Scope and Content
Correspondence from Mary Pack in Canada to Lily Grimmer in Ampthill:
1960: Three letters, the first on 14th May, written on an extended photographic postcard, from Canadian Pacific Airlines featuring one of their DC6B aircraft. Mary is writing the letter whilst on a 5 hour flight from Toronto to Vancouver. She marvels at the convenience and experience of jet travel. She sends love and support for Lily in Mr Grimmer's illness and reminisces about her trip to the UK when she was surprised by Lily driving to Scotland to meet her plane on her arrival in the UK.
On 20th August she sends sympathy for Mr Grimmer's death to all in Ampthill. She specualtes on the possiblity of Lily coming to Canada. Mary is spending lots of her free time with Joan and Jessie and her daughters. Jessie is teaching at a kindergarten.
1st December - a Christmas card, handmade by CARS (Canadian Arthritis and Rheumatism Society) patients based on Native American carvings. Sends greetings to all and saying that Henry has visited Joan, flying in from Winnipeg to Vancouver in 2 hours - marvels again at jet travel.
1961: Five items. 6th Feb - A card thanking Lily for a gift of a plant from England.
1st July - Writing on a Canadian national holiday. Mary sends love and support for Lily through Mrs Grimmer's illness. She has been on a drive out with Jessie and her elder daughter Mary Lou to Squamish, telling of the beautiful scenery. She has also been to the beach with Joan and her younger son George, where they saw evidence of the vast logging industry. She offers Lily her lacemaking apparatus which she nevers uses now. Mary is very busy with her work for CARS, organising all-Canadian conferences. Joan is working with blind/deaf children and enjoying it immensely. Her eldest son, Henry is now working as a mine engineer and he is surveying for the summer before starting a post-graduate course at Vancouver university. Jessie's younger daughter Peggy is waitressing for the summer before starting university. Mary Lou has qualified as a teacher and is moving north for work.
5th August - Mary talks of the pleasure and ease travelling by their own cars brings to her and to Lily. There is more sympathy for Mrs Grimmer. The lacemaking apparatus is being donated to a museum and she asks Lily if it is possible to send some examples of Bedfordshire lace to accompany the apparatus. The Packs are arranging a big family trip to a friend's farm for horseriding and swimming.
9th October - Mary thanks Lily for the lace samples for the museum. She sends congratulations to mutual friend, Charles Freeman, on becoming curator at Luton Museum. George, his wife Simone and their four children, David, Debbie, Kathie and Donald all came to celebrate Mary's birthday with her. Mary Lou is now teaching up north. Peggy, Henry and Bill are all at university in Vancouver. Mary sends thanks for the leaflet from Bedford High School's Old Girls' Association.
December - a Christmas card sending greetings and advising of Mary's new address in Vancouver.
1962: One letter dated 7th December written on air mail paper. Vancouver is experiencing very foggy weather but nothing like London. Mary talks of the hurricane which hit British Columbia on 12th October in which thousands of trees were lost. Family houses were damaged but no one was hurt. Jessie has started her own kindergarten in Burnaby. All the youngsters in the family are growing up fast. Bob has become a Scoutmaster. Christmas will be spent with George and Simone and Mary sends Christmas and New Year greetings to all in Ampthill.
1963: Two items. First dated 2nd August, written on air mail paper. Mary is on holiday at the coast and is due to be joined by George and his family. Mary Lou is at summer school at the university, where Henry is also studying for his Masters. He is starting a new engineering job in September. Joan's son George is learning to play the trumpet, tennis and football.
27th December - a CARS Christmas card sending thanks for the gift of a calendar. Christmas was spent at George's house. Harry and Clara are in California for the winter. Peggy is doing excellently at university and Mary Lou is teaching student teachers. Mary talks about the wonderful display of "carol boats" she saw in Vancouver Harbour over Christmas. And she wishes all a Happy New Year.
1964: Two items: 1st April - a photographic postcard from Air Canada with a picture of Niagra Falls, franked "Toronto, Ontario" and stamped with 2 x 2c stamps. Mary is on her way to the annual CARS conference by jet plane.
December - a CARS Christmas card with greetings and family news. Peggy is graduating soon but is staying at university to do a B.Ed.. Bob has married.
1965: Three items. 21st August - a CARS card. Mary talks about how important the craft work is to all her patients. Mary's aunt in London, Marie Botsford, has died aged 90. Mary has been on holiday to the mountains with Jessie.
November - a CARS Christmas card sending greetings to Ampthill. Jessie has a new piano which she is playing for Sunday School. Peggy is doing data work involving a computer. Bill is teaching Native American children. Henry is still working on his thesis.
December - a letter thanking Lily for her gift of a National Trust calendar and sending love to all the family. Christmas was snowy and there were 20 of the Pack family at Harry's Christmas gathering. Henry has left the mine to concentrate on his Masters. Peggy is enjoying her work as a computer researcher for the government.
1966: Three items. 5th September - a letter from Mary's holiday with Joan on an island off the British Columbia coast. They have spent their time fossil hunting, bird watching and rock pooling.
22 November - a letter on air mail paper. Mary is very busy with work and they are hoping that the new Vancouver CARS treatment centre will be opened in 2 years time, then Mary can consider retirement. Harry is retiring next July and he and Clara will move permanently to their place on Vancouver Island. Henry has married a Toronto girl named Jenny and they honeymooned in Honolulu; they are living in Vancouver.
December - a Christmas card enclosing a photograph of Joan's sons, Henry and George. As well as Henry marrying Jenny, Mary Lou has become engaged to a chap named Rudy Peters.
1967: One letter dated 4th January, sending thanks for the calendar sent for Christmas. The Pack family spent Christmas at Joan's and the New Year at George's houses. Some of the family came to Mary's flat overlooking the harbour to watch the carol boats.
1968: No correspondence has been retained.
1969: Sixteen letters for this year, many connected with travel plans for Mary coming to Europe and Lily and Nora going to Canada.
22nd January - a photographic postcard letter, showing a picture of the Casa Lama in Toronto. The Vancouver CARS centre is due to open in April. Mary is planning to retire then and is planning another trip to Europe.
9th February - a letter sending sympathy for the death of Mrs Grimmer. Also suggesting that Lily takes a trip to Canada. Mary is travelling to the UK on 14th May, then travelling on to Spain, Greece and Turkey, returning to Canada on 26th June. She hopes to meet up with Lily during her visit. Mary is very busy with the final stages of opening the new treatment centre.
21st February - a letter to Lily and Nora with details of Mary's trip to Europe. Lots of advice regarding travel planning for Lily and Nora for their trip to Canada.
28th February - a letter FROM Lily and Nora telling Mary of their investigations into travel possibilities with Air Canada and BOAC.
3rd March - a letter from Lily and Nora, wishing her good luck for the opening of the Vancouver centre. They are still researching travel plans and getting the house suitable for a visit from Mary and her friend Bertha when they come from Canada. Nora is trying to source some First Day Cover stamps celebrating the launch of the Concorde flights with the help of Kathleen Houfe, to send to Mary.
24th March - a letter from Lily and Nora. Nora has been to Thomas Cook in London to look into tickets etc. They need advice on best travel dates (possibly early July) and checking whether they can stay with Mary or whether they should book a hotel.
29th March - a letter from Mary written on hotel headed paper as she is away with work. Early July would be fine and no hotel needed. Harry would love for them to also visit him and Clara in Vancouver Island whilst they are in Canada, before exploring British Columbia.
2nd April - a letter from Lily and Nora. They have travelled to Dorset to research their Swaffield family ancestry (the original Swaffield came to Ampthill as steward to Lord Holland in 1824.) After Dorset, they will be going to London to book their trip to Canada. They send Easter greetings to all in Canada.
29th April - a letter from Lily and Nora, congratulating Mary on her retirement. They confirm the details of their flights: Heathrow to Vancouver on Thursday 10th July, returning Wednesday 30th July. They have applied for passports and are having vaccinations and are hoping to see Mary when she is in the UK.
2nd May - a letter from Mary, thanking them for their itinerary and confirming that she plans to come to Ampthill on 13th June.
6th May - a letter from Lily and Nora making plans for the Ampthill visit.
15th August - a letter from Mary, expressing her delight at Lily and Nora's trip to Canada [Nora's travel insurance documents for this trip can be found at AU34/21/1/2] and all that they had shared together. Mary has been decluttering and redecorating her apartment. She has been entertaining family and friends now that she is retired, but she is now voluteering with CARS on their craft projects.
21st August - a letter from Mary thanking Lily and Nora for the first day cover and also for their donation to CARS. She tells them of the charitable foundation that has been set up in her honour for special projects. In family news, Joan has been spending time with Henry and Jenny and their new baby son Paul. Mary Lou and Rudy are travelling around Canada to places such as Quebec, Jasper, Banff and Lake Louise.
22nd October - written on air mail paper, thanking Lily for her birthday gift of a scarf. Mary has taken over the management of CARSCRAFT on a volutary basis. She sends thanks for a further donation. She was presented with a telescope at the CARS annual conference in recognition of her years of service and has been avidly birdwatching from her apartment.
31st October - Mary sends sympathy for Lily being in hospital with an injured finger. She has been presented with other gifts from CARS of a slide projector and a rocking chair and has also been made a life member of the British Columbia Hospitals Association. She hosted a tea party for a group of her university friends and is planning a big party for CARS patients. Mary is attending evening classes for creative writing and hopes to eventually write a history of CARS.
17th November - written on air mail paper, sending thanks to Lily for the early Christmas present of a history book and a scarf. Mary has been helping her niece Debbie with a school project on Greece, using slides, maps, books and souvenirs from Mary's trip in the summer. She sends Christmas and New Year greetings to all.
In this file, there is also a colour slide of the CARS Treatment Centre in Vancouver, founded by Mary and opened on 20th April 1969.
Additionally, there is a collection of travel documents relating to Lily and Nora's trip to Canada in the summer of 1969. These include letters from/to Thomas Cook in London, Lily's flight ticket, a boarding card stub, a baggage claim stub, a Prudential Insurance leaflet, an copy of the Exchange Control Act 1947 and traveller's cheques order forms.