Places of Significance: Aberdeen Train Station, Aberdeen, Scotland

It's been said that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. In the case of Ella's family's emigration story, their journey of 5,000 miles began when they boarded the train at the Aberdeen Train Station in downtown Aberdeen.


Ella's narrative. Filmed on location, 30 September 2014.

Their family wouldn’t make the journey all together but in three different waves. Ella’s father, George, would depart first to pave the way for the rest of the family to come, leaving in late December 1948. Ella and her mother, Kate(1), followed in May 1949. Ella’s sister, Ina(2), would join the rest of the family in October 1949.

From the Aberdeen Train Station, Ella and her mother traveled to Southampton, England, where they boarded the SS Washington, which sailed them to New York City. From there they went to Salt Lake City, Utah, by train, and from Salt Lake to Mesa, Arizona, by bus.(3)

Ella remembers her dear grandmother, Charlesina Findlay, seeing them off at the train station, as well as her friend from the branch, Sheila, who was her same age (and who would eventually emigrate to the US as well). Two of her father's sisters were there, and also a cousin her age.(4)

On their last Sunday at church, the local branch members all sang, "God Be With You 'Till We Meet Again." Such a loving anthem and a tribute to the many significant contributions that her family made to the Aberdeen Branch and the Church. And indeed, God has been with them as Ralph and Ella have been able to “meet again” with their homeland and heritage.

Ella in front of the train platforms - 30 Sept 2014

Ella and Ralph reminiscing - 30 Sept 2014 

Another view of the interior of the station - 30 Sept 2014

See also:

• Across Oceans and Continents: Blog post with more detail about the family’s emigration story

Sources:

• Video recorded on location 30 September 2014
• Phone conversation recorded on 6 July 2014. Also an additional conversation on 26 October 2014 (unrecorded, but notes taken).

Notes:

1. Known by her friends as "Kate," her full name was Ursula Katherine Bruce Beattie Findlay.
2. Ina's full name was Charlesina Findlay, later Charlesina Slade when married.
3. Although we’re not sure which specific route George and Ina took on their journeys, we assume it was similar to the route that Ella and Kate took.
4. Ella didn’t mention her father’s sisters and cousin in the video here, but she did mention them in previous phone conversations on 6 July 2014 and 26 October 2014.