Thurs a.m.
Everything has been so exciting! I have a very nice cabin and the three other girls are nice too although I have met a New Haven girl I like very much - Have not met the conductor or hostess as yet but will after breakfast. Gifts and letters were being left for me all afternoon and evening - but yours were the only flowers. They gave me a real thrill and were packed so beautifully. I even found a large box of assorted nuts when I got in last night and today I see my folks! The sea is rolling a little but I like it so far. Keep well - and thanks for all you did to give me a fine send off -lovingly -Janet
I hope Janet's folks don't mind being mentioned in the same sentence as the box of assorted nuts.
The Transylvania was built in 1925 for the Anchor Line of Glasgow. In 1939, the ship was requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted to an armed merchant cruiser for use in WWII. The HMS Transylvania was torpedoed and sunk in 1940 by a German submarine. The wreck remains upright and nearly intact on the seabed. You can see underwater pictures of it here.
Oddly enough, there was an earlier SS Transylvania passenger liner, built in 1914 by the Anchor Line. Guess what happened to her? Well, she was requisitioned by the Admiralty and used as a troop ship for WWI. She was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine in 1917. There may be a lesson here; it is either: 1. Don't name your ship the SS Transylvania, or 2. Don't let the military know that you have a passenger liner. Well, maybe that's not it...what do you think?
What a cool postcard. It made me think about the cruise I went on a few years ago. What a difference it is now compared to 1931. It says the sea is rolling a little. I bet it could have been rough, compared to the smooth sailing we experience now.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. That was awesome.
Transylvania literally means "across the forest," which is a weird name for a ship. Except maybe the one in Fitzcarraldo.
ReplyDeleteI love old ship postcards like this, but the assorted nuts sentence is priceless.
ReplyDeleteLovely watercolor. I love the sky. Have you been able to decipher the name of the painter?
ReplyDeleteI posted some old Cunard line menus last year that had some wonderful watercolors of Queen Mary, the Ascania, and the Brittania. It's always interesting to see how each artist handles the water and waves.
What a great card, and how fascinating to see someone back in 1931 marking her cabin on the ship picture, just like I did on a postcard I sent from my first cruise, taken in 2007!
ReplyDeleteThe initials of the artist look like WTM or WFM. It's really hard to tell. It's a very romantic depiction though. I'm sure first class was romantic, and maybe second class too, but I wonder what third class was like.
ReplyDeleteRobert, you may have inspired me to do a low-budget remake of Fitzcarraldo. I would never drag an actual ship over the mountains though. That's what video-editing software is for. My version might look a little more like the old Japanese monster movies.
Oh to be so giddy about assorted nuts .. .
ReplyDeleteI must say I'd probably think twice about setting
sail on a ship named the Transylvania - though she was quite a beauty!
Jjj
Really Nice Postcard. Did a great job by specify this postcard writing.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to reading these every day, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Brandon!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like she was sharing a cabin with three other passengers (the other girls). That would suggest she was most likely traveling in the third or tourist class. "Steerage" more or less disappeared with the sharp limits on immigration imposed in the 1920's. The location of her cabin would also seem to suggest tourist class accommodations.
ReplyDeleteMy Great Grandmother Nora McGourty was on the maiden journey on the SS Transylvania on 12th Set 1925 from Glasgow to New York. Great postcard! Regards, Simon Weir
ReplyDeleteSimon, thanks so much for stopping by. Somehow it brings these cards to life when they are connected to a real human. I hope Nora had a great trip.
ReplyDeleteMy grandfather remembers his trip to visit family in Ireland aboard this ship. I love to listen to his stories. It was quite an adventure for a small boy. He told his classmates about it when he got back to Pennsylvania and ended up in the principal's office for lying. The teacher was very upset with him until his parents showed up with pictures of the trip and validated his story. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Christine, Nora never returned to Scotland but remarried a John Murphey and settled in West Chester pike,Pennsylvania. She had 2 more children, Peggy & Johnny, but we lost touch in the 1960s.Been searching for them ever since!!
ReplyDeleteSimon,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you've found a little more information anyway. I assume you have tried ancestry.com? Good luck!
Where was the SS Transylvania sailing to in 1931?
ReplyDeleteMy Grandfather was a member of the crew on this ship. It sailed from Glasgow to New York
ReplyDelete