Neasham Village Hall was built in 1903 by a local landowner as a meeting place on Sockburn Lane at the junction of four roads in to the village. Known locally as the Reading Room it is now used as a centre for all manner of village activities (1). The hall is known to contain a First World War memorial roll of honour encased in a triptych (decorative memorial wall cabinet with opening doors). The triptych is associated with a 'Service-Oak' tree that was planted just outside the building as a memorial to men of the village who served and died in the Great War. The tree is still there and the triptych is now located inside having suffered weather damage during its time attached to the outside of the building (2-3).

The triptych is one of a number of memorials that were made from timbers of HMS Britannia - in County Durham there is another 'Britannia' triptych of very similar dimensions and style in Holy Trinity Church, Eggleston.