The First World War was so terrible, inflicting casualties of dead, missing and wounded at such a scale it traumatised every community in the land. When the war to end all wars ended people wanted to preserve the memory of their lost generation and those forever scarred by their involvement in such a world changing event with memorials of various kinds from plaques to parks. Many were living memorials of community buildings to remember the fallen but also provide something to enhance the life of the community with a resource that future generations can use and benefit from.

With this in mind a group of local Forest people formed a Committee of Trustees to agree a way to honour the war dead from the area and support the community at large with a Community Hall. This Committee was drawn from the Broadwell area.

Farmer Amos Brown donated a portion of land on North Road, Broadwell to start the venture and the original indenture was created on 9th January 1920 with the following purpose: …”that the trustees shall erect a suitable building hereafter known The Broadwell War Memorial Hall…said building shall be used as a non-sectarian and non-political Institute and for the purposes of Social and Educational intercourse and for no other purpose or object whatsoever…” It was stipulated by Amos Brown that no alcohol was to be consumed on site, still an expectation today. As is the no religion/politics requirement.

Collections from the local community were raised to provide the building materials which were sourced either at cost or free of charge from the stone quarries nearby.  Local volunteers built the Hall during the Nationwide Great Strikes of 1921, despite  being on strike themselves.

In 1923, a further strip of land (a 4ft 6” pathway bordering the Hall) was purchased from the landowner next door (The Grandmother of the Current Trustee, Clive Elsmore) before she sold her remaining parcel of land to the Committee of what became the Broadwell & District Working Mens Club. So the question of where you could consume alcohol was solved!

In the eighties, the Hall and the Club agreed mutual access across adjoining pathways to create access to the rear of the buildings, so creating a modern carpark.