Thousands of love letters exchanged between Frank and May Watson during World War Two have been digitized by the University of Oxford. Frank was captured by Japanese forces in 1942, while May wrote to him daily. Their son, Andrew, discovered these letters during the Covid lockdown, finding about 1,000 messages from his mother. These letters, along with other mementoes, are part of the University’s Their Finest Hour project. Andrew believes the collection can provide valuable insights into the experiences of those who lived through the war.
Frank Watson was captured by Japanese forces in 1942 and held in a prisoner of war camp for four years. His wife May wrote to him almost daily, despite being unable to send her letters.
The letters included about 1,000 from his mother, whose daily messages each covered two sides of A4. Mr. Watson noted, 'She must have known that they would never be sent.'
The University of Oxford has digitized the correspondence and other mementoes as part of its Their Finest Hour project, which aims to preserve personal stories and objects from the war.
Mr. Watson believes that the collection can provide insight into what it felt like to be caught up in a world war, emphasizing, 'each generation can learn from the mistakes of the past.'
Collection
[
|
...
]