A mum and her son stumbled across a love letter revealing a secret affair that had been hidden under their floor for 100 years.
The letter, which came from under a broken tile in their home, was written by a man called Ronald. His surname is unclear and could be “Habgood” or “Halgood.”
In the love letter, he addresses his married lover, asking her to keep their relationship secret.
The amazing discovery was made by Dawn Cornes, 48, and her son Loukas, 14, from Preston, after being hidden for nearly a century.
“My son was cleaning his room, when the 55 inch TV fell from his dresser and smashed some of the hearth tiles,” Dawn said.
“As we were cleaning up, we decided to take the tiles up. My son said ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if we found something hidden, like the deeds to the house’ and then proceeded to find the letter. It was all very spooky.”
After posting the letter on a Facebook group, other people helped her decipher the text in the letter.
It’s believed Ronald wrote: “My own darling, My own my own will you try every morning to come and see me.
“But please don’t tell anyone because it must be a secret for just your ears and mine because if anyone got to know you meet me and you a married woman there would be trouble so remember darling.
“I love you so much. Don’t tell and meet me every day if you can at midnight at Fulwood tram corner.
“Hoping to see you darling, Your own boy, Ronald.”
After finding the letter, Dawn and Loukas were delighted – and said they thought it was “very sweet.”
The letter isn’t dated, but Dawn has been told her house was built in 1917. The mum and son only moved in this May, so she doesn’t know much about previous residents.
But after asking around on Facebook, people pointed out the size of the paper and the handwriting suggested it could have been from the 1920s.
Others noted that trams haven’t run in the city for more than 80 years.
The discovery of the note ignited the curiosity of people in the group, who tried to use online archives to track Ronald down, but they couldn’t find a perfect match.
One person wrote: “What a wonderful piece of history your house was hiding.”
