Handwritten condolence letter from Winston Churchill on display in Saint Andrews
CBC
Winston Churchill is one of the most recognizable names of the 20th century.
During the Second World War, Churchill led Britain from the brink of defeat, through rousing and oft-quoted speeches, to the Allied victory against Nazi Germany.
His godfather, Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook and generally known as Lord Beaverbrook, was a Canadian-born newspaper publisher whose philanthropic deeds live on in New Brunswick, where he grew up.
On this day in 1964, the New York Times ran this headline about Beaverbrook's death, "Lord Beaverbrook Dead at 85; Founder of Newspaper Empire; Member of Churchill's War Cabinet Guided Britain's Aircraft Production."
So a handwritten letter of condolence from Churchill to Lady Beaverbrook is a big deal.
That letter is now on display in Saint Andrews, explained Barry Murray, the past president of the Saint Andrews Civic Trust.
It's part of a large collection of Churchill memorabilia that was given to the trust by Doug Young, a former provincial and federal Liberal politician who once served as federal fisheries minister.
Young bought the collection from the estate of Dalton Camp, a New Brunswick-born journalist, political strategist and commentator.
Murray said Young initially called him about putting the letter on display for New Brunswickers to see, but by the time he showed up in Saint Andrews to drop off the letter, he decided to donate the entire collection of more than 100 items.
"Doug and his wife opened the back of the SUV and said, 'We need help.' And we received boxes and boxes and boxes of stuff. … I was overwhelmed, to be quite honest," said Murray.
He said there were dozens of letters from Churchill, as well as signed photographs, a commemorative tea set and coins with his likeness, audio recordings of some of his speeches and various other items connected to him.
Young wanted the items to be put on display in memory of a former colleague, Fred Drummie, who had lived in Saint Andrews and died in 2018.
The letter was unveiled by the trust during an open house, recently, and will be on display at the Ross Memorial Museum in Saint Andrews for the summer. Some of the other items will also be included in a newly created section on Winston Churchill.
Murray said they're still "figuring out what to do with with all of these things."
The Windsor Public Library’s most-borrowed books of 2025 reflect the growing popularity of celebrity book clubs and a growing interest in “romantacy,” according to one public service librarian there.
An election, a Blue Jays World Series run and a plane crash.
Summer clothes. Shoes for children. Baby diapers.
For Islanders looking to get outside more this winter, trail groups say the colder months are actually one of the best times of year to explore Prince Edward Island’s outdoor spaces.
Updates to the air passenger bill of rights appear stuck on the tarmac more than two years after the federal government promised changes — something that may come as unwelcome news for Canadian air travellers facing their own delays.
This First Person article is the experience of Kristine Thoreson, who lives in Calgary. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ.
The United States carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria at the request of Nigeria's government, U.S. President Donald Trump and the U.S. military said on Thursday, claiming the group had been targeting Christians in the region.
King Charles's annual Christmas Day message highlighted the importance of unity in diversity as wars and tensions put communities around the world under strain.
More than 80 centimetres of snow fell at Marmot Basin over the last two weeks — and the impact is felt beyond the ski resort.
B.C.'s police oversight agency is investigating after a female pedestrian was killed following a collision with a Surrey police vehicle on Christmas Day.
Peel Regional Police are searching for a man in his 30s after an unprovoked stabbing in Mississauga on Wednesday evening.
The Charlottetown Farmers’ Market has been damaged by a fire that broke in the early hours of Christmas Day, leaving some vendors wondering about what this means for them.
Calgary police have laid charges against a 41-year-old man following a joint investigation with the Calgary Humane Society into "multiple incidents of animal abuse" this year.