Mystery of Miss Bessie Harkness: Unraveling the Threads of a 1905 Postcard

Miss Bessie Harkness, 1905

Miss Bessie Harkness

Durand, Wis

C/O Mr. Will Alkire

In 1905, the great Progressive Era president, Theodore Roosevelt, had just completed his first full term. This after having become president because of the assassination of President William Mckinley. The Progressive Era had begun, but the Gilded Age was hanging on with it’s perfectly manicured nails. 1905 also saw the “greatest ball” of the Gilded Age — a Versailles themed spectacular that later *almost* caused a panic on Wall Street.

The rich will always be rich, but 1905 was the beginning of the end for monopolies after the Supreme Court ruling Swift and Co v the United States allowed the federal government to regulate monopolies. Though we were “advancing” in some areas, we were falling behind in others. Three days before the Supreme Court ruling, the Nelson Act was signed into law, allowing segregation in the schools of the territory of Alaska.

I’ve noted before that the practice of sending postcards began in 1870, however the years of 1901-1907 are considered the “Post Card Period”. This is simply the transition from “Private Mailing Card” to “Post Card”. This particular period is noteworthy for the the fact that the back was exclusively reserved for the address — nothing else. If anything was to be written, it would be done on the front of the card.

This post card is unique for it’s scrawled address in childish script, as though each cursive letter was well thought out and formed when addressing the card. The sender also continued the last name down the side of the card, as they ran out of space on the line — another indication that the sender was young.

Unfortunately, there’s nothing printed on the front of this card, so the sender’s name is lost to time. Emulating Alice, I went down a rabbit hole in searching for Bessie Harkness — and I believe that my search was well rewarded. There was a Bessie Harkness that lived in Durand, Wisconsin. In 1905 she would have been about 17. Public records indicate that she attended the University of Wisconsin and by 1919, had become a high school teacher. Unfortunately, if this is our Bessie, she died in 1930, a mere 42 years old.

It’s rare to find this much information on a person from one of my postcards, and I’m reasonably sure I’ve found the right woman. However, I do wonder who sent her the postcard. She had a brother, but he was older. The handwriting indicates someone young, I’d guess somewhere between 10-14 (though in my gut I think the sender was probably 12/13).

The card is also sent in care of Will Alkire, another well respected Durand resident. It seems Will married in 1885 and had one daughter — Anna Belle. It’s feasible that Anna Belle and Bessie were friends, and either Anna was the sender of the postcard (in care of her father), OR, Bessie was staying with Anna for the winter break. I tend to think Anna Belle was not the sender, simply because the handwriting is so young. But, I suppose she could have been four or five years younger. It’s also feasible Bessie was some sort of tutor or mentor to her (given her later job title).

Either way, for a post card that provides nothing more than a beautiful picture of a Maine lighthouse and a name of the recipient, I managed to find a lot of information. Further, given the fact that Bessie died in 1930, I’m impressed this post card survived. I wonder who saved it, why, and how it ended up in a thrift shop nearly 120 years after it was initially sent.

What a beautiful find.