Remembrance Day statue
Remembrance Day statue

Acknowledgements / Thanks

Photos

Research, newspaper clippings and additional photos

Website design

  • Steven Buick
My name is John McCann and im a proud native of the Iron Burgh. I now live in Belfast via Gran Canaria, Dublin, Meath, Amsterdam and Utrecht. My interest in our fallen has been for a long time but when the internet appeared on the scene I decided to look things up (though my love of books is still strong).

I began looking at men with the same name as me who died in WW1 as all my relatives survived 1st and 2nd World Wars. As I was doing this, I thought about our Memorial. I thought all the men would have been researched. When i found out a thorough research hadn't been done, I decided to give it my best to find out more of the men who left Coatbridge.

After around 13 years, this website is the fruition of that. Starting at the CWGC site to cds to eventually getting a copy of Rev Samuel Lindsay's amazing 1919 book, "Coatbridge and the Great War", I got addicted. I visited the Somme and Ypres several times in those early days and travelled home to visit Airdrie Library for more information.

With lots of help from many people here we are. I'll continue to try to find out more about these brave men who will never be forgotten. Hope some of this information helps families or even just interests people. Final thanks to Steven Buick who has made this website possible and to my family who are a huge support.

PS. I spent my 40th birthday at Cabin Hill Cemetery, Belgium at the grave of Pte John McCann who fell in 1917 on the 13th June, my birthday. John McCann, 7th November 2018
I'm Steven Buick and I've been a web developer since the mid 1990s. I grew up in Coatbridge, stayed in Kirkintilloch for a time, then came back to my childhood home where I still live. When I saw John's post looking for someone to help him make his research available to all on the internet, I thought it would be a great project for my hometown and offered my services to bring John's work into the digital age.

It has been a pleasure creating this website and I hope the people of Coatbridge, wherever they bide now, find the site informative and help to add to the details we have about these brave men from our town. Steven Buick, 9th November 2018