A happy ending

Perhaps one of the oddest stories to come out of the Great Storm is about a man named John Thompson. He was a sailor on one of the lake’s freighters, the James Carruthurs. Before the storm, however, John had switched vessels and ended up weathering the storm in Toronto, but did not tell his family. In the days following the storm, descriptions of the bodies were printed in local newspapers. John’s sister had not heard any word from her brother and saw a description in the paper that seemed to match her brother’s.

Believing it to be him, she telephoned her father. He went to Goderich to identify the body, and identified it as his son’s. Although badly battered, the body had similar facial features, curled toes just like John’s, the same tattoos, and the same scar on his thigh. The only difference was the hair colour; John had dark coloured hair and the body had light coloured hair. The undertaker explained that this was due to prolonged exposure to cold water, which could have changed the body’s hair colour.

Believing this to be his son, Mr. Thompson organized a wake and funeral. Meanwhile, John read about his death in the paper. Rather than contacting his sister or father, John decided to attend his own funeral. Half way through the ceremony, he walked in alive.