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This is the amazing story of the most serendipitous experience Sally has had in her 35 + years of collecting and researching vintage diaries! It is an almost unbelievable occurrence that began in 1938, originating with a diary written by a twelve year old girl.
First page of Barbara’s diary. The first autograph is the one of the German Opera Singer she met on the boat.
A photo postcard of the Normandie in Alice’s diary. Plus original photos taken by Alice with her $4.35 camera showing the Aquitania pulling out of the dock, the New York Harbor and the top deck of the Normandie.
Pools of the Normandie: The top left photo shows the First Class pool. The bottom left shows the Tourist Class pool. Now compare Barbara’s photos from her diary showing her and her sister in the Tourist Class Pool. The link below is from the Daily Mail which show some incredible photos of this magnificent ship.
1938 Photos of Alice Wrenn Bentley & Photo of Barbara Whiting.
Original Photo from Alice’s Diary showing the “Count’s” estate outside of Paris.
On a very historical side note: in the early 1900’s, Alice’s grandparents, Cyrus and Elizabeth Bentley and their partner, purchased 17,000 acres in the central Upper Peninsula, three miles east of the Baraga-Marquette County line and north of the Peshekee River in Michigan. There they developed a tent camp they called the “Rough Camp.” It eventually contained 17 log lodges, boathouses and outbuildings. The history surrounding their story is simple amazing. You can read a small article concerning this adventure in The Mining Journal at the following link.
https://www.miningjournal.net/news/2024/04/recalling-the-cyrus-bentley-trail/
To Hear This Episode:
Diary Discoveries 