Hadleigh volunteer returns wartime journal to South Pacific

Charity shop volunteer Sally Noble said the discovery "made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up" and made the decision to track down the writer's relatives. 

The history-loving volunteer works at the East Anglia's Children's Hospices shop in Hadleigh High Street. 

She never expected her search would lead to finding living relatives on the South Pacific island of New Caledonia - 10,127 miles away from Hadleigh.

Sally Noble with the wartime journal, which dates to 1942. (Image: EACH)

The "very old and fragile" book was written in an A5 journal by a French Scout making a pilgrimage through his homeland in 1942.

“I went home and typed the writer’s name into my computer, using a family history website,” she said.

“Sure enough, a relative popped up and I subsequently swapped messages with him. He came back within 24 hours.

“I got the feeling he was a bit taken aback but certainly grateful to be contacted.”

After contacting the family, the journal has now been delivered safely via courier.

The volunteer said the journal was in a box full of old books.

“They’re falling apart and I’d describe the journal as fragile,” she added.

Sally Noble with the wartime journal, which dates to 1942. (Image: EACH)

“It’s beginning to show its age. The paper is deteriorating and pages are starting to tear.

“I wrapped it in tissue and looked after it with kid gloves until sending it to New Caledonia.

“Hopefully this shows how much care and respect we have for donations.

“We go through everything and value every item.”

The volunteer, who has a background in antiques, was able to translate parts of the journal which was written in French.

She said: “It made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and is absolutely fascinating, although what I can’t understand is how he was on this pilgrimage in 1942, during the Second World War.

“France would have been occupied, so that part is a mystery.”