A RELATIVE of a First World War hero has spoken of his joy at the discovery of long-lost love letters the soldier sent to his wife before he was killed in action in the trenches.
David Bambrough, 53, came forward after a charity shop put out a call for help to reunite a collection of letters with descendants of their recipient.
The letters, found in a donated sewing box at a Sue Ryder shop in Fulwell, Sunderland, were addressed to a Mrs Mary Fortune from her husband George Ernest, who served in the Durham Light Infantry.
A section of one letter reads: “We had a little bit of excitement here the other night when there was an aeroplane which had some engine trouble and was forced to land in a corn field which was badly damaged by the people rushing over to see the aeroplane which landed quite safely.
“Best wishes to all at home. Love to you + baby I am your loving husband George xxxx. PS I hope you like the card.”
Mr Bambrough, an engineer at Nissan, said: “My mother, Val, has done a lot of research on our family, through an ancestry website.
“When I got an mail from people on the ancestry website telling about an article, I thought it was a scam at first, but went online and found it on the Northern Echo website and saw it was true.
“Mary Fortune (nee Bambrough) was my great-grandfather’s sister. She had a daughter called Marjorie, who is referred to in the letter as the baby. She wasn’t even a year old when her dad died.
“Marjorie was looked after by neighbour's later in her life and when she died in 2003, they disposed of all her possessions.
“My great-aunt Marjorie was really disappointed to hear her personal things were gone.”
He added: “Learning of these letters is quite emotional. Two of Mary’s brothers were killed within a day of each other in the previous year. Edward Watson Bambrough died at Ypres on August 9, 1915 and Charles William Bambrough died on August 10, 1915 at Gallipoli. And then for her husband to be killed in action on the Somme on October 7, 1916.”
Mr Bambrough said he had been in contact with Sue Ryder and was told he could get the letters after lockdown.
He said: “We are delighted. This this will be an important addition to the family archive. We want to leave a family tree for future generations and populate it with as much material as we can.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here