April 20, 2009
Friendship Train “The 1947 U.S.-to-Europe or American Friendship Train collected foodstuffs from American donors for transport to the people of Franceand Italy. “The idea of the train was proposed by Washington journalist Drew Pearson in his daily column “The Merry-Go-Round”, and the cause was taken up by other newspapers around the U.S.  “Originally hoped to collect 80 train car loads of food, the train ultimately collected over 700 cars ($40 million value) of food, clothing, and fuel, paid in part by monetary donations. Many of the donations were made by individuals, such as individual cans of evaporated milk collected from junior high students. Described at the time as a “token gift”, the aid was symbolic of the Marshall Plan effort. […] Roscoe Drummond of the Christian Science Monitor called it “One of the greatest projects ever born of American journalism”. (from Wikipedia)

Friendship Train

“The 1947 U.S.-to-Europe or American Friendship Train collected foodstuffs from American donors for transport to the people of Franceand Italy.

“The idea of the train was proposed by Washington journalist Drew Pearson in his daily column “The Merry-Go-Round”, and the cause was taken up by other newspapers around the U.S. 

“Originally hoped to collect 80 train car loads of food, the train ultimately collected over 700 cars ($40 million value) of food, clothing, and fuel, paid in part by monetary donations. Many of the donations were made by individuals, such as individual cans of evaporated milk collected from junior high students. Described at the time as a “token gift”, the aid was symbolic of the Marshall Plan effort. […] Roscoe Drummond of the Christian Science Monitor called it “One of the greatest projects ever born of American journalism”.

(from Wikipedia)