The Friendship Train was the United States’ unmatchable, humanitarian gift of $40 million dollars of food to Europe after World War II. The Friendship Train is frequently mistaken for the Marshall Plan: the two historic events were absolutely not connected. The idea of the Friendship Train originated with Drew Pearson, a nationally syndicated columnist and broadcaster. The goal was to help the starving people in Europe, France and Italy. A more complete history of the Train is available on the home page of this web site. Every state in the United States contributed to the Train. Mississippi’s contribution was unique in that their donations were collected on a barge, the Friendship barge, and were transported to Louisiana. The idea of food donation for France was popularized at the local level by Mr. Joe Rosenfeld, Jr. on radio station WNOE in New Orleans. He encouraged Louisianans to give generously even though the train itself would not travel through the state, nor would it travel through Mississippi. Undoubtedly, residents of the Magnolia state heard the plea and felt the need to give. In fact, donating to the Train was so popular that Eva Peron, wife of the Argentine President, donated $2,500. Even though Mississippi donated substantially, the media reported very little about it. The source of almost all the information in this article was the Delta Democratic-Times, Feb. 8, 1948. In Washington County the campaign began slowly because of unfavorable winter weather. By the second week, residents were eagerly ready to donate to the Friendship Train. In Leland, the Boy Scouts announced that they would be picking up donations between 11 and 12 on the coming Saturday. Residents were asked to leave their donations on the front porch. In Arcola, Rev. J. W. T. Siler of the Methodist church and Rev. S. W. Hemphill of the Presbyterian church had collected a jeep load of clothing which was sent to Greenville by a United States recruiting truck. Another truck load was promised for the next week. Mrs. J. F. Scull, Jr., stated that the women of the Baptist church were collecting items. The Ladies Auxiliary, under the direction of Mr. J. C. Parham, was collecting for the Presbyterian Church. Rev. N. D. Guerry was appointed to oversee collection; those assisting were Will Powers, Edwin Spivey, Jr., Percy Jones, Kenneth Walker and Torrey Wood. The local clinic in Glen Allen served as a collection point. The Lake Washington Men’s Club under the leadership of President Otis Johnston and the Veterans Club under the leadership of President G. P. Mullen sponsored the drive for the Friendship Barge. The citizens of Mississippi were rewarded for their generosity, as were all the other states, by France’s boxcar of gifts to each state. As the Friendship Train was a gift from the people, France’s Merci train was also from the people, not the government. Mississippi’s boxcar is located at The Old Gulf, Mobile, & Ohio Railroad Depot, 618 E. Pearl St. Jackson, Mississippi - (601) 576-6800. Work Consulted The Delta Democrat-Times [Greenville, Mississippi] 4 Feb 1948: 1. The Friendship Train was the genesis for the French Merci Train. Website www.mercitrain.org has information about that train. Copies of Mr. Bennett's Book The Merci Train, A Big Thank You From the French Merci Train is available at ebennett89@yahoo.com. The price is $25.00 per copy, including postage. The author welcomes any corrections or additional information which would add to this state's history. Her email address is draetrain@gmail.com. |
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