - Pemberton Gardens - rolling stock - WW1

By 'rolling stock employees' we think this plaque is referring to those who w...

Read More

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