Mrs. W.W. Roswell, 1944
Dear Mrs. Roswell,
Just a few lines in answer to your recent little letter. You asked me if Sue would enjoy a little (??). I think she would love it as she loves mine. I have a 9-12 from China in my living room. Sue and (?) were here for dinner and Edwards 19th birthday party. So glad he could be home (rest of text unclear).
Lots of love to you forever
This postcard is slightly frustrating to me, because I can’t make large parts of it out. The handwriting is long and spread out, then scrunches together at the bottom and top as the writer tries to make up for her previous luxurious writing. Since this is 1944, and Edward is turning 19, I wonder if he went to war, or had been back from war. I can’t research it either, because I can’t quite make out the senders name or last name.
What I do love about this postcard is imagining the differences between the sender and the receiver. New York has always been a bustling center of activity, and in 1944 it was no different, especially with a war on. Hood River, Oregon, in contrast, is still fairly rural. The 2020 census indicated only 8,000 some odd people, up by 3,000 from the year 2000. That tells me that in 1944, it would have been a largely agricultural community, connected to the rest of the world by railway. Mrs. Roswell and her friend must have lived markedly different lives, but managed to connect through family ties and friendship.
Hipstory 