Photo album mystery leaves charity shop looking for answers

Staff at a charity shop in Larkhall stumbled upon a rare find – an old album filled with photos from between the two world wars.

Now the volunteers at the St Andrew’s Hospice shop, in the town’s Union Street, are keen to establish whether it was handed in to them by accident or not.

Valerie Stewart, who specialises in sorting the book donations, said the photos were handed in before Christmas.

She explained: “Before Christmas, a box of old books was handed in and one in particular, although it looked like an old black leatherbound book like the rest, was actually a photo album.

“The photos are dated between the two world wars, with men in tropical uniforms, some in groups and some in front of biplanes.

“Many also show sites in what I believe is India, when it would have been a British colony.

“We would be unable to sell such a personal item, and I would not like to throw it away if there was a chance of it going either back to the family or to a military museum.

“Christmas is a very busy time for donations. I unpacked the box and it was full of older hardbacks, mainly without jackets, and I cannot remember what books were included.

“It looked as if someone was clearing a house, and maybe a relative had died.

“I can only remember that I recycled most of the box of books and put that one aside in case anyone came back for it.

“We have since been stockpiling books for our book week sale, and that was when I came across it again at the bottom of the pile.

“One of the loose photos had the inscription on the back ‘Yours truly, Leslie C Wilson’.”

The shop are keen to reunite the album with its rightful owner, or get it into the hands of someone who can look after it.

If you recognise the album, or any of the photographs, then call reporter Shirley Bartynek on shirley.bartynek@reachplc. com or 01698 205042.