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Volunteers and veterans restore Beamsley Beacon Memorial

Tuesday, 21 October 2025 16:03

Sam White with volunteers and veterans at the summit of Beamsley Beacon beside the restored memorial, overlooking the Wharfe Valley (Photo: Chris North)

Volunteers and local veterans have climbed Beamsley Beacon to clean and restore the memorial dedicated to the crew of a Royal Canadian Air Force Lancaster bomber that crashed there almost 80 years ago.

The Lancaster, which took off from RAF Leeming on 5 November 1945, came down on the slopes of Beamsley Beacon, tragically killing four of the eight crew members. The remaining four survived the crash, which occurred just months after the end of the Second World War.

The restoration was carried out ahead of a special memorial service to be held at Bolton Priory at 11:30 am on Wednesday 5 November, marking the 80th anniversary of the tragedy.

This year’s commemoration will be especially poignant, with descendants of the crew of the aircraft travelling from Canada to attend. The families will visit the crash site and memorial, where they will lay wreaths, before joining representatives from service and veterans’ organisations at the church service.

Following the service, family members will travel to Stonefall Cemetery in Harrogate, where the airmen who lost their lives in the crash are buried.

Sam White, who initiated the creation of the original memorial on Beamsley Beacon and is leading the 80th anniversary commemoration, said:

“I’m delighted that what began simply as a project to ensure these airmen — who had served their country and were likely only months away from returning to Canada — would not be forgotten, has now grown into something much greater.

It’s become an occasion where the families of the crew will be able to gather together for the first time, to remember the service and sacrifice of those who lost their lives, and those who were badly injured, on that day almost 80 years ago."

The event reflects the enduring bond between Yorkshire communities and their wartime allies, ensuring the sacrifice and service of the Canadian aircrew are never forgotten. The public is warmly invited to attend the service at Bolton Priory, Bolton Abbey.

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