Anita Mae Draper
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WW1 Letters Home - Jan 21, 1917

1/21/2017

 
Picture
Railway Station, Hassocks, Sussex ca 1910. Courtesy of www,oldukphotos.com

​Author of Letter: Noah C Draper, 29 yrs old
Dated:  Jan. 21. 1917.
Mailed from:  Hassocks, England
Attached to: HMS Pembroke
Profession:  Farmer, Temporary Sailor
Rank: Ordinary Seaman
Addressed to:  Mrs. N.C. Draper, Keswick, Ont.
Relationship: Wife
Writing instrument:  Fountain Pen with Black Ink
Writing Paper: 10" x 6.5" medium weight, semi-rough, folded into booklet form, but with the inside page written across the short width and all the way down the length like foolscap. The pages are not numbered.


People mentioned in this letter:
Ethel* - Noah's wife of 5 yrs, Ethel Isabel Nelson Draper


​The babies:
- Mildred* aka Midge, 3 yrs old
- James David* aka Jay, 6 months (later called JD)

Places/things mentioned in this letter:
- Keswick - where Noah's family lives (the ones who didn't move west)
- Chatham - Royal Naval Barracks in Chatham, England
- London - Capital city of England 
- Hassocks - 43 1/2 miles south of London
- Clayton - village south of Hassocks (little over a mile)



Word or Phrase Use: 

Noah always spells the following as:
- no apostrophe for contractions - dont, wont, isnt, havent...
- Saturaday vs Saturday
- untill vs until

Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing, or use the search box in the header at the top of this page
** see History Notes below
​
Picture
Hassocks. England
​Jan. 21. 1917
Mrs. N.C. Draper,
     Keswick, Ont.
Dear Ethel; -
     Well I am having a weeks
leave left Chatham Friday
at 4 p.m. & have to be back
Sat. Jan. 27 by 8.30 a.m. am
about 30 miles South of
​London. came through but
did not stop off as I had a
bad cold & thot. I would get
out on a farm and see if
I could not get rid of it. I
was nearly all right in barracks
but theyput me messanger for
the baths, so I got it freshagain
​
Picture

I do not think I could have gone to a
better place than this for they are
very kind & I think I will be all
right in two or three days. hope so as
the proprietor has invited me to go
on a big shoot Thursday. eh.
     There was a big munitions factory
blew up night before last about 7 miles
out from London caused by a fire it
knocked the buildings down for
3/4 of a mile all around. they donot
know howmany were killed &
Injured but it will be a great
many I am afraid.
​     Well we were down to the dockyards
Thursday they take us down & explain
the working of a ship. & I saw what
I considered to be the very last word
in modern warships, but the Petty 
officer who was with us said that it
was a first class ship at the beginning
of the war but at the present time

is not to be compared with the new
battle ships so you can imagine 
the wonderful inventive and
constructive minds of the
British people. say Ethel if courage
and sacrifice alone could win this
​
     
Picture

the British people are sure
of victory. at the Pub. where
I am staying there is a man
& wife & two of her sisters
the man has been up for
examination 13 times & turned
down.each time he has
two brothers at the front &
1 killed his wife has 2 brothers
her father & two uncles at
the front 1 uncle killed &
so it goes all over England.
You hear no complaint
they are all cheerfully doing
their bit for their King and 
country & one can not help
but admire the British
Bull dog grit shown all
through the land. 

Note - Noah has not signed off on this letter. Perhaps he did so on the envelope. Or, perhaps there is another page which we haven't located or matched with this letter. If we find more, we'll add it here and post an update.

​

History Notes
​

There are 2 History notes for this letter...

History Note 1 - Hassocks, Sussex

In this letter Noah is in Hassocks, Sussex enjoying the country air while he recovers from a bad cold and regains his strength. He doesn't say how he decided on the village of Hassocks, but I'm guessing it was on the advice of others since it lies at the foot of the South Downs,"...a range of chalk hills that cover about 260 square miles across the south-eastern coastal counties of England..." (wikipedia) And yes, it encompasses the infamous white cliffs of Dover. 

To get to Hassocks, Noah would have taken a train on the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) and then transferred in London onto the Brighton Railway, (officially the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway(LB&SCR) 1846-1922).

Noah would have arrived at the Hassocks Railway Station that you see in the image at the top of this post. 

We don't know which pub he stayed at, but there's a very good chance he stayed at the Friar's Oak which had been there since medieval times. The Friar's Oak Hotel was a coaching station where spent horses were exchanged for fresh ones.

The www.keymerclaytonwarmemorials.files.wordpress.com site relates the history of, and pays tribute to, the 54 men of Keymer and Clayton (village south of Hassocks) who gave their lives while defending their country. The following image is from their site, one of many which show the area and the lives of the brave men who are honoured here.
​
Picture
The Friar's Oak Hotel, Hassocks, Sussex ca 1900. From the Keymer Clayton War Memorials Files
Hassocks is 43 1/2 miles from London, according to the book, Great Britain: Handbook for Travellers, 1890, and the word 'hassock' is Anglo-Saxon for small wood. This makes sense, considering that The Friar's Oak Hotel is adjacent to another landmark, Friar's Oak Fields, Farm, and Woods. 

From Hassocks, our prairie farmer Noah, would have ​been able to see the escarpment which delineates the start of South Downs. It's called Wolsonbury Hill and has many fine walking trails even today. He would also have seen the twin Clayton windmills, affectionately called, Jack and Jill. 

This is a modern image of the spot he would have seen if he were standing about a mile south of the pub where he was staying. Perhaps not as bushy though as I've read that scrub is encroaching on the fields. The Clayton windmills are near the top right of this image.
​
Picture
The view east of Clayton along the escarpment showing the Jack & Jill windmills. Courtesy of wikipedia.
Picture
Jack and Jill Mills, Clayton, showing the roundhouse of Duncton Mill. Jack builit in 1866, stopped working in 1908. Courtesy of wikipedia.

​Since Noah visits castles and other historic sites in future letters, perhaps he climbed Wolstonbury Hill to check out the remains of a Bronze Age fort. The view would have been marvelous as the guide book says you can see across South Downs on one side, and to infinity as you look to the north. What a memory for Noah to think on when he returns to our flat Saskatchewan prairie.
​
​story Note 1 - Silvertown Munitions Explosion

On the second page of this letter, Noah mentions the explosion of a munitions factory outside of London. This was a horrific event where 73 people died and more than 400 were wounded. Instead of relaying all the information here, I'm posting a YouTube video courtesy of the BBC which relays the facts with personal accounts and images. It also shows videos of women and men making munitions.

If you don't see the video here, go to ​
https://youtu.be/BMI4A3Pzdas


I'll end this post with a graphic I made with a quote from the letter featured on this post...
​
Picture

WW1 Letters Home - Jan 14, 1917

1/14/2017

 
Picture
Presbyterian Church and Manse, Chatham. Published in The Building News Volume 75, July - Dec 1898

Author of Letter: Noah C Draper, 29 yrs old
Dated:  Jan 14/17
Mailed from:  Chatham, England
Attached to: HMS Pembroke
Profession:  Farmer, Temporary Sailor
Rank: Ordinary Seaman
Addressed to:  Mrs. N.C. Draper, Keswick, Ont.
Relationship: Wife
Writing instrument:  Fountain Pen with Black Ink
Writing Paper: 10" x 6.5" medium weight, semi-rough, folded into booklet form, but with the inside page written across the short width and all the way down the length like foolscap. The pages are not numbered.


People mentioned in this letter:
Ethel* - Noah's wife of 5 yrs, Ethel Isabel Nelson Draper
Mother - Noah's mother, Sarah Sophia Deverell* Draper, widow of David Draper
Percy* - Noah's older brother, lives near Adams, Saskatchewan
Louie* - Sarah Louisa, Noah's sister, 37, married Fred Coventry, Kelowna 
Eva* - Eva Amelia Draper Perrault, 40 yrs (Noah's sister, married to Joe)
Ethel* - Noah's sister, Ethel Maud, 35 yrs, married to Will Rigler

Will* - Will Rigler, husband of Ethel Maud, lives at Grand Coulee, Sask.
Mr. Butts - 60 yr old John Butts is Noah & Ethel's lodger/hired man**
​Charlie - unknown at this time

​The babies:
- Mildred* aka Midge, 3 yrs old
- James David* aka Jay, 6 months (later called JD)

Places/things mentioned in this letter:
- Keswick - where Noah's family lives (the ones who didn't move west)
- Halifax - historic, protected harbor on the eastern shore of Nova Scotia
- Chatham - Royal Naval Barracks in Chatham, England
- hut - Noah's barracks at HMS Pembroke 
- English Church - St George's Church of England, HMS Pembroke
- Presbyterian Church - St Andrew's Presbyterian in Chatham**

Word or Phrase Use: 
ect. - Noah spells the abbreviation for the Latin phrase of et cetera as ect whereas modern dictionaries say it should be spelled as etc. because it means "and all the rest" or "and so on and so forth". However, I've noticed that many seniors members of our society, as well as those on the other side of the pond, both in Great Britain and in Europe, spell it as ect. like Noah does. 

Noah always spells the following as:
- no apostrophe for contractions - dont, wont, isnt, havent...
- Saturaday vs Saturday
- untill vs until

Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing, or use the search box in the header at the top of this page
** see History Notes below
​
Picture
Chatham England, Jan. 14/17
Mrs. N.C. Draper,
     Keswick, Ont.-

Dear Wife; -
     Well Ethel I hope you are all well
as this leaves me at present save
for a cold which is getting better.
     We are still at drill & am getting
a little better every day, (there is
room for improvement yet
) We
will be in a seaman's class
soon I expect, where we will learn
to tie knots & ect. dont know
hardly what all,
     Well I was down to the Presby
terian church this morning
it is about a mile & a half from
the barracks, & when I got back
the dinner was all gone, so I
​
Picture

think I will belong to the English church
after this, it is only 5 minutes walk from
the hut, hope you have received your
anchor before this I think I will be able
to get out next Saturaday after noon if
I can I will get some thing for the kiddies.
      Have not got any mail since I left
Halifax & may not get any for two weeks
yet but am looking every day for aletter
I have written to Mother, Percy, Louie, Eva, 
Ethel, & Mr. Butts, havent I done well.
     I was down town Friday night from
4 30 P.M. untill 7 30 have not been to a show
since I landed but think I will try
to go next week, I am trying to do as I
would have one in my position do, goody boy, Eh.
     Well we had snow here one night last
week about 1 inch but it was all gone
by night, we have rain nearly every
other day. Oh say I got my pay a week
ago Friday. 54 Shilling that was from the
time we left Halifax & last Friday I
got 1 weeks pay 7 shilling or $1.68 cents
of our money, will soon be rich Ha Ha.
suppose you have had your pay
before this $38 you get isnt it. never mind
I have about 12 pound yet that I brought
with me have $18. Canadian money yet
will get it changed when I get to London
but do not know when that will be.
​
Picture

I hope you have the money for the
hail insurance before this, dont
forget to tell me all about it. &
wheather that man paid his note
which I left in the Bank for
collection, also that from Will.
     Well Ethel I miss my pitcher of
milk have not had a drink since
I left Halifax but tonight is my
night out & I am going to try &
get some, HaHa. I am going out 
after tea & think I will go to
Church after supper. I was going
to write to Charlie this after noon
but this is the last of my paper
so will have to write later,
     Well I guess this will be all
for this time hoping to hear
from you soon I remain your ever
loving husband. N.C. Draper
​
​

History Notes
​

Picture

This is the same map as the last post showing Rochester Castle on the River Medway, as well as HMS Pembroke where Noah is quartered. 

I've added a label near HMS Pembroke to show the location of St George's Church of England which Noah refers to as the English Church.

I've added another label to show the location of the Presbyterian Church, 1 1/2 miles southwest of Noah's location. You can see why there wasn't any food left by the time Noah hoofed it back. 

WW1 Postcard Home - Jan 11, 1917

1/11/2017

 
Picture
Rochester Castle, Cathedral, and Grounds c 1910
Postcard shows image of Rochester Castle and grounds. See History notes below for more info.

​Author of Letter: Noah C Draper, 29 yrs old, b 1887
Dated: January 11, 1917
Mailed from:  not shown (Chatham, England)
Attached to: HMS Pembroke 
Profession:  Farmer, Temporary Sailor
Rank: Ordinary Seaman
Addressed to:  Mrs. S. Draper, Rutland, B.C. Canada 
Relationship: Mother
Writing instrument:  Fountain Pen with Black Ink
Writing Paper: Standard size Postcard (Published by W, British Made)


People mentioned in this letter:
Mother - Sarah Sophia Deverell Draper, Noah's widowed mother. Since the postcard is addressed to her in Rutland, B.C., Sarah is visiting her daughter, Sarah Louise Draper aka Louie, who married Fred Coventry and recently moved to Rutland, outside Kelowna, from the Grand Coulee area, along with Fred's parents.

Places/things mentioned in this postcard:
Chatham, England - town outside the Naval Barracks yard
Halifax - Canadian port from whence Noah embarked for England
​Rochester** - postcard image


Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing, or use the search box in the header at the top of this page
** see History Notes below
​​
Picture

P O S T      C A R D


                            Jan, 11. 1917.
Dear Mother;  - Just a
line to let you
know. I am still
in Chatham, am
feeling fine, and
having a big time
working. HaHa. have
not heard from home
since I left Halifax.
but am expecting mail
soon now. ByeBye Love from.
                                      N.C.D.

​



Mrs. S. Draper,
     Rutland, B.C.
           Canada.

History Notes
​

Rochester is a town on the River Medway close to Chatham and HMS Pembroke. Noah probably passed the castle on his way to London.
​
Picture
​
Rochester Castle hadn't been occupied for several hundred years when Noah was there, and it still isn't, but it's well known for several reasons including:
  • one of the earliest castles in England to be constructed of stone (c1090)
  • the 125 foot-high keep is the tallest in England
  • besieged by King John in 1215
  • Charles Dickens mentions it in his stories, The Pickwick Papers, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood

​By 1890, the grounds were turned into gardens and the park-like setting opened to the public. 

Looking at his postcard, I wonder if Noah walked along the sidewalk and explored the castle and keep. 

WW1 Letters Home - Jan 7, 1917

1/7/2017

 
Picture
An Early 20th Century Street Scene on a Double-Decked Street Car. Courtesy of bbc.co.uk
Noah mentions that sitting in a double decked street car feels like "​riding on a boat swaying sideways." A bbc.co.uk post, ​How did people travel? shows one of the best views I've seen on people riding in a double decked street car and so you can imagine what Noah meant. 
​
Author of Letter: Noah C Draper, 29 yrs old, b 1887
Dated: Undated (Contents show letter should be dated Jan 7, 1917)
Mailed from:  Royal Naval Barracks, Chatham, England
Attached to: HMS Pembroke 
Profession:  Farmer, Temporary Sailor
Rank: Ordinary Seaman
Addressed to:  Mrs. N. C. Draper, Keswick, Ont.
Relationship: Wife
Writing instrument:  Fountain Pen with Black Ink
Writing Paper: 10" x 6.5" medium weight, semi-rough, folded into booklet form. Noah hasn't numbered the pages, but he's using the same technique he used for some of his previously posted courtship letters to Ethel, where his first page is the front "cover", then he's opened it and written on the right side, then moved over to the left side - turned the page sideways - and written there, and finally, he's closed it and written on the back. For clarity, I'm posting the pages in the order they were meant to be read. 


People mentioned in this letter:
​Ethel* 
- Noah's wife of 5 yrs, 26 yr old Ethel Isabel Nelson Draper
Eva* - Eva Amelia Draper Perrault, 40 yrs (Noah's sister, married to Joe)
​The children/kiddies:
- Mildred* aka Midge, 3 yrs old
- James David* aka Jay, 7 months old (later called JD)

Places/things mentioned in this letter:
- *Royal Navel/Naval Barracks Chatham - aka HMS Pembroke
- 
Chatham - town outside the Naval Barracks yard
- hut - barrack building
- *Keswick - where Ethel is visiting for the winter
- 6th Anniversary - see Noah & Ethel's 1912 wedding post
- anchor - suspect a jewelry piece for anniversary gift
- registered - postal method ensuring security of delivery to Ethel only
- **English Church - Church of England
- Presbyterian - Noah & Ethel are Presbyterian in 1916 Canada census
- **double-decked street cars
- Y.M.C.A - Young Men's Christian Association 

​

Word or Phrase Use: 
eh**
Hubby

​​
Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing, or use the search box in the header at the top of this page
** see History Notes below
​​
Picture
Sidebar:
P.S. this is my 4th since I landed have you got them all. N.C.D.
16 hut East Camp,
       Royal Navel Barracks,
​Chatham, England.
Mrs. N. C. Draper,
     Keswick, Ont.

Dear Ethel; -
     Well I am still alive and able
to eat my allowance so am not
run down much yet, hope you
are all well, say I posted you
an anchor yesteraday you may
get it when you get this it is
registered so you will have to
signe for it. hope you like it
did not know what else to get
you, will send the kiddies
something next week if I get
out. I can go out every other
night from 4 30 pm untill 8 next
morning but have only been out
Sat. after noon as the town is
​
Picture

in darkness & there is not much to
see worth seeing after dark.
     We were lined up and marched 
down to the English church this 
morning. could have went to
the Presbyterian but did not,
know it in time but will go
there next Sunday if I can.
     Was out in Chatham from
2 P.M. untill about 7 30/xx last night
was in 3 stores & a tea room,
We have heard described so
often, of course not one of the swell
affairs.
     Well we will be married 6 years
on the 10 of Jan. we are getting old
​eh. the first anniversary to be
spent apart & I hope we may be
togeather for the next but we can
​never tell that far ahead.
​
Picture

Chatham is quite a town narrow streets
& double decked street cars. they are like
​riding on a boat swaying sideways.
     There is a Navel Y M.C.A. here but I have
not been in it yet but want to hunt it
​up next week. they have lectures here
every night or so & I guess they are
pretty good. altho. they must sound
dissagreeable to some men who do not
do as they should, morally I mean. There
is a number of new recrutes comes in
here every day altho. I think we are
the last Canadians to arrive here &
we have a great deal to learn about
every thing. English, even their money

​
Picture

bothers us at first but we will
soon get used to that I guess.
     There is a Canadian mail in here
now but it has not been sorted yet
so am expecting a letter or two
sometime soon.
     Well I have only been on as cook.here
once so far but will have another
turn soon I expect. I dont mind
much for if we are doing that
we are not doing any thing
else. have just finished a
letter to Eva was afraid if I wrote
to you first she would not get a 
letter, ha ha. I like writing
just as well as ever. 
     Well I guess I will have to
close kiss the babies for me
Love to all, from your loving Hubby
​                                       N. C. Draper



History Notes
​

​ There are 3 History notes for this letter...

History Note 1 - Y.M.C.A

Begun in 1844 England, the Y.M.C.A. was a social club which served as a home away from home for male travelers as well as soldiers, sailors, and airmen. The facilities were similar as present day with some including a gymnasium and swimming pool, as well as game room, reading room, and a place to partake in wholesome food and refreshments.
​
Picture
History Note 2 - English Church

I've found "English Church" on Upper Canada and Canada West census records and understand it to mean the Church of England. In Noah's case, he means St George's Church aka the Naval Barracks Church, which was part of HMS Pembroke.  The church was built in 1906 and is shown in the next two photos. 
​
Picture
Picture

History Note 3 - Double Decked Street Cars

Picture
An early 20th century street scene. Image copyright of the Bishopsgate Institute. Courtesy of bbc.co.uk

​
To continue from the top of this post, the bbc.co.uk post, ​How did people travel? goes on to say that in 1900 most vehicles on the Britain's streets were horse-drawn, but by 1914 motor buses and electric trams were more popular for public transportation.

Next to the Royal Naval Barracks was the Pembroke Gate to the Chatham Dockyards where civilian workers and longshoremen worked and maintained the ships. I found this photo at Chatham & District Traction Company which shows double decked trams waiting for the workers at the Pembroke Gate.
​
Picture
A line of cars waiting for Dockyard workers at Pembroke Gate. Courtesy of Chatham & District Traction Company.

The Friends of Chatham Traction are in the process of restoring, exhibiting and operating the sole surviving Chatham Traction bus, GKE 68, and although it ran 20 years after Noah's naval tour of duty, I'm posting this information as a thank you for allowing their photos to be used and shared for education and promotion. 

WW1 Letters Home - Jan 3, 1917

1/3/2017

 
Picture
Postcard of A Barrack Room in Royal Naval Barracks, Chatham, England. Source: Noah C Draper
The image on the above postcard, which hasn't been mailed, shows a barrack room at the Royal Naval  Barracks at Chatham. Sailors are standing around, and some are still in their hammocks. On the right wall are stowed hammocks. See History Notes below for more info.


Author of Letter: Noah C Draper, 29 yrs old, b 1887
Dated:  Jan 3/1917
Mailed from:  Royal Naval Barracks, Chatham, England
Attached to: HMS Pembroke 
Profession:  Farmer, Temporary Sailor
Rank: Ordinary Seaman
Addressed to:  Mrs. N. C. Draper, Keswick, Ont.
Relationship: Wife
Writing instrument:  Fountain Pen with Black Ink
Writing Paper: 10" x 6.5" medium weight, semi-rough, folded into booklet form. Noah hasn't numbered the pages, but he's using the same technique he used for some of his previously posted courtship letters to Ethel, where his first page is the front "cover", then he's opened it and written on the right side, then moved over to the left side - turned the page sideways - and written there, and finally, he's closed it and written on the back. For clarity, I'm posting the pages in the order they were meant to be read. 


People mentioned in this letter:
​Ethel* 
- Noah's wife of 5 yrs, 26 yr old Ethel Isabel Nelson Draper
Mr. Butts - 60 yr old John Butts is Noah & Ethel's lodger/hired man*
​

​The children/kiddies:
- Mildred* aka Midge, 3 yrs old
- James David* aka Jay, 7 months old (later called JD)

Places/things mentioned in this letter:
Adams* - Noah & Ethel's homestead. See C.N.R. at Adams, Saskatchewan
​hammock**
bed ticks**
lanyard -
 a rope or cord most commonly used to hang something around neck
sunburst  - a piece of jewelry

- Keswick - where the Ontario side of the family lives

- London - 35 miles as the crow flies to the Chatham Barracks
- Royal Navel/Naval Barracks Chatham - aka HMS Pembroke
- hut - barrack building

Word or Phrase Use: 
car - short for automobile this time as no street car from Adams to Regina
navel - Noah's spelling for naval barracks
brade - Noah's spelling for braid


​
Legend: 
* Look under the Categories/Labels in the right side column for more posts on this 
  person/place/thing, or use the search box in the header at the top of this page
** see History Notes below
​
Picture
No 16 hut East Camp,
​Jan. 3/1917         Royal Navel Barracks,
​Chatham, England
Mrs. N. C. Draper,
     Keswick, Ont.
My Dear Wife; -
     Well we have started the
New Year at war, but hope
to spend the next at home
in dear old Sask. it may be
cold but it is home & not
foggy, that means a lot
I can tell you but would
like to see this country in
the summer time.
     I hope you are all well
& the children good would
love to see them you dont
know how I miss you
all
​
Picture
but cheer up this war can
not last for ever & I will be
back some time.
     We are pretty buisy here now
getting new hammocks and
blankets and getting them
marked. will be able to do any
thing by the time I get home
yesteraday we had to put
holes in our blankets & then
work them and brade strings
in them to hang them up
by to dry after washing also
2 bed ticks & an extra
​hammock. think I will start
a tailor shop at Adams.
     I done a wshing tonight
4 handkerchiefs a towel & 2 Lanyards
     Have you heard from Mr. Butts

​
Picture
and did he send your sunburst. if not
write & ask him about it. guess I will
write to him tonight.
     Have not been out on leave yet but 
will get out tomorrow night I guess
some of the boys went out tonight
we are divided into two watches the
starboard & the port side, one side
goes out each night, starting tonight
for the first time, can not tell
how long we will be here but for
two or three months I guess & no one
knows where we will go from here
I wish it were back to Canada altho
I would like to see some of the world 
now I am here .guess I wil likely see
some water any way

​
Picture
well I saw the sun to day for the
first time since I landed here 
I guess fog is the usual winter
weather here,
     I think if I get a weeks leave
I will go to London for 3 or 4
days & then go out in the
country the rest of the time
have not had a glass of milk
since I got here but lots of tea
and cocoa. Well I guess I will
have to close for this time
hoping to hear from you
soon, kiss the kiddies for
me & tell Mildred I wish
she could write me a long
letter. Well ByeBye. for
this time I remain your ever
loving husband. N. C. Draper.

​
​

History Notes
​

There are 2 History notes for this letter...
​
History Note 1 - Hammock

We are pretty buisy here now getting new hammocks and blankets and getting them marked will be able to do any thing by the time I get home yesteraday we had to put holes in our blankets & then work them and brade strings in them to hang them up by to dry after washing also 2 bed ticks & an extra ​hammock. think I will start a tailor shop at Adams.

As mentioned at the top of this post, the postcard shows a barrack room at the Royal Naval  Barracks at Chatham. Sailors are standing around, and some are still in their hammocks. On the right wall are stowed hammocks. 

According to The Naval Officer's Manual, Noah would have been issued a 5'6" x 5'4" hammock which, when properly tabled, or squared, measured 5'2". 

Noah's tailoring skills refers to the method of tabling as he would have had to fold over the ends and sew them down if this hadn't been done before stocking in the dockyard. His reference to holes included making grommets and eyelets around the hole for strength since the hammock needed to hold his body weight and more. The brade/braid is the method used to secure the hammock to the ring, or clew/clue, which secures the whole thing to wherever it's going to hang, whether it be on a hammock bar, or a hook attached to a wall or beam.
​
Detailed diagrams and instructions for making a naval hammock can be found at:
- http://readyayeready.com/navy-life/hammocks.php
- https://www.hmsrichmond.org/tabling.htm
​
Picture
Teaching Recuits to Lash a Hammock prior to Stowing. Undated. Courtesy of BBC News

History Note 2 - Bed Ticks

Noah says that he received 2 bed ticks to go along with his hammock. My guess is he's talking about thin mattresses. I couldn't find a naval photo that showed exactly what they looked like, but when we add the bits of information I found through different sources, we get a fairly good idea.

According to the Sleep History site, Italian documents ca 1000 A.D. mention theka as a casing cloth for bedding, or a mattress. In English, the word evolved into tick or ticking.

Although the Royal Navy used horse hair to fill their ticks, I could only find a photo of a feather tick. 
​​
Picture
Old Feather Tick Bed Mattress. Courtesy of laurelleaffarm.com
​The blue and white striped ticking fabric was the choice for most pillow and mattress coverings because its tight cotton or linen twill weave stopped hair and feathers from poking through. It also ensured strength and durability over most other fabrics. Even today you'll find stores that sell bedding with the familiar stripes, although a quick glance and touch will show that the fabric is far inferior to what Noah would have been issued one hundred years ago. 

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