Album found outside Wakefield cafe

Andrew Bedford discovered an old wedding album dumped outside his city centre cafe in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. The vintage photographs showed a happy couple on their wedding day in nineteen fifty seven.

Names too faded to read

The handwritten names of the bride and groom had faded too much to read.Bedford brought the album to his cafe, Eva's Kitchen, for safekeeping.

Historian takes up the case

Local historian Anne-Marie Fawcett saw the appeal in the Wakefield Express and decided to investigate. She runs a local history group on Facebook with over fifteen thousand members and loves uncovering stories and finding connections.

“I love researching. I love uncovering stories and finding connections.”

Fawcett identifies the couple

Fawcett used a birth certificate clue to identify Wadsley Parish Church in Sheffield as the wedding venue.

Album was stolen from storage

Michael Dawson, the couple's sixty five year old son, revealed the album had been stolen from a storage unit near the cafe along with other family heirlooms after his parents died.

Dawson reunited with only photos

The album contains some of Michael Dawson's only surviving photographs of his mother and father.

“I will protect it with my life now, based on the fact that it's all I've got.”

Dawson vows to protect the album

Michael Dawson said he thought he had lost everything and cannot thank Anne-Marie Fawcett enough. He now plans to protect the album with his life, having recovered what he believed was gone forever.

“I thought I'd lost everything. I can't thank her enough.”