Boy Messenger John Farrow was injured at Newton Street, Patrol Post and died on the 6th of May, 1941.
FARROW, JOHN SYDNEY
A.F.S. Messenger. Son of Leonard and Edith Farrow of 1 Thistle Street,
Meikleriggs. Injured at Newton Street A.F.S. Patrol Post; died same day at Royal
Alexandra Infirmary. Age 16, Died 6/5/1941.
(CWGC WEB Site.)
John
will always be remembered
By Jeff Holmes
The grave of a tragic teenager who
died in a German bombing raid on Paisley is to be refurbished after decades of
neglect.
Young fireman John Sydney Furrow died just after 2am on Tuesday, May 6, 1941,
when a German Heinkel He-111 bomber dropped a land mine on Newton Street.
The device caused a massive explosion in the east wing of the West School, which
was being used as an Auxiliary Fire Station at the time.
On duty was 16-year-old Paisley lad John and fellow firefighter David Wilson,
who were in a vehicle that was tossed across the road as a result of the huge
blast.
Tragically John and David were killed, while their colleague James Canavan was
badly injured.
John was buried at Woodside Cemetery, in Paisley, but his grave has been allowed
to fail into disrepair over the years.
Now it is to be refurbished thanks to caring members of the Renfrewshire Family
History Society (RFHS).
James Smith stumbled across the young fireman’s grave while going over
monumental inscriptions at Woodside Cemetery.
Together with his RFHS colleagues, James was recording details of the
gravestones in a bid to preserve and record the details of each for posterity.
James, who lives in Foxbar, Paisley, said: “John’s grave and his headstone
looked totally neglected and forgotten. Part of the stone was so overgrown that
it was buried in the ground.
“It was in a terrible state and it was only after we cleaned it up a bit that
the inscription became legible.
“We felt it was a shame that John’s grave was in such a poor state, especially
in light of the circumstances under which he tragically perished.”
James photographed the graveside and wrote to the team at Paisley’s Canal Street
fire station to ask if Strathclyde Fire & Rescue would consider helping out with
the refurbishment of John’s headstone.
“Young John was protecting the community when he lost his life,” said James.
“I’m sure that refurbishing his headstone is something that the local community
would applaud.
“Next year marks the 70th anniversary of the Paisley Blitz, so I wanted to give
the fire service the opportunity to get involved with the project.”
And James was thrilled when Strathclyde Fire & Rescue pledged to help with the
refurbishment costs
He said: “It’s a great result for young John. He was just 16 when he died and
it’s fantastic to think that he will have a graveside fit for the hero, which is
what he deserves”
<PHOTO> GRAVE: John Farrow died 70 years ago when a German bomb fell on Paisley
<PHOTO> History fans James Smith and his wife……… honour John Farrow’s memory.