- £225.00
FLOOD, TRAIN DERAILMENT& HURRICANE. 1938 cover posted at Fitchburg, Mass. SEP 20 to Canada, that has had the stamp washed off, that, due to flood damage, the train was derailed at Winchendon, Mass. It was further delayed by one of the most severe hurricanes to hit New England that struck unexpectedly on 21st September. The damage was horrific. Estimates vary, but at least 400 people died that day and maybe as many as 800. The Great 1938 Hurricane crossed over the tip of Long Island, slammed into New London and raced up the Connecticut River Valley at 50 miles per hour. The hurricane wiped away entire communities, altered the shoreline of Long Island, washed away bridges, severed train service between New York and Boston and between cities in Connecticut and Rhode Island. It brought down 20,000 miles of power and telephone lines. A typewritten explanation for the delay is on the back of the cover that reached Montreal on September 24 where a bilingual cachet was applied, ‘DAMAGED AND DELAYED BY FIRE’, the FIRE crossed out and ‘Flood’ inserted in manuscript. A rare cover, supposedly one of only two recorded from this incident.
