Lot
45 
Canada, 1914 "S.S. Empress of Ireland" wreck cover, cover addressed to England with partial "Grande Greve, N.S., May, 23, 14" cds and purple straight line "Recovered by divers from wreck of S.S. Empress of Ireland" handstamp across front, reverse with two different December 1914 Ottawa Branch Dead Letter Office oval handstamps on reverse; stamp washed off from immersion, Very Fine for this, accompanied by real photo postcard of ship. Estimate $150 - 200.
The "Empress of Ireland" sank in only 14 minutes with the loss of 1,012 of the 1,477 passengers and crew on board. This was the worst Canadian maritime disaster in peacetime history with only 4 of the 138 children on board surviving. The ship was located in 40 meters of water and divers salvaged most of the mail, the waterlogged mail was set to the Ottawa Branch Dead Letter Office where it was dried and forwarded to the addressee.
Realized: $160