The Great Flood of 1968

This has not been a day for sitting still and researching, so there is nothing new of the Old to report.  I've been busy painting some outdoor trim, staining, refinishing an old wooden chair, putting in a window frame upstairs, and generally going into controlled panic about getting things done before the cold weather sets in for good.

Two nights ago it was hot enough to sleep with the windows open and no blankets; tonight, it is supposed to go down to 5 degrees.  <sigh>.  Vive le Canada.

To mix it up a bit then, I have serendipitously found out this afternoon that it was on this day in 1968 that our family set out on the first leg of the week-long journey to Canada.  It was the day after the worst of the torrential rains that culminated in The Great Flood of 1968 (which sounds like something out of "The Vicar of Dibley", but was not as funny).  There were delays and diversions and line closures all over the South East.  

                                       

In a letter card to her parents from the S.S. Empress of England, Mum wrote on September 17th:

(Off Greenock)
Dear All,
     We finally made it!  After stopping & starting all the way we eventually arrived at Waterloo at 11:20 am.  We missed the boat train at Euston of course, alongt with quite a few others, but we were directed to the 1 pm for Liverpool (Lime St.).  There was a van waiing for all our luggage and we took a taxi to the ship.  We walked straight through all the checkpoints and were on  board at 4:15 pm.
     We all slept well last night after watching the ship leave L'pool at 7:30 pm.  Arrived here this morning early.
Much love from, us all.

Just imagine.  It's not exactly a report from a train journey to a death camp, but it makes my head spin in horrified circles at the thought of my parents with four small children and what they must have gone through hauling us all around the country, along with the worldly possessions that had not gone on ahead.  I have almost no memory of this journey at all, but there is a reason that I had a Titanic obsession from an early age.