Canada's War Brides

War brides en route to Canada aboard S.S. Letitia

waving goodbye to families and friends.

April 2, 1946. Liverpool England. Photo: Gloster, Barney J. PA-175794.

Last November, a group of 200 women travelled from all across the country to Pier 21 in Halifax. These women are war brides... women who met and married Canadian soldiers overseas and then travelled to be with their husbands once the war was over. Sixty years after arriving on Canadian soil, they returned to Pier 21 (now a museum) to remember and celebrate. Some couples even renewed their wedding vows. Almost 50,000 women came to Canada in this way, and one in thirty Canadians are directly descended from a war bride! It is an incredible piece of history... this unusual immigration. Their stories are fascinating. You can read some here and here.

It's About Time

Canada Post has finally done it! Introducing the new PERMANENT stamp. (Actually, it was introduced on November 16th. You can see how often I buy stamps.) There is no value printed on the stamp, and it will be accepted as current price no matter when you purchased it! No more buying stupid 1 cent stamps to make up the difference. I am so happy. Buying the 1 cent stamps (which must cost Canada Post a lot of money to print at that face value) every time there was a rate increase made me frustrated! No more! Also, I noticed that you can buy stamps online, and until December 24th, standard shipping is free. So stock up on the new permanent stamps!