James Turner is looking to find information about James Munro, who was born in Dundee in the 19th century and went on to play for Swindon Town, among others.
Indeed, it was during his time at Swindon that he passed away aged just 28.
“James Munro is buried in Radnor Street Cemetery in Swindon,” said James.
“His death was quite tragic and so young.
“I would be interested in making contact with any relatives of James Munro from the area.
“Also, we know he played for a Dundee team called Strathmore and we would like to know any information on them.
“Our plans are to renovate his grave back to its former glory and to hold a memorial service.”
The following is taken from the Swindon Town FC fan website.
Widely regarded as the first professional player to play for the club, Dundee-born James Munro signed for Swindon after three seasons at Bolton and two at Burton Swifts.
A versatile player he appeared as an inside-forward, half-back, centre-half, full-back and even in goal during his time with the club.
He became the club’s captain, and also won Southern League representative honours.
A player who the Evening Advertiser described as ‘lion-hearted’, Munro tragically died on January 4,1899, at the age of just 28.
After the Town beat Tottenham 4-3 in a Southern League match on New Year’s Eve, Munro appeared to have caught a cold.
Days later, he was dead, leaving a wife and five-month old daughter.
The cause of death was spinal meningitis.
An ‘In Memoriam’ card from the time gave the following words:
A star from out our ranks has gone,
A light which shone the best,
No more he’ll play the manly game,
For Jimmy has gone to rest.
Gone from us but not forgotten,
Never shall thy memory fade,
Sweetest thoughts shall ever linger,
Round the spot where thou art laid.
I’ve no information whatsoever on a team called Strathmore in the 1890s.
Perhaps a BwB reader can help?
If you have any information leave a comment below or give John an email: jbrown@eveningtelegraph.co.uk
This article originally appeared on the Evening Telegraph website. For more information, read about our new combined website.