Category: Vintage

Categories
Education History Photographs Postcards Teaching Vintage Writing Prompt

A Lasting Memory: New York Yankees Game and World’s Fair in 1940

To Miss Helen Fussy from Irene. June 8, 1940

Dearest Helen,

I saw a big league game to-day — New York Yankees via Cleveland. To-morrow we will start at the fair, with Mother.

Love,

Irene

Headlines of World War II dominated the newspapers in June of 1940. Germany continued its assault on North-West Europe in the Battle of France. And, on June 10 of 1940, Italy would join Germany to become one of the “Axis” powers. The rumblings of war were becoming louder, yet daily life in the United States continued without breaking, though perhaps with a wary eye toward the future.

It was in the shadow of these events that Miss Irene attended a big league game. On June 8, 1940, the New York Yankees played the Cleveland Indians. The game lasted one hour and forty one minutes, and Irene was one of 16,067 people in attendance. I’m disappointed to inform you that the Yankees did not win. In fact, they were trounced. The Cleve beat the Yankees with a score of 3-0. Poor Irene, though she didn’t seem to mind.

The New York World’s Fair opened in Flushing Meadows, New York (Queens) in 1939 and remained open until October of 1940. The 1939 fair differed, however, from the 1940 fair. Ten countries did not return to the fair in 1940, including some under German occupation. Moreover, the fair’s theme changed from “Building the Amusement of Tomorrow” to “For Peace and Freedom.” The admission price was cut from 75 cents to 50 cents, and campaigns were run along the midwest in an effort to attract more rural visitors.

Since Irene sent a message to Minnesota, I have to guess that the advertisements worked on her family. Despite the more somber and patriotic mood of the fair, I’m sure Irene was dazzled by her experience. At least I like to think so.

As for Miss Helen Fussy, as is often the case with young women, it’s difficult to know if the information I found on her is true. What I can say is that there was a Helen Fussy living in Minnesota in 1940. She was 24 years of age, and there was an Irene Fussy living in Minnesota who was 13 in the same census. Are the two sisters, or simply friends? It’s difficult to know for certain. However, I do hope that Irene’s memory of her big-league game and time at the fair stayed with her for a long time.

And of course, the memory hasn’t died. It’s preserved in a quick postcard written to Helen and sent in the heady days of a New York summer.

Front of Postcard: Barbizon Plaza

Categories
Education History Photographs Postcards Teaching Vintage Writing Prompt

Exploring Niagara Falls: From Underground Railroad Route to Postcard Romance

Postcard to Mr. Phillip Caughey, early 1907-1914

We are on our way home and are now watching the falls. Wouldn’t you like to be with us?

Trina (or Laura?)*

Although trips to Niagara Falls have fallen in popularity in the 21st century, the Falls was a hot spot for tourism through the middle of the 19th and through the 20th centuries. Groups of honeymooners, children, the elderly, and young adults clamored to catch a glimpse of the falls majestic beauty. Theodosia Burr and her husband were the first recorded couple to honeymoon at the falls in 1801.

Being on the Canadian border, the falls also served as a route to freedom on the Underground Railroad as laws leading up to the Civil War pushed enslaved men and women who freed themself further and further North, until finally the only safe place was Canada.

Tourism to the falls grew after the American Civil War, thanks to the trains, and then boomed again in the years after the World War I, thanks to cars.

Thus it was that our friend Trina (or Laura) came to be one of the millions of visitors who took in the sweeping majesty of 3,160 tons of water streaming over the falls every second. She enjoyed the trip so much that she bought, wrote, and sent a postcard from Niagara to her friend Phillip.

I have two ideas about this postcard. It’s a short message, written in pencil and added to the very side of the postcard almost as an afterthought. It’s almost as though at the last moment Trina (Laura?) decided to taunt Phillip (wouldn’t you like to be with us?).

Alternatively, seeing as the spot has romantic undertones I’d like to imagine that our heroine, Trina/Laura, thought of the man she’d like to be with and threw caution to the wind by sending him a postcard. At the last minute, she chose to add in a bit of cheeky flirtation — which is why the message is so squished to the left side. .

Either way, I love the message. I love the way Phillip’s name is misspelled then fixed. I love the sass, I love the idea of young people visiting Niagara Falls as a fun outing or trip. Admittedly, I didn’t look too hard for Phillip. I’d like to live in my own imagination on this one, and dream that, indeed, he would have liked to have been with his friends in Niagara Falls.

*The signature on the bottom of the card looks like Trina to me, but Laura to my husband. Neither of us could quite agree, but since it’s my blog, I decided to go with Trina. Please feel free to weigh in.

Front of card with an image of Whirlpool Rapids, Niagara Falls

Categories
Education History Photographs Postcards Teaching Vintage Writing Prompt

Unveiling History: Square Head’s Postcard and the 1909 Garment Worker Strike

Miss Y. Kassel, 1909

This is from “square” head. Still living but have not much time to knock around.

Holly (on front of card)

November, 1909 was a momentous month in New York. As is often the case, especially in the early 1900’s, tensions amongst the working poor were brewing, and from a faction you may least expect. On November 24, 1909 — so only a few days after Square Head sent her lovely postcard to Miss Kassel — the largest strike in US history up to that point in time took place.

20,000 garment workers, many of them shirt waist factory workers (yes…THAT shirt waist factory, but more on that later), walked out. Their demands were echos of our own: better pay, better hours, safer working conditions, and unionization. History is, of course, cyclical. Because most of the striking workers were women, there was little attention paid to them at first. However, when a few wealthy women joined the cause, factory owners slowly bowed to the women’s demands. Despite resistance and interference from owners, the strike largely worked.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, however, was a little different. The owners did provide better wage and better hours, but they stopped short of unionization — which meant a lack of protection for these women. This culminated in the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911.

Now, it’s impossible to know if Square Head and/or Miss Kassel were part of the garment industries, but they would have known about the strike. If they were women who worked in any sort of industry, which I think it’s safe to say that Square Head probably did seeing as she had not much time to “knock around,” (my new favorite saying, by the way), then it would have impacted them in some way. Remember, this was a time before women could vote, so a strike that garnered better working conditions for them was an important step in the suffrage movement.

Aside from the historical context, there’s so much to love about this postcard. From the moniker “square head” to the rural photos of Hershey Cows (I like to think both ladies loved chocolate), to the hurried greeting.

However, I think one of my favorite things about this particular card, however, is how *human* it feels. The square in “square head” is drawn in such a way that the reader can see the direction her hand took. The reader can also see the mistake in “still”; the “s” covering up whatever was written before. Square Head was probably in a rush, or perhaps her mind was ahead of her hand and she began a sentence she wasn’t quite ready for. Undeterred, she clumsily corrected the mistake and continued on in her quick note to her friend. You see it again in the “c” of knock. It’s something so little, but brings the postcard — and the woman — to life in such a tangible way. I love it.

Front of postcard depicting Hershey cows. You can also see the name “Holly” on the top right corner.

Categories
History Photographs Postcards Teaching Vintage Writing Prompt

Mystery and Intrigue: A Postcard to Miss Clara Swayze from 1906

Postcard to Miss Clara Swayze, 1906

In 1906, the United States was roughly midway through its Progressive Era. We had a progressive as President; Theodore Roosevelt, trains crisscrossed the country, and the Panama Canal was in the midst of construction.

Postcards were also going through changes. Five years prior, in 1901, Postcards were no longer required to state “Private Mailing Card” and the simpler “postcard” took it’s place. However, as you can see from this postard to Miss Clara Swayze, only addresses were allowed on the back of cards. This is referred to as the “undivided back” period. And, may I say, I think it’s absolutely adorable that postcards have historical ‘eras’ like paintings, or Taylor Swift.

The Front of the postcard (below) says the following:

1-11-1906

Brx Social, Elmer

That’s it. There’s no stamp, and no address. So, it’s unclear if the card was kept by Clara as a memento, if it was given to a mutual friend to give to Clara, or my personal favorite, if this was a sort of exchanging of information between Clara and Elmer. Perhaps they met at the social and planned to get in touch with each other again. Maybe they went on dates, maybe they remained friends. Maybe they never saw each other again.

What is clear is that I couldn’t pin down Clara Swayze. I found a few, but I’m not confident I found her, if you catch my drift. The lack of text and information makes this card an enigma — but an enigma that allows my imagination to thrive.

Another interesting note: The card has a sort of glue glitter detailing along some of the crisp lines. I have a few like this — perhaps five total. My instinct is that this has been added after the fact, maybe by a grandchild. However, I’m certainly not positive either.I’m unsure if they came from the same sale (as I bought the postcards in a lot) or if this was a style of the time. I’d love to know if any of you have information on the mysterious glitter glue.

Front of Postcard: Rotunda, Library of Congress, Washington D.C.

Categories
family History Postcards Teaching Vintage Writing Prompt

Life of a Teacher in 1919: Hazel Truitt’s Loneliness and Connection

1919: To Miss Ruth Butler, From Hazel Truitt

Monte Vista, Colo.

Sept. 24, 1919

Here I am in the wild west. It is pretty cold here. I have a nice little school of nine scholars. Am not very busy. Hope you are getting well fast. Don’t forget to look at that card “keep smiling”. I think of you often. Write to me.

Your Friend

Hazel Truitt

R20#2 Monte Vista Colo.

By September of 1919 the world was no longer at war, yet the war’s effects were far reaching — especially in the United States. Soldiers returning home from WWI meant an influx of working age men streaming back into cities. This combined with the Great Migration, or the movement of Black men and women from the South towards the North for both opportunities and as a way to escape Jim Crow laws.

The confluence meant a competition of jobs that intensified and erupted into racial violence that was later dubbed the “Red Summer“. Further South, the Axeman of New Orleans had taken his second to last victim, labor strikes were erupting around the country, along with the first Red Scare, which was a great fear of far left movements. The 19th Amendment – which gave women the right to vote, was in the process of ratification, and finally the 18th Amendment, or Prohibition, was months away from taking effect.

This is the context in which Hazel Truitt wrote to her friend Ruth. Monte Vista, Colorado, was a typical western town (or as Hazel said, the Wild West. It sits in the southern part of the state, and in 1919 received it’s first library.

As a school teacher in 1919, it was likely that Hazel boarded with a family, or perhaps another teacher. She would have been paid a pittance, as part of her payment was a room (and some board). Her nine “scholars” would have ranged in age from 5 to possibly 20, and she would have instructed them in one room.

Being in a new city, and a rural one at that, was probably lonely for Hazel, and I think we can see that loneliness creep in to her writing. She makes sure to tell Ruth that she “thinks of her often” and also to “keep smiling.” Perhaps a move to the “wild west” screamed adventure and opportunity, but was a much harsher reality.

Unfortunately I was able to find nothing on Hazel or Ruth. I assume they both married, and I hope they had the chance to reunite at some point in their lifetimes.

As a teacher myself, I feel a kinship with Hazel and hope she found joy in her nine scholars.

Front of postcard

Colorado

This nugget of gold

With Columbine blue

From the sunshine state

I send to you

Categories
Education History Postcards Vintage writing

Miss Ada Moll: Mama’s Spider Bite & Doctor’s Visits in the 1920’s

Mrs. J.A. Taylor: Circa early 1920’s

My Dear Beryl:

Received your (unclear) card and little note and glad to get both. Hope both of you are well and enjoying yourselves. Will be glad to hear more from you at anytime you’re not busy. We are all well except mama. She was bitten on the left eye Sunday by a poisoned spider and it was swelled up so tight she couldn’t see. Much better now. Have had Dr. Field 4 times. Can open eye a little now. Sorry you forgot the minte. Lots of love,

Ada C. Moll

Post Script: Do you remember ever seeing the view on the other side? Come over and we will take a ride. A.C.M

The date on this card is unclear, the ink lost to the ravages of time. However, I was able to find a Miss Ada C. Moll mentioned in an Indianapolis newspaper in 1925. I suspect this card pre-dates the mention, however since phone lines and wires were becoming more widespread by the 1920’s, I’d wager a guess that it’s within that time frame.

The 1920’s conjures up images of flappers, lipstick, dancing, cars, movies, progress, and fun. This card certainly has some of those aspects. In the 21st century, a postcard that exhibits nothing but a dirt road and telephone wires seems…bland. However, it’s no different than a postcard that features an image of modern wind turbines, or even a plane. That indicates progress. The postscript on the bottom of the card indicates fun and leisure. The Great War has ended, and the depression hasn’t hit yet, so times aren’t quite as rough as they’ve been.

Yet, in the midst of a changing century, we have a world in which doctors make house calls. It’s difficult to imagine the cost of a modern day doctor coming to your house not once, or twice, but FOUR times. However, apparently that’s what the case was. I suspect mama may have been in danger (or fearful) of losing her sight, hence why the doctor had been out so much. I know that if home visits for a doctor were within my price range, I’d probably do the same if my eye was swollen shut.

I’m sure that Ada was a sister of Beryl, or perhaps even writing to her sister and her niece. That being said, Beryl may have been an older sister in the employ or care of Mrs. J.A. Taylor — I’ve been able to find very little. As I’ve said often times before, women are often obscured in history since they married and took on their husbands name. For me, an amateur genealogist with limited time on my hands, it’s difficult to track down the real people. But I invite your suggestions, or even thoughts on Miss Ada C. Moll and her dear friend Beryl.

Front of Postcard, Evansville, Ind.

Categories
Education History Photographs Postcards Vintage Writing Prompt

1936: TB Patients in Arizona and Mrs. Kenneth Brentlinger’s Story

Mrs. Kenneth Brentlinger, 1936

Fri Eve:

We are at Hotel Kimball for nite, cheaper than tourist cottage. Everything here at Phoenix is filled up. The roads are full of tourists. Then, this is where the T.B. patients come. We are going to Grand Canyon and Boulder Dam Sat. then on to Helena Sun. but don’t know what time. Getting along just fine. Mrs. B came through the operation just fine. Had a good nights rest last night.

— Mother

I was able to find Mrs. Kenneth Brentlinger’s name: Helen, and her grave (see the link above), but I wasn’t able to easily find the name of her mother. A lack of information means that I can’t pick apart the intricate lives of these two women, but we can at least drop them into the historical context of wider world events.

In 1936, FDR was re-elected President, Labor Unions protested, and Germany hosted the Summer Olympics, where Jesse Owens won four gold medals. Hitler’s Nuremberg Laws had been enacted in 1935, the United States was in the midst of the Great Depression, and we were still five years away from joining World War II.

Additionally, in 1936, Mrs. Kenneth (Helen) Brentlinger’s mother visited the Grand Canyon and Boulder Dam. A reminder that amidst the grand events of the world stage, our individual lives march on as best we know how. There are so many questions I have about this postcard, the first of which being who is Mrs. B, and what operation did she have?

But what struck me most was a fact that I had never heard before: that TB patients flocked to Arizona for treatment believing that the dry, hot air of the desert would serve as a place where they could rest, recuperate, and unfortunately pass away, from Tuberculosis.

For the patients with money, there were a variety of posh hospitals with beautiful views and state of the art luxuries. These sanatoriums held upward of 100-150 patients, and did their best to treat the disease.

However, there were many more who suffered in poverty. That did not dissuade them from seeking treatment. Called “lungers” as a pejorative, tent cities of patients popped up in Pheonix and Tucson, and though funding and services had improved by 1936, based on this postcard we can see that the influx of patients hadn’t ceased due to the depression. In fact it only increased in the 20s and 30s.

Treatment for TB included the dry air and rest, as well as invasive surgery that included collapsing a lung through the removal of a rib. Is it possible this is the surgery Mrs. B went through? I rather hope not, though perhaps a visit to a sick friend created a sort of impromptu vacation for Helen Brentlinger’s mother.

There’s an inscription around the edge of the front: Seen hundreds of these today. Sure pretty. The sun was sure wonderful and make my toes burn up in places.

There’s something about this that is so human. I love it.

Categories
Education History Photographs Postcards Vintage writing

Teenage Flirtation in 1908, A Call to War, and The Mystery Sender A.N.

Mr. Earl Poush, 1908

Hello Earl,

I received your card and was glad to hear from you. I went to the party Saturday night and had a nice time. Vera and I went over to Dallas Sunday afternoon and staid till church at night. Maybe you think we didn’t have time. Well I didn’t have to ask Bertha who the card was from. Did you go to town Saturday. I will have to close for this time.

Answer Soon

The front of this postcard is just as informative as the back, so rather than post it at the end, I wanted to post it here. Take a gander, then read on:

The Ballot Post Card: September 23, 1908

1908 was a leap year, and saw a variety of notable events that live on within the American zeitgeist. Wilbur Wright completed a 2 1/2 hour flight, Henry Ford debuted his Model T, and the Chicago Cubs won the world series.

But all of that, perhaps, pales in comparison to the light flirtation of teenagers. Again, we have a bit of a mystery sender. There’s no way for me to ascertain who “A.N.” was, or what (I assume her) relationship was to Earl, but I think it’s rather clear that the two of them may have been sweet on each other. Especially since Miss “A.N” checked off “I think of you often”, “Wait for me”, “A kiss for you”, and “Ever yours.”

Additionally, I’m guessing that when “A.N.” says “I didn’t have to ask Bertha who the card was from”, she means she knew the card she received was from Earl before even seeing it. I love that A.N seems to be surrounded by some girl friends, and I wonder if Vera, Bertha, and A.N. were on a little girls trip together.

Although I couldn’t find the identity of A.N., I do believe I found a little bit about Mr. Earl Poush. If I’m correct, it appears that he was born in 1892, which would put him at the tender age of 17 in September of 1908 — the perfect time for an early flirtation. It seems that he fought as a Corporal in World War I, and was injured in 1918. In 1919, he married Hope Lita Hicks (Poush) — not our elusive A.N. The world both teens grew up in must have been very different from the one they sent innocent cards in during the waning summer of 1908.

Categories
History Photographs Postcards Vintage Writing Prompt

Unveiling the Enigma of Mrs. N. in 1913 Los Angeles Through a Vintage Postcard

Miss Louise M. Simmons(?)

Box 13-87 Los. Angeles CA

Dear Friend Louise,

I am writing you a long letter but am to sleepy to finish up tonight so send this card instead. With Love. From your old friend,

Mrs. N.

What a stunning card from an exciting time in the history of the west. By 1913, Los Angeles was the 17th largest city in the nation, with upwards of 319,198 people. 1913 was also a momentous year for the city. The Los Angeles Aqueduct was completed, which because the city could not sell it’s water to other areas, meant that LA grew significantly over the course of the next decades as smaller areas annexed themselves into LA.

Cecil B. de Mille shot the first “Hollywood” movie, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County opened, and Georgia, “Tiny” Broadwick became the first woman to parachute out of a plane, landing safely in Griffith Park.

Mrs. N, being in Los Angeles in January, perhaps didn’t know much of what was in store for the city that year. But, this postcard does give us a tantalizing peek into the history of that bright city. Unfortunately, the longer letter is lost to time, or perhaps someones attic, so we can’t know for certain why Mrs. N. was in Los Angeles. Was her family there to work on the aqueduct? Was she part of the burgeoning movie industry? Had the family moved South after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake? Were they citrus farmers? I’d love to hear what you think.

With very little information on the postcard — including the full name of the elusive Mrs. N, it’s difficult to ascertain how and why she had made it to Los Angeles. However, it’s an exercise in imagination to think of what she must have seen in that important year of 1913.

Front of Postcard: “Poimsettia, California Xmas Flower.”

Categories
Education History Photographs Postcards Vintage

Pauline Howard’s 1936 Postcard to Miss Lois Wright: A Snapshot of Life Amid the Great Depression

Postcard to Miss Lois Wright, 1936

Have been having a wonderful trip. The flowers are beautiufl and the leaves are out on the trees. Has been real hot until the last two days and it seemed good to have it a little cooler again. Will be back North again soon.

— Pauline Howard

First, the context. In 1936 the country was deep into the Great Depression, though the worst hard times were getting slightly better. Black Sunday, the worst storm from the American Dust Bowl, had happened a year prior, on April 14, 1935. By 1936 FDR was elected for a second term, created the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and brought unemployment to 16.9%, down from 20% of the year before. Dorothea Lange also shot her iconic image of “Migrant Mother” in March. So, even if you don’t know a lot about the 30’s, these things probably sound familiar as they exist in the American zeitgeist.

Because the Great Depression exists in our mind as a sort of dark age of American society, it’s difficult to imagine people living their lives outside of hardship. Our minds immediately go to migrants, joblessness, and perhaps even the Grapes of Wrath or Of Mice and Men.

Yes, people were desperate, and yes, these were difficult times. However, the postcard from Pauline to Lois shows that, once again, people were resilient and living the best they knew how. Now, I don’t know how old Pauline and Lois were (though from the moniker “miss” for Lois, I can assume early 20’s), but what’s clear is that despite the country’s turmoil, there was some fun to be had.

Keystone Heights seems as though it was a semi-popular wintering spot which also received assistance from FDR’s alphabet program the Civilian Conservation Corps. April was, perhaps, a tenuous time to visit, as Florida heat in April can get oppressive (indicated in the message of the postcard). But, the country was in for a worse heat wave beginning in June, so hopefully Pauline managed to make her way North before then.

I wonder what the connection between the two women were. Perhaps school friends or room mates? Women are difficult to research since I’m behind a variety of paywalls, and unfortunately I’m not confident I was able to find the correct people. However, there was a Lois Wright who lived in New Hampshire and, despite marriage, did not change her last name (it seems). She lived to be 104, and fits the timeline. Though, of course I can’t guarantee this is our Lois, I’d like to believe it could be.

The postcard is also beautifully hand colored, and is stunning in person.

Night Blooming Cereus: Front of Postcard