I was sent a scan of this letter several years ago and decided it needed to be included on this website. Amazingly I hadn’t researched it properly before, and I was surprised to discover that the passenger list for the voyage on which the letter was written, is already included on this website. The letter isn’t signed with a surname, but by carefully reading the content I saw the phrase “peace and quiet of a Mayer-less ‘Greenstead’ yet” which helped me realise that “Uncle Sid” must certainly be Mr. S. F. Mayer and his family who were travelling in Tourist Class on the 30th October 1957 voyage of the Rangitata – click here to see the listing.
The American stowaway mentioned in the letter was Robert Tomarchin, who was trying to get to Pitcairn Island to be reunited with his chimpanzee. You can read more about him here.
There are photographs of the Rangitata included here.
RMS Rangitata
Somewhere in the South Pacific
27th November, 1957
Dear Anne (and All)
This is my last opportunity to write to you before we reach NZ. We arrive off Pitcairn Island tomorrow and although we do not go ashore there, we anchor off the island to put mail off and, I understand, take fruit on. Pitcairn is of course famous for being the location of the Mutiny of the Bounty and you will notice that some of the stamps on the envelope have pictures connected with the Mutiny.
I don’t know just how long it will be before you get this letter – evidently very few ships call at Pitcairn now, and the mail for England has to wait until a home-going ship calls in. We have reached the last stage of our trip now and are due at Auckland on Sunday Dec 8. We will stay in Auckland with my brother and his wife for a couple of days and are going down to Wellington on the train on the Tuesday night so will be home again on Wed. morning, just eight months after leaving it. We have had quite an eventful trip on the Rangitata, with the engine trouble at Falmouth, then the big storm after leaving there, and then we took on a couple of stowaways at Cristobal (where we entered the Panama Canal). One of them was discovered before we got through the Canal and he was put ashore at Balboa but the other one – a Yank – kept hidden until after we were in the Pacific so he stays on until Auckland when he will be held until they can put him on another ship for the Canal Zone.
We had a most interesting time through the Canal – it’s a most wonderful engineering feat – and we all went ashore and saw the sights of Cristobal, Colon and Panama City. My goodness! it was hot there, and I think I lost another stone or two in weight! We liked Panama City – it’s a most colourful place and very Spanish. Curaçao was really hot too but not nearly so interesting although there is some very good Dutch architecture there.
The weather has been lovely ever since we ran out of the storm after Falmouth and we are all as brown as Maoris now. Fortunately we’ve had quite a coolish breeze for the past few days and that has kept the temperature down a wee bit, very acceptable too as we’ve been in very hot latitudes since leaving the Canal. Anyhow we are now over the Equator so are heading for a more temperate clime.
Many thanks to you Anne and to Mummy for the letter we received O.K. It was nice to hear from you and to know that you’re all O.K. We’re glad to know that Joan got her new school alright – you’ll be able to see a bit more of her now. Tell her I miss her – in fact I can truly say I miss you all.
Has your poor father got used to the peace and quiet of a Mayer-less “Greenstead” yet? If not I would suggest that John gets plenty of practice in on that trumpet of his – that should make up for the loss of any other noisy elements!
Well, my dear, I don’t think that I’ve done badly at this letter, do you? Nearly four pages – I do admit that they are very small ones – so I’d better stop before I get writer’s cramp or something. Give our love to everyone in and around “Greenstead” with a special lump of it for you from Uncle Sid. xxxxx
Also xx for Margaret and Elizabeth.
New Zealand Shipping Company records for genealogy 