Tributes have been paid to the wife of one of Accrington’s best known photographers.
Dorothy Dawson, 90, wife of Garth Dawson, died in hospital on Tuesday, October 4 after a battle with dementia.
Garth, of Queens Road West in Accrington, said: “Dorothy passed away surrounded by her family, who love her dearly. We were married for 67 wonderful years and I’ll miss her a lot.”
Daughter Barbara Milne, 64, said her mum was “very kind, gentle and jolly”.
She added: “She always used to say ‘just be happy and content whatever you do.’ She loved Accrington, especially the market, and was devoted to Lancashire.”
A trained singer, Dorothy loved Gilbert and Sullivan and 1950s musicals and was a member of an amateur operatics group in Accrington.
She would perform while Garth would take care of the show props and take photographs.
Barbara said: “She was always singing and dancing round the living room. She took her own photos of weddings too and was the spotter and finisher for photographs as they were all black and white then.”
The great-grandmother and grandmother-of-four married Garth at St Mary Magdalen Church in Accrington in 1949.
She went on to work with the Accrington Observer columnist and former Observer photographer after he went on to establish the Garth Dawson Studio in Bridge Street.
The former Mary Magdalen and Central School pupil was a member of Accrington’s Townswomen’s Guild and volunteered for Accrington Hospital’s Linen League.
She also loved going on caravan holidays to Cockerham, in Lancaster, with Garth and friends.
Barbara said: “Our lives will be much emptier without her. “
