A MEMORIAL to honour the thousands of Hull men who lost their lives in the First World War will be unveiled next month.
Wooden plaques will be installed at Hull Paragon Interchange to honour the soldiers who travelled from the station to fight abroad, but never returned.
The names of more than 2,000 Hull serviceman will be etched on to 20 different boards that will hang in the station as a reminder of their sacrifice.
David Hatfield, station manager at Hull Paragon Interchange, said: "It is such a thought-provoking and inspiring memorial that will capture people's imagination.
"We wanted to create a permanent reminder that would sit in a prominent location in the city so people will not forget the tragic events of the war."
Peter Grundy, secretary of the Hull branch of the Royal British Legion, said the group was looking forward to honouring Hull's fallen heroes.
He said: "There is no other memorial of this kind in the city – this is a first for Hull and for the Royal British Legion.
"We have always needed something that properly marks the sacrifices that were made during the First World War, so we're very pleased with this."
The plaques will be installed on the arches near the Ferensway entrance to the station and are due to be unveiled on Remembrance Sunday to commemorate 100 years since the start of the war.
Mr Grundy said: "It's absolutely brilliant news and with the 100 year anniversary coming up we are doing this at just the right time.
"The boards look fantastic and everybody is going to be very impressed when they are unveiled."
The intricate hand-carved plaques have been created by inmates at HMP Hull. Mr Hatfield worked in partnership with the Office of Commonwealth War Graves to come up with the final list of soldiers from Hull.
The prisoners also helped with additional research into the soldiers' lives.
Mr Hatfield said: "The inmates and staff at Hull Prison deserve a lot of the credit for developing the idea and the brilliant work they have done on the plaques.
"It really does the inmates credit to see the hard work they have put in to honour these men."
Members of the Hull branch of the Royal British Legion now hope to inspire other cities to create similar memorials to their lost servicemen.
Mr Grundy said: "We are taking photos of the plaques to our next AGM and the heads of the other regional branches are keen to see them.
"We hope other people will see the great work that has been done in Hull and take it to their towns and cities."
The plaques are due to be unveiled in front of hundreds of ex-servicemen and serving soldiers on Sunday, November 9, shortly after a ceremony in Paragon Square.
