Injured soldier’s postcard discovered

Ann Bould was looking through old postcards and papers last month when the picture of HMHS St David caught her eye.

Turning it over, she found a message written in pencil from her great uncle Ernest Crawshaw to loved ones in 1916.

The postcard, dated June 5, says he is travelling back to England to be treated after being wounded.

Ernest goes on to say that he will be in touch again when he knows where he is to be sent to recover.

But his fate – and the role he played in the Great War – is a mystery to Mrs Bould.

“The card was in a tin of very old postcards and family papers,” she said.

“We found my grandmother’s burial records for the family plot so we’ve been in touch to see if Ernest is buried in the same plot.

“If any other relatives of Ernest are still in the area, they just might know more.”

Mrs Bould, 61, lives in Bradford but grew up in the Flatts area of Dewsbury.

She lived in Woodbine Street – the same street as Ernest’s mother, who received the postcard all those years ago.

The card was addressed to Mrs Bould’s great, great grandmother, Ann Crawshaw.

Mrs Crawshaw was living at number 20 with her husband, Dawson Crawshaw, when Ernest was injured.