A drawing completed by a soldier in France shortly before he was killed in 1918 during the Great War was discovered in a charity shop in Carlisle.

Gary Johnston, who lives in Hayton near Carlisle, was leafing through a selection of pictures when he found the work, by artist James Hargreaves Morton, who was on the verge of making a big name for himself as an artist until his life was cut short at the age of 35.

Gary often spends time looking through pictures in second hand shops and charity shops in the city, and enjoys researching the story behind the art he takes home.

In this instance, when researching the story behind the picture of a farmhouse in France, he discovered that the artist, from Darwen in Lancashire, was regarded as being on the verge of great things.

Today, his paintings sell for hundreds; had his promise been realised they would be going for thousands.

“I have got a good track record with old pictures and prints, but this was a good spot, certainly the most moving story,” said Gary.

“I like old pictures in prints - not fine art. I have learned more about art from pictures in charity shops. I look for ones that interest me. I enjoy finding out the story behind them. It helps keep the memory of the picture alive.

“They are not major artists, but sometimes you turn up stories like this one.”

And the story of the artist responsible for the farmhouse picture - which Gary bought for £2 – turned out to be both touching and amazing.

The picture was by Sgt James Morton, who was shot in 1918 during the German retreat over the Somme killing fields on November 6, days before the war ended.

The picture was sent back to his family in Darwen, Lancashire, by his commanding officer in the 2/5th East Lancashires. They were sold at a large auction in 1971 after the death of his last surviving sister, Alice. Several examples of his work are on display in Darwen Library.

Gary revealed how he uncovered the story of Morton.

“Two things stood out when I saw it in the shop. It was signed and it was dated 1918 so I knew it had some history to it,” said Gary.

“The fact that it was drawn in pencil and coloured in crayon I found unusual for a picture of that time. I found it strange it was done in childlike materials.

“As I found out, they were the only materials that Morton had available, when they were fighting in France. His commanding officer knew of his love of art and found him something to draw with.”

Armed with the name and the date, Gary revealed that after several years of uncovering the history of the pictures he buys, he knows how to proceed.

“I have been doing this since I retired four or five years ago, and I know the shortcuts. Once I had found out the name and realised there was a local connection to Lancashire, what I normally do then is find the local history group in that area, and ask them to let me join, which they always do,” said Gary.

Through the history group in Darwen, Gary posted a picture and soon uncovered the story of James Morton.

“It all started to come together. An author who wrote a book about Morton got in touch and told me it was one of a few pictures that he did in Northern France,” said Gary.

There were three similar sketches in the Morton book, all drawn in the spring of 1918 around Cayeux-sur-Mer and Le Catoy in the rustic Seine estuary north-west of Amiens where he was helping to train newly-arrived American troops.

“I found a picture which showed a similar farmhouse in northern France where he was eventually killed. I started to think this could be the last picture he ever did.

“It was quite a thing to behold and have - the story of this man who died fighting for his country in France. He was 35 when he was conscripted because the country had run out of young men and they were conscripting older men. He wasn’t there very long.

“There are a couple of his paintings displayed in the local library in Darwen, and when all this isolation is over I would like to think that the picture could be displayed there from time to time.”

Gary was born and brought up in Carlisle, but left at 18 to go to university and then spent 30 years in the west country, working as a BBC film director for 11 years, and then for 20 more years on a freelance basis.

He and wife Sheila moved to Hayton about 15 years ago, and are now retired. This week they have just returned from a ‘holiday of a lifetime’ to Cambodia and Vietnam, and are self isolating at home.

But there is a chance that Gary will find more amazing stories before he can venture out again. “I won’t be going round charity shops for a while yet, but I have a couple of pictures stashed in the garage which I haven’t looked at yet.”