Military Monday: Canadian War Brides to Britain

Many British men were in Canada during WW2 with the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP). Inevitably romance occurred, often marriage.

In July 1944 a train travelled from British Columbia collecting Canadian wives and children of British servicemen. After four nights in Montreal, they continued to New York, boarded the Union-Castle line “Athlone Castle” in convoy to Londonderry, onward to Liverpool arriving on Wednesday 23 August. The voyage had 2 couples, 7 unaccompanied men, 562 unaccompanied women, 265 children and infants.

The passenger list is archived at TNA; Board of Trade: Commercial and Statistical Department and successors: Inwards Passenger Lists.; Class: BT26; Piece: 1206. It’s available indexed with links to the original list image on Ancestry.

Newspaper research identifies other voyages in January 1944, November 1944, and December 1945. There were likely others.

Next Monday I expect to post on marriages to airmen from other countries.

 

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