The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Fresh light shed on disaster aftermath
Historian tells of much sought-after surviving letters
A Dundee journalist and historian has shed fresh light on the aftermath of the Tay Bridge Disaster following The Courier’s recent coverage of the 140th anniversary of the tragedy.
Norman Watson got in touch with more detail about efforts to recover bodies and mail bags after the December 28 1879 bridge collapse, saying the mail carried on the stricken train had “long excited” postal historians.
“In the 1960s one of Britain’s most eminent philatelists, Cecil Meredith of Dundee, established that only seven letters had survived,” said Mr Watson.
“By then, these had found their way into some of the country’s most prestigious stamp collections.
“The late Dennis Collins, also of Dundee Philatelic Society, took on the detective work by scouring collections, auction catalogues and philatelic articles to come up with a total of 14 known letters from the disaster.
“Mr Collins also stated that six mail bags were on the train, but that only two were recovered – both washed up at Broughty Ferry and thereafter taken to Dundee Post Office, which then occupied the site of the present
Courier building in Albert Square. This, however, appears to have been an underestimation.”
The Courier reported on December 30 1879 that 40 mail bags, large and small, were carried on the ill-fated train.
Of those it said more than 30 had been recovered. Two were picked up in the river by the North British Railway steamer while crossing to Tayport.
Six bags had been found washed ashore at Broughty Ferry, followed by another three later the same evening.
These were sent to Dundee by Miss Barclay, postmistress at Broughty Ferry.
The dripping wet bags were brought into Dundee Post Office and their contents spread out on a large board before a huge fire.
Some of the letters were tied up in bundles, and those in the centre of the bundles were found to be in a fair state of preservation. But others had their stamps washed off and had smudged addresses. Those that were legible were forwarded as soon as possible.
“Since Mr Collins’ research I have been able to take the number of surviving letters to 20, most addressed to Dundee or Aberdeen,” Mr Watson said.
“This total includes three examples in the Mcmanus Galleries.
“These damp-stained envelopes are exceptionally rare and are sought after by the worldwide collectors of ‘disaster’ mail.
“Although rarely seen at auction, it usually takes a good four-figure sum to secure them a new home.”
Mr Watson owns a money box made from the wood of one of the disaster carriages, which was displayed at the last major exhibition of Tay Bridge memorabilia in Dundee.
The Courier told recently how items washed up in the aftermath of the tragedy were sometimes turned into trinkets.
Julie Mccombie, social history curator at the Mcmanus, also emphasises the human element of the tragedy when people visit the museum.
“It was just after Christmas. We have a toy kettle. It could have been a gift for somebody. It could have been a grandma bringing it for a kid, or a child on the train going to visit someone,” she said.
“The recent Rep play expressed the human element of ordinary people going about ordinary life, and that’s something that we really focus on here.”
The Mcmanus collection includes a launch-day programme celebrating how the bridge would revolutionise travel between Dundee and London as well as “souvenir” cups and saucers.