No cigar?

July 15th, 2013
Churchill's cigar











Finally, in the Archives Centre’s 40th year, a small 
but significant gap in our
holdings has been plugged: 
we have one of Churchill’s cigars!

                       Churchill’s cigar, 
                          courtesy 
                                           of 

                                Mr Paul Keane

                         Reference: WCHL 6/75.


This iconic gift has come to us thanks to Mr Paul Keane, one of
 Churchill’s many American fans. In 1961, when Mr Keane was
 just 16, he waited for more than 24 hours in the rain on a New
York pier for a chance to see his hero disembark from Aristotle
 Onassis’s yacht Christina. His patience was rewarded at last,
 not only with a sight of Churchill, but also with the gift of matches
 from the Christina, one of Churchill’s handkerchiefs, and last
 but not least, the famous cigar.
Now Mr Keane has sent the cigar, together with a scrapbook
full of memorabilia of his adventure, to the Archives Centre, and
 our conservator is making a special display box for it, so that
 future visitors will be able to see this fragile, but very precious
 piece of Churchill history.
Mr Keane has written about his adventures, at 
and 
Katharine Thomson