Southampton 2015
On this Sunday when we sailed into the Southampton harbor is
was warm and quiet. A laid back day and our view was of families enjoying sail
boating and parks and relishing that last day of rest before returning to the
work schedule on Monday.
But ninety-seven years ago when my uncle, Sgt. John Guess,
Jr. was in this harbor it was a total different view. The water teemed with
activity as ships waited outside in the channel to get in to the Southampton
docks and on the ferries that waited for nightfall to take their soldiers
across the channel and to finally step on French soil.
|
“On the morning of July
18, 1918 we woke with five U.S. destroyers surrounding our ship the Olympic
as we made our way on this last leg of the trip. By evening and under soft
light of the moon we could make out Land’s End on the port side as the ship
worked its way through the ships graveyard. Morning found us at the entrance
to Southampton where we waited silently for the rise in tide that would take
us up the channel and to the piers.
Oddly we were arriving at the exactly
same point that the historic Mayflower left from for her voyage to America.
Across the channel were boats filled with other members of the ninety-first
division already making their way across the English Channel to France.
We would remain onboard ship for one
more day before disembarking the following morning for the ferryboats that
would make the night run across the English Channel. Each ferry had us packed
in like sardines for the trip that lasted from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. The weather
turned bitterly cold and windy and was quite miserable as we made our way to
our French destination, the city of Le Havre. “
|
This brings to mind a lovely book I read recently. What good writing!
ReplyDeleteMerci beaucoup my friend. Another letter is on its way.
Delete