Two long-lost friends were reunited 85 years later after man posted his dad's old school photo

There is nothing as pure as childhood friendships. As people get lost in the mundanity of life, they often lose touch with special bonds made in their early years. Yet, somehow, the memories remain fresh even after decades of lost contact. In the UK, a beautiful story unraveled after two childhood sweethearts from the 1930s reunited after 85 years, per BBC. Jim Dougal was fortunate to have his son Alistair researching the family ancestry when an old school photograph caught his attention. 

Dougal, 96, was born in Eyemouth, in the Scottish Borders, in 1928, and studied at the Eyemouth Primary. There, he met his childhood friend, Betty Davidson (nee Dougal), also 96, with whom he used to walk hand-in-hand on his way to school. Observing the class photograph taken in 1936, Alistair spotted his father, about 8 years old at the time, and Davidson among the rest 30 children in the photo. Alistair embarked on a quest to trace all the members in the class photo and uncovered interesting facts about the people in the photo. However, the most striking aspect was that he unknowingly rekindled the friendship between his father and Davidson. The childhood pals were too overwhelmed to see each other after their last meeting in 1939, before Dougal moved away permanently. 

Dougal and Davidson met up in North Yorkshire, where the latter lives near the Northallerton region. "To describe it as a magical moment would be a gross understatement,” said Alistair. Though he and his family live in Essex currently, Dougal did not mind traveling to his pal’s town. After he moved away, Dougal was conscripted into the army and also met his wife, Iris Gibbs, in Essex. Whereas Davidson stayed in Eyemouth until 1950 and met her husband, Alfred 'Ivor' Davidson. Moving from Eyemouth to Tweedmouth, Davidson finally settled in North Yorkshire. 

Alistair confided in his father’s “astonishing long-term memory” to locate all the children in the school photograph. He eventually found out that Dougal and Davidson were the last ones standing and that everyone else had passed away. However, the class of 1936 was rather interesting as the members were traced all across the globe, in countries like Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. "I couldn't be quite sure, although I was almost certain I had traced her to North Yorkshire up to a few years ago," the son said, speaking of finding Davidson. Determined to trace her father’s best pal, Alistair posted a copy of the school photo on the Eyemouth Past Facebook group for help.

Luckily, Davidson's niece, Maureen Stevenson, responded to the post saying, “That's my aunt Davidson and, yes, she is alive and well, and in North Yorkshire." Without hesitation, Alistair wrote to Davidson and received a call from her. "Not only that, then she sent me a photo she had, after all those years, of her and my father together, along with her sister Wilhelmina (Elma), taken in about 1936 too,” he noted. The endeavor turned into a wholesome moment for Dougal, who, along with Davidson, recreated a childhood photo, as seen in the Facebook post by BBC Scotland News. “They looked as happy and comfortable together as they did way back when. What a thing to see,” Alistair shared. In addition to Dougal and Davidson, their classmate Margaret MacCauley is also alive and well in Eyemouth.