A TWO day exhibition focussing on the First World War brought in visitors from far and wide and even reunited cousins who had not seen each other for more than fifty years.

The exhibition, held at Brentor Village Hall over the weekend of November 8 and 9, showed how parishioners in the Brentor area contributed to the war effort both home and abroad.

Villagers and people from other areas of Devon and further afield attended the event, along with two different branches of the Cowling family who made a specific trip from Gloucestershire and Shropshire to see the exhibition.

One of their relatives, John Henry Cowling, had been gassed and died in the closing months of the Great War. The two sets of cousins had not seen each other since the 1960s and the exhibition gave them an opportunity to catch up as well as share their memories of the village in the past. 

Descendants of Walter Holwill brought along a display case of items which had been sent back to his widow in 1916. This included his Military Cross which he had won after leading his men forward to take a ridge during the Battle of the Somme after all the senior officers had been killed. The display case also included more personal items such as the tin of tobacco he had in his pocket and his shaving brush. 

The display of work by the children of Brentor and Mary Tavy Primary School was also of great interest to visitors. This included model trenches and Zeppelins the children had made and letters written by them as if they were soldiers going off to war.

Many visitors stayed for at least a couple of hours, some expressing the wish they could stay longer.

Visitors and exhibitors alike were kept going by a team of ladies who provided refreshments throughout the two days. 

A number of the images of the village in the early to mid 20th century can be seen on the Brentor Living Archive website and there are plans in the New Year to upload more information and images.