1938

I don't remember the month but the year was 1938. I can't say I actually remember the year nor the month but only what I heard while listening to the report of the event that caught my attention. Aunt Ev was 5 1/2 years old and her mother had passed away in 1935 leaving behind a husband and 7 children. My mother was one of these children. Aunt Ev is the only information line I have now to my mother's side of my family. She lives still in Providence, R.I. with my Uncle Tony and her son and granddaughter. That's her immediate family although she still has many nieces and nephews in the area. Aunt Ev is the youngest of those seven children left behind in 1935.

The event that captured my attention was the hurricane of 1938. I was watching the History Channel this morning and the story of that hurricane was featured. The east coast was ravaged, the death toll was staggering. Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York were some of the states that felt the fury of this storm. This was during the depression and the positive part of all this was the work it provided cleaning up the aftermath of this storm. Whole families were washed out to sea; many were returned in the waves that washed back into shore. Rotting bodies were everywhere. Another horrific disaster caused by the weather.

After watching the show, I emailed Aunt Ev to ask her if she remembered anything about the storm. I received a letter back telling me what she remembered. Roofs blown off houses, water in the streets and stories from friends about the storm were some of the things she mentioned. If I wait for a while, she will think about it and there may be more stories or events she remembers.

I'm watching my email for more and I'm hoping there will be more. She was a young child and may not remember or may have been protected from seeing more.

History. Why read fiction when history is much more interesting!