12 June 2020

WW2 Returm from Europe

After the Second World War, there were lots of people who needed to travel from Europe (mainly England) to Canada. Was one, or maybe more in your family?
While many were servicemen and servicewomen there were also those who had never been in Canada, most war brides, to those who had only recently made the voyage from west to east, such as those who chaperoned returning POWs from Canada. The return was a major logistical operation run by the Department of National Defence Directorate of Movements.
Library and Archives Canada has extensive documentation on microfilm. Since January this year following block review, anyone will be able to view them — when the physical facilities reopen.  They are on microfilm reels C-5623 to C-5655 and C-5714 to C-5725. There may be others.

Some films are already accessible through canadiana.ca at http://heritage.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.lac_mikan_135140/. I've been able to identify these voyages with those carrying war brides noted. Again, there are certainly others.
ShipDateMicrofilmWB
CAMERONIA1945/08/15C-5636
NIEUW AMSTERDAM1945/09/09C-5636, C-5637
CAVINA1946/02/08C-5649
LADY RODNEY1946/02/23C-5649
SCYTHIA1946/03/02C-5649
AQUITANIA1946/03/03C-5649WB
MAURETANIA1946/03/07C-5649
LADY NELSON1946/03/23C-5649
LADY RODNEY1946/03/24C-5649
LETITIA1946/03/04C-5650WB
JOHNS HOPKINS1946/03/09C-5650
ILE DE FRANCE1946/03/17C-5650
SMITER1946/03/18C-5650WB
HMS TRUMPETER1946/03/19C-5650
AQUITANIA1946/03/23C-5650WB
SCYTHIA1946/03/27C-5650
MAURETANIA1946/03/28C-5650WB
HMS PREMIER1946/04/01C-5650
MATAROA1946/04/04C-5650
EMPIRE MACCALLUM1946/02/21C-5651
LETITIA1946/04/03C-5651
ILE DE FRANCE1946/04/05C-5651
AQUITANIA1946/04/10C-5651WB
LADY RODNEY1946/04/20C-5651
LETITIA1946/04/26C-5651WB
AQUITANIA1946/05/01C-5652WB
LADY NELSON1946/05/08C-5652
QUEEN MARY1946/05/09C-5652WB
LADY RODNEY1946/05/25C-5652
ILE DE FRANCE1946/04/23C-5652, C-5651
QUEEN MARY1946/06/15C-5654, C-5655WB
AQUITANIA1946/06/27C-5655WB
LETITIA1946/07/19C-5655WB
GEORGIC1946/07/15C-5720
AQUITANIA1946/07/27C-5720
QUEEN MARY1946/08/12C-5720, C-5721WB
LETITIA1946/08/13C-5721
AQUITANIA1946/08/16C-5721WB
LADY NELSON1946/08/19C-5721WB
LADY RODNEY1946/09/10C-5721
MAURETANIA1946/08/24C-5721, C-5722WB
QUEEN MARY1946/08/31C-5722
AQUITANIA1946/09/04C-5722
LETITIA1946/09/11C-5722WB
LADY NELSON1946/10/10C-5724WB
AQUITANIA1946/10/13C-5724
LADY RODNEY1946/10/17C-5724
SCYTHIA1946/10/31C-5724
EMPIRE BRENT1946/11/01-1946/11/30C-5724WB
LADY RODNEY1946/11/14C-5724WB
SAMARIA1946/11/19C-5724
SEA ROBIN1946/11/12C-5725
EMPIRE BRENT1946/12/12C-5725WB
SAMARIA1946/12/17C-5725
AQUITANIA1946/12/29C-5725

Judging by just one voyage, that of the Letitia with war brides on film C-5621, the detail is remarkable — husband's regimental number, rank, name, religious denomination, wife's name, denomination, if pregnant how far along, children name and age, the destination address, name of the person receiving them and their relationship. There's lots more detail on the voyage such as handling (and mishandling) of baggage.
While unindexed, so not easy to research, the records reward the diligent investigator with a lot of detail.



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