Please Remember (Paperback)

Whilst researching the career of my grandfather, Captain P A Lancaster, I discovered that in the early 1930s he had been master of the Canadian Pacific cargo-liner SS Beaverford. I also learnt that in November 1940, whilst commanded by Captain H Pettigrew, she had been sunk with all hands, after a long battle with the Admiral Scheer (see The Lifeline p.14). Before the war she had been adopted by the pupils of a school in Tottenham, who were deeply upset at the loss of their friends and ship and wanted them to be remembered. So a fund was started and a watercolour painting of the ship was hung in their hall, together with a bronze plaque. For many years afterwards 5th November was known as Beaverford Day and a service of remembrance was held. But within 25 years that plaque and painting were removed. In 1968 the plaque was saved by a lady who found it lying discarded and tarnished, but the painting is still missing. Greatly saddened that such sacrifice could be so readily dismissed and aware that the situation is, unfortunately, not unusual, I wrote these verses in the hope that others might better appreciate the debt we owe and treat all war memorials with respect.