Although the Empress of Scotland went from Montreal to Liverpool, Helen and Vilma Hruska got off in Greenock, Scotland, on July 5, a day before the ship arrived in Liverpool. They returned on the same ship, leaving August 21 and arriving in Montreal on August 27. Presumably they traveled by train from New York to Montreal and from Greenock to London and eventually to the continent, but I have documents relating only to the Empress and one hotel they stayed at in Brussels.
Click image to download a 880-KB PDF of this brochure.
Fortunately, the items Helen collected on the trip to Scotland mostly complemented the items she saved from the return trip, and between them we can get a pretty complete picture of what life was like aboard a Canadian Pacific ocean liner. The above brochure brags that trips on the Empresses included fewer than 2,000 miles in the open sea (plus about a thousand miles in the St. Lawrence Seaway) while trips from New York to Liverpool spent more than 3,000 in the open ocean. A stamp on the back indicates the brochure was distributed by the National Education Association, of which Vilma, a school teacher, was probably a member. Other documents indicate that the sisters were on a NEA-sponsored tour.
Click image to download a 209-KB PDF of this flyer.
This little slip of paper let the Hruska’s know that they would be staying in room B-19. They traveled first class, so presumably they had this stateroom to themselves.
Click image to download a 252-KB PDF of this baggage tag.
This colorful luggage tag was for bags or trunks not needed while aboard ship.
Click image to download a 180-KB PDF of this baggage tag.
This baggage identification tag tells us that Helen, and probably Vilma, lived in North Bergen, New Jersey. A note on the tag also indicates that they were on an “NEA GC-2 Tour.” Being a member of the National Education Association had its benefits.
Click image to download a 355-KB PDF of this flyer.
This summery of the ship’s log indicates that the trip enjoyed light to gentle breezes most of the way, with a few instances of fresh breezes. According to the Beaufort Scale, “light” to “gentle” means 1 to 7 mile per hour winds, while “fresh” means 19 to 24 mile per hour winds.
Click image to download a 466-KB PDF of this flyer.
This flyer notifies passengers disembarking at Greenock about how to go through customs. Apparently, the ship did not dock in Greenock but relied on a tender to move passengers from the ship to the town. From there, passengers going beyond Greenock could catch a “Steamship Special Train” from the customs hall to Glasgow, about 28 miles away.