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Friendship Train in Georgia
Dorothy R. Scheele
The Friendship Train, America’s contribution of food to France and Italy
after World War II, was an enormous and unmatchable gift of kindness from the
human heart. The goal of the train
was to cross the country to collect food for the starving people in France
and Italy. The Friendship Train’s
destination was New York where the foodstuffs would ultimately be shipped
to Europe. Even though the
Friendship Train traveled through only 11 states, every state contributed
to it. Georgia was a part this conveyance of generosity and kindness. A more complete history of the Friendship
Train is available on the home page of this site.
Georgians definitely
aspired to be part of this unprecedented movement. An article
entitled “Friendship Train Tells Europe Your Food Is On Way” in the Cumming Forsyth County News urged
people to think about the hungry in Europe and by so doing possibly be inspired
Georgians to relinquish some part of a meal.
To many Americans, being
a part of the Friendship Train was not only a moral obligation but also a
good way to have fun. To acquire
money for food purchases, a myriad of games, contests, and other activities
were held throughout the nation.
Alex Miller, President of
the Atlanta Lodge of the B’nai B’rith also took part in the
campaign. He wrote to Charles Luckman, chairman of
President Truman’s Citizens Food Committee, asking him to try to have the Friendship Train
routed through the South. Mr. Miller
declared, “This section yields to no other in
generosity and compassion for the hungry people in Europe.” Similar pleas from
other parts of the South had been voiced, but to no avail. The
original plan, formed in five short weeks, for the Friendship Train to cross the northern tier of the country was carried out.
Georgia's full contribution
to this singular event is at this time indeterminable even though the
citizens were aware of it and definitely intended to be a part of it.
Kenneth Douty, who was Georgia State Director of the Textile Workers’ Union of
America, established
a Friendship Committee charged to help in the organization and collection
of the imperishable food for the Train. Mr. Douty
had written to Mayor Hartsfield informing him that because the Friendship Train
was not stopping in Georgia, it was imperative to find a way to
transport Georgia's food donations to it. He suggested
Chattanooga as a destination for the donations, adding that Atlanta’s
citizenry could easily equal and probably pass Chattanooga's donation
of 35 tons. Volunteers from the Teamsters Union offered to drive
the food collection to New York, the ultimate destination for the Friendship
Train prior to being shipped to the European ports. Rev. Louie Newton,
Pastor of Druid Hill Baptist Church, was chosen to lead the fund drive.
An advertisement in The
Atlanta Constitution on November 20, 1947, urged officials to ship via the
Louisville & Nashville. The
advertisement was an imaginary conversation between a person and one of
the boxcars belonging to the L & N rail line. The title of
the advertisement is "Home Town Boy Makes Good." The
'home town' boy was actually a new five month old boxcar, no. 16576, and it
'made good' by being the lead-off boxcar of the Friendship Train when it
began its legendary cross-country journey.
This rail line felt enormous pride in this prestigious position.
The uniquely American
Friendship Train was not in the least connected with the Marshall Plan or
any other government policy or agency. It was a totally a grass
roots entity. Dorothy Thompson, a
renown and influential columnist, one of the first reporters to be
kicked out of Hitler's Germany, wrote that she believed the Friendship Train
would do more to improve relations between the United States and the
European nations than any Voice of America program could do. The residents
of the Peach state could hold their heads high for their part in one of the
most humanitarian movements in history.
In 1949, France expressed
its gratitude to the United States’ donations in splendid form. This thank you arrived in the form of a
train, the Merci Train. This train had one boxcar of gifts for each
state. As the United States’ gifts
which came solely from the homes of everyday Americans, the French
donations came from the homes of the French people. The gifts ranged from the ornate and
valuable to simpler items such as a comb or a doll and were intended to be
displayed in public buildings, such as a library or school. Almost all of the boxcars are displayed
in its respective state. Georgia’s
boxcar is located at Southern
Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History 2829 Cherokee
Street, Kennesaw, GA 30144.
Bibliography
“Friendship Group Urged to Mayor” The Atlanta Constitution Dec.
8, 1947: 6.
“Friendship There” The
Atlanta Constitution Feb. 48, 1943: 43.
“Friendship Train Tells Europe Your Food Is On Way ”Cummings
Forsyth County News: Nov. 27, 1947
1.
“Gifts From French Gratitude Train On Display At Capitol”
Sparta Ishmelite
Feb. 10, 1949: 1.
“Home Town Boy Makes Good” The Atlanta Constitution Nov.
20, 1947: 15.
“Plans to route the Friendship food…” The Atlanta Constitution Oct.
27, 1947: 5.
“State Capitol To
Show Gifts Sent By France” The
Atlanta Constitution Dec. 31, 1948: 2.
“Summary Of The News Throughout Georgia” Butler Herald Dec. 18, 1947: 17.
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