To: Mr. Frank Van Gordon. From, Chuck(?) 1912
Dear Old Friend:
How are you. I am fine and dandy. Marie said she was saving her daughter for you so don’t get married. “Ha Ha”. I never got your letter until the other day and will just send you a card. Haven’t seen tasel(?) for a long time. Well so long and soon.
Yours,
Chuck
542 N. Elder Ave, Indpls
In 1912, William Howard Taft was the president, New Mexico and Arizona were admitted as the 47th and 48th U.S. State (respectively), and in the early hours of April 15, the RMS Titanic sank in the chilly waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Suffragettes paraded in New York City, and Theodore Roosevelt was shot in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, proceeds to give a speech, then goes to the hospital.
It was a crazy year.
This card is one of the first postcards I put on this blog, though I felt like I never quite did it justice. There is just so, so much going on. First, there’s the innuendo that “marie” is “saving” her daughter for Frank. Which…I guess the jibe is fun but it gives me a bit of the ick. I also wonder why Chuck “never got” Frank’s letter. As a professional procrastinator, I wonder if Chuck did in fact get the letter, forgot about it until he saw Marie, then remembered to send a card.
Much to my chagrin, I couldn’t find Frank at all. There were a few decent candidates, but none of them fit the timeline well. I have to assume that in 1912 Frank was somewhere between 20-30 (I’d guess 22), especially seeing as his friend is teasing him about getting married. Also, Antigo is a relatively small town, though it’s part of the lumber industry. It’s possible that Frank was a lumber worker.
Which might be why he’s hidden from us in the archives. If he only worked in Antigo as a seasonal worker, or for a year or two, then there would have been no reason for the census to record him living in that city. Also, I wonder if he’s listed in the archives as simply “Frank Gordon”. It’d be strange, since “Van Gordon” isn’t that crazy of a last name, but it’s still possible I suppose.
Well, I revisited this card in the hopes that I could shed a little more light on Frank and his friend. I’m sorry that I couldn’t find them! At least I feel like I’ve given the card it’s due — especially since so much happened during 1912! I do wonder what happened to Frank. I hope he lived a good life, and managed to sit down to dinner with Chuck at some point.
As an aside, the postcard front is so silly when you connect it to the message on the back. Chuck is teasing Frank about a wife, then sends a card that reads “I found a Queen in Indianapolis. If you’re wise, you’ll hurry here.” That’s more than a hint, it’s a smack across the head with a trowel.
Front of Postcard. “I found a Queen in Indianapolis If you’re wise you’ll hurry here.”
Hipstory 