Waiting for Mother to Visit - 12/17/1917

Camp Sheridan

Alabama

148th Ambulance Co.

Dec. 17, 1917

My Dear Mother: -
Rec. yours of the 13th this A.M. Yes, I have a couple things I wish you would bring along, when you come. (1) my brown, woolen skull cap, (2) About six tubes of Pebeco Tooth paste, three wash-cloths, and a box of Wrigley's Spearmint gum. That is all I can think of that I want.

I'll see Stuart D - tonight about the rooms. Spose he is tending to that.

The extra sleeping boots have not arrived yet, to my knowledge.

If you are going to leave Fri., or before Xmas, better give Leona the present I got for her, and have Dad, get her some chocolate dipped cherries or candy.

I have several small things for you to take back. Things that I do no longer need.

Oh! Yes, please get me about 100 sheets of paper - as enclosed - at Blade Pntg & Paper Co.

I can't think of anything else to write so will close.

Am Feeling Fine

Love to All
Howard

Guess Howard didn't get a furlough to go home. I find it amazing that the Goods had the means to travel to visit him in Montgomery. I would imagine it would have been a very long and expensive trip. I started to do some research on how they would have gotten there. Remember - at this time, car travel was very new. The 1917 Ford Model T's new feature was a canvas roof with side curtains - and this was decades before the interstate system - so I assume car travel would not have been a viable option, even for the richest of families.

Likely, they took a train (or even more likely - series of trains) to get there. This is where I really miss having the letters FROM Howard's parents TO Howard. He gave such lovely detail of his train trip down to the border - it would be nice if we knew which route the Good took to Montgomery and how long it took.

So, I tried to do some research on just that - how hard could it be? My confidence diminished when I discovered the above railway map from 1918. Zooming in, it looked like a spider web across the midwest and through to the deep south. The Goods could have taken an infinite number of routes. Did they change trains in Cincinnati? Louisville? Indianapolis? Knoxville? Nashville? Atlanta? Huntsville? It feels like it could have been any combination of those. Here's to hoping the future letters may tell us...or we may never know.