Greetings from the past:
Postcards from 1916 sent to Scottish warriors in the First World War were discovered on the roof of a railway station in Scotland as part of the roof renovation work.
These are postcards and letters found this month at the train station of the Scottish town of Cambosbaron, which were sent to soldiers who had been trained in preparation for going into battle at a training camp operated by Bancom.
These postcards, however, sent through the Scottish Railway Company's Railway Service which were later merged in the 1920s with a larger railway company, did not reach their destination at all.
Forgotten letters and postcards addressed to #Scottish WWI soldiers discovered during #Stirling station renovation project.
@StirlingCouncil @StirlingLibs @ArgyllsMuseum @smithmuseum @VisitScotland @CentralFM @StirUni @welovehistory https://t.co/1KtzrzDC1z
- Stirling (@StirlingAWS) November 10, 2021
The exciting discovery has now led the postal service and the railway company to launch efforts to reach the soldiers' families, and find out what happened to them.
Authorities were able to find information about one of the fighters, Captain Arthur James McDonald.
According to British Army records, he was wounded on 28 October 1918 towards the end of the war, and authorities estimate that he was able to survive.
The search is carried out by contacting the public, and also by contacting the archives and commemorative museums of three battalions that trained at the site: Cameron Highlanders, Gordon Highlanders and Black Watch.
Search Director Helen Agnew says: "It was amazing and exciting to find the postcards, many of which are more than a hundred years old and finding them allows a glimpse into the past, but it would be even more amazing to identify the relatives of these warriors."
In the UK, postcards are still not shown to the public because of their sensitive condition that requires preservation, due to the wear and tear that the pages have gone through with the long time that has passed.