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
| 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 |
| 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 |
|
| 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
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
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.
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.
