The Gratitude Train: France thanks America

In 1949, the Gratitude Train arrived in the United States, made up of 49 wagons filled with thousands of gifts from France.The convoy was a thank-you to American families who’d sent food and supplies across the Atlantic, via a ‘friendship train’ in the aftermath of World War Two.It was the idea of a French railworker called Andre Picard. In the same spirit as the friendship train, he asked families across France to make donations.The response was 52,000 gifts that filled 49 rail wagons or ‘boxcars’, one for each US state, and to be distributed to American families. Some donations were valuable; a carriage used by King Louis XV. Others were handmade; a knitted scarf or a child’s painting.June Cutchins tells Jane Wilkinson about the treasure her family received from the Florida boxcar.Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.Recent episodes explore everything from football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.(Photo: Gratitude train boxcar unloaded in New York, 1949. Credit: Bettmann/Getty Images)