The Family nearly missed the next endeavor because they foolishly left the dolly behind as they hurried out of their relatives home who never moved from the old country. The family left long before the sun ever cracked the horizon. As they were nearing the dock, Annie awoke to see her precious dolly had been left behind. She screamed and cried until her father gave in. He ordered the driver to turn the carriage around so that the dolly could be retrieved. He knew this leg of the trip and all the other trips would not be enjoyable until the dolly was back in the hands of his precious daughter. The horses panted as the carriage returned to the dock, with a now much more happy Annie. The whip of the driver now ceased, the horses stood in the pre-dawn morning watching the family walk down the dimly lit walkway to the docks.
Annie's father looked in awe at the Royal Charter. She was a new style clipper ship and supposedly one of the fastest ever made. He tried to emphasize the importance of such technology to his daughter but she was much to small to understand. He told her how the ship had sails but it also had two steam engines that could propel the ship through the water in the absence of wind. The ship held nearly 600 passengers and he was going to be one of the firsts to ride. This modern marvel kept him in an almost trance like state as he waited in line to board the ship.
Nearing her destination the Royal Charter encountered waves of increasing size. The weather turning the glassy black water into large swells that now tossed the ship. Annie and her family were hunkered down for the evening in their extravagant first class cabin. As the ship listed back and forth Mother began to worry. She had been through many storms on ships, but none of this magnitude. The worry began to show on her face. Her worry was soon picked up by Annie. The color left her face and her eyes began to well up. Her dolly clutched tightly in one arm, the other wrapped around her mother's leg. Father assured her that this is new technology. The ship can handle a storm twice the size. He once again boosted about the steam engines that could move them along even when the sails were tied. His confidence in the ship was strong. If only the ship was as strong. The black water came rushing into the cabin as the ship listed for the last time.
The next morning the waves that claimed the Royal Charter had calmed. There was no sign of the ship or her inhabitants. News rang out that she sank and no survivors had been found. The headlines told of the number of dead and how prominent people had drown. Headlines change and focus goes to the next great story. That is, until a week later when a small body had been discovered along the Welsh coast. A small girl about the age of three, a white dress covering her small body. Skin beginning to peel from muscle, her eyes missing, probably eaten by the fish. The only true identifier was the dolly that she still clutched in her dead hand.
Annie was returned to her hometown and buried in Thorn Creek Cemetery. She is buried alone as her parents bodies were never recovered. Many children have told stories of seeing the small girl standing near her grave crying and still clutching her dolly. Her sobs and image fade as the children move closer to investigate...but they're just children, and children tell stories.
