There were two dates which Mrs Davies of Temple Street, Nelson (Lancashire) would never forget – 16 April, 1941 and 16 May 1953.  

It was on the first date that her only son, 21-year-old Eric Davies, along with the Rev. Gilbert McMillan Mason, lost their lives when a bomb hit the Abbey Road Baptist Church whilst they were on fire-watching duty.  

On the second date Mrs Davies, along with the widow of the late pastor, laid the foundation stone –  dedicated to the memory of the two men killed – for the new £45,000 Baptist Church which was to be built on the corner of Abbey Road and Park Drive. At the Davies’ home there was a silver tureen, suitably inscribed (the gift of the architects), which served as a tangible memento of the occasion. 

Eric lived at 36 Dundas Street, Barrow and was a youth leader at the church where he met his untimely death. He was also a member of the Home Guard.  The Davies family, Mr and Mrs Davies and their daughter Louise, were also active in the Church.

Three weeks after Eric’s death they were bombed out of their Barrow home, but through relatives in Colne, Lancashire were able to find accommodation in the nearby town of Nelson.

***

The Rev. Mason, aged 47, was the son of Mr W Mason, of New Cumnock, Ayrshire and husband of Mary Mason, 27 Carlton Avenue, Barrow.

(Rev. Mason, ancestry website)

The weather was beautiful on the day of the laying of the foundation stone, and the ceremony was witnessed by a large number of people.  Afterwards, Scouts and Guides led the company to the Abbey Road Methodist Church where the Rev. H. L. Watson conducted a service.

Abbey Road Baptist Church stood in between the Waverley Hotel and Municipal Baths. All three buildings were destroyed in the Blitz. The Coronation Gardens are laid out where the church stood; the baths were rebuilt.