Postcard Talk Morris Illinois 1903 McNeil Refugator Shot Himself Did a Clean Job

History Documented in Postcards from the Past

by Mary Katherine May
of www.QualityMusicAndBooks

This past weekend I was out perusing the antique stores in Anoka, Minnesota. Jam-packed to the point of usually allowing only one person being able to pass through an aisle at a time, there I stood examining postcards. It is absolutely true that it takes me much longer to go through old postcards than most collectors, because I am generally looking at the written message and postmark date first, and the image or photograph and condition second.

Originating in Morrison, ILL on September 2 at 9:30 AM,
I cannot be certain that the year was 1903.

The posted message I offer here today originated in Morrison, Illinois, on September 2nd, possibly in 1903. The last number is only a partial. Due to part of the back address on this undivided back postcard being partially scribbled out with pencil, I can glean only that the recipient was a woman (Miss), and that she lived at 839 North 2 St. West, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. On the front, where the message on an undivided back postcard had to be written, we discover that Floyd was writing to his sister, though still no name.

The postcard itself would be interesting because it shows a large amount of lumber being floated down the Mississippi River. This is called a "log raft." The information about the actual postcard is as follows.

No 8. Log Raft on the Mississippi River, Clinton, Iowa.
C.D. Hurd, Publisher, Books and Stationery. Made in Germany.
(back) 84878; This Side Is for the Address.

The initial message, on the side of the front is fairly short.

Dear Sister--Mother received letter we are all well, hope you are the same. will answer your letter in a day or so. Floyd

What makes this particular postcard so exciting is the LATE BREAKING NEWS--almost like a new flash on television today.

McNeil Refugator(?) book keeper shot himself. did a clean job.

I am assuming that this happened in Morrison, IL, and that Floyd was adding something that his sister would want to know. We don't know if McNeil, who did a clean job, at the point of writing was alive or dead, and if alive whether or not he survived. What we do know is that it was important to both sender and receiver of this card.

PostCard Talk Blog Manda and Emanda by Mary Katherine May

Manda & Emanda
by Mary Katherine May
of Quality Music and Books

On today's post I would like to step back from postcards for a moment and look at this photograph. It came to me, if I recall correctly, in a box on which I bid at an auction several years ago.

As a matter of fact, that auction was rather funny. I was bidding on a box of wood blocks for our grandchildren, and won the bid for a small amount of money--$7.

In the back of the auction room was an area with an outside door where merchandise was picked up, and after I was through bidding for the day I went to pick up my box.

Box? How about SEVEN boxes? Boxes full of who-knows-what, but they were mine. A buck a piece. It was an adventure going through them, and some of it I threw out, while some "artifacts" (in my mind only) had a value that negated them being tossed out even though no one wanted the stuff, then or now, and it is still here at the house getting dusted every few months.

Here are Manda and Emanda, surname unknown. Location unknown. It does look like the condition of the grass and garden along the wall would place the photo in late spring or early fall, though without coats or jacket my conjecture is that it was a nice, warm day to take a picture. Manda and Emanda were neat and tidy--their yard has no leaves to be raked, at least in the spot where this snapshot was taken. The hose is hooked up to the outside spigot, so the outside water valve was open for the season.

Manda and Emanda were most likely sisters, maybe twins. They aren't smiling, but that doesn't mean that they weren't happy. There dresses look to be of the everyday variety, their hair not well done enough to be the weekly beauty parlor route--most likely pincurls. Judging from their long-stem roses, I also would speculate that they were born in the late 1800s or thereabouts, when foundation garments didn't maintain the "status quo" as they do today.

The house appears to be a rambler style, and those shingles! Remember how hard it was to paint those shingles? Now I am speaking about this from observation. In our house girls didn't paint shingles. We cleaned inside and washed and dried dishes, swept floors and the like. Outside work was for men.

That was the 1950s.

How about that? All from a snapshot.

PostCard Talk by Mary Katherine May Fern Brugger Austin MN

Posted by Mary Katherine Mayof Quality Music and Books

Chimney Rock
Dells of the Wisconsin River

Postmark
NOV 13 1913
8 AM
PLATTEVILLE, WIS

Published by
E. A. BISHOP PUB. RACINE, WIS
Made in U.S.A.

Postcards were often written with pencil rather than ink, and without being protected from contact with other papers and handling, the pencil markings begin to fade. This postcard is difficult to read for this reason. I needed to put on my 10X magnifiers, and then darken the photographic image to make this message readable.

It must be so that the common courtesy of inquiring as to the well being of those with whom we communicate without regard to the situation is not a situation new to the era in which we live. Here is a message letting Fern know that someone has died. This message is blunt, yet given the fact that we don't know what kind of relationship there was between Fern Brugger and Clara Schlater who received the message of Fern's death, we will never know how bluntly it was received.

To
Miss Fern Brugger
Austin, Minn.
R.F.D.

Message

Just grand weather
Esthel

Dear Fern,

Grandma wants me to tell you that Clara Schlater's mother is dead. She died the 11th. How are you all. Why don't you write.

PostCard Talk by Mary Katherine May March 1914 Germania Life Building St Paul Minn LUNAR ECLIPSE

PostCard Talk by Mary Katherine May (babamarusia)
owner of Quality Music and Books

On March 10, 1914, there was a lunar eclipse, which the writer of this postcard in St. Paul, Minnesota, dated March 14, 1914, mentions in her note mailed to Chicago, IL. The sender says also that he (or she) will be going to a matinee to see Johnny Valentine. This would not be the famous wrestler of same name because he was born in 1928, and this postcard is from 1914. It may be John Valentine Eppel, who authored the melody used for the song, The Missouri Waltz.

Please continue on ...

The Germania Life (Insurance) Building
St. Paul, Minn.

Addressed to Mr. W. J. Remo
6122 Dorchester Pkwy (?)
Chicago Ill.
Postmarked & Dated 14 March 1914 1 PM
St. Paul Minn.

Dear Will--

Read some yesterday. Just have a few spare min & thot I'd drop you a card. Yes I saw the eclipse of the moon watched it from 8 till 10:30 when I got tired & went to bed. Weather here is dandy am going to the matine this P.M. to see Johnny Valintine (Valentine).

Ida

Postcard: Published by Weight, Barrell &Stilwell Company, St. Paul, Minn.
115.
Made in Germany.

On March 10, 1914, the New York Times ran an article about the lunar eclipse event that would happen on March 11, 1914. The eclipse was "visible from all points in Western Europe, North and South America and Western Africa, and ...more than nine-tenths in shadow. Astronomers went to work during the eclipse because clearer observations of objects in space are possible.

PostCard 1914 St Paul LYND MN City Hall Court House GAS by Mary Katherine May

Post Card
St. Paul City Hall& Court House

March 16, 1914
St. Paul, Minn
1-cent George Washington

written by Mary Katherine May of Quality Music and Books

This postcard was purchased to be used for a project in which I will write what I have about my Grandmother, Pauline Rychly Koshuba Haydak. Pauline arrived in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on July 4, 1914, by train from New York.

Upon entering the United States, coming from Bila, Galicia, still for a few months part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. She was processed through Ellis Island. This is one of the most humorous messages I have read on a postcard, though I doubt that was the intention of the writer.

March 16th is also our wedding anniversay, 36 years in 2010.

Addressed to:
C. H. Austin
Lynd, Minn.

Message:
Dear Henry

I am a little better. Eat a little more. Slept pretty well. The gas is the worst.
Clara B. Austin

WWII Postcard Dr Karl Moore Brownwood TX Thanked for Prayer by Mrs T R Havins

Thomas Robert Havins
Mrs. T. R. Havins (Mottie - Thomas Robert's first wife)
Dr. Karl H. Moore
First Baptist Church
Brownwood Texas
World War II WWII

Article by Mary Katherine May
of Quality Music and Books

World War II was personal. Pearl Harbor, like the tragedy of 9/11 was personal. Men and women signed up to serve, many didn't wait for the draft to be called to the military, and all knew what could be their outcome. Everyone was involved in the war effort. From Victory Gardens to saving scraps and women joining the work force, WWII was an event that changed the "fabric of our nation."

One man who served was Thomas Robert Havins (T R Havins), coming out of Texas. He would play a prominent roll in his state, living a life that involved public service. This postcard example is a 1-cent prepaid blank sent by Mrs. T. R. Havins to Dr. Karl H. Moore, thanking him for praying for her "boys" and all who were in the military.

Also of interest is the number of POWs interned in Texas, and in particular in Brownwood, Texas during World War II. There is very interesting detailed information about Camp Bowie that by may be accessed by clicking HERE.

Today, we are again praying for those who place themselves in harms way. It is a sad reality.

Postmark (front): MAR 26, 6:30 PM, 1943, Brownwood Texas

Postmark (back): Is in exact reverse. How does this happen? I would like to know.

Addressed to:
Dr. Karl H. Moore,Pastor First Babtist Church (sp)
Brownwood, Tex

Message: Mar. 26-1943

Dear Dr. Moore:-I want to express my appreciation for the Church Bulletin of Mar. 14. I am so happy to know that my boys name is on your Church Roll, and that you are interested in him as well as all the other boys of your church, who are in the armed forces. I will deeply appreciate your prayers for him.
Sincerely,
Mrs. T. R. Havins

1905 RPPC Undivided Back View Montgomery Ward Tower Chicago

The Montgomery Ward & Co. Building
Chicago
One of the Largest Commercial Buildings in the World

by Mary Katherine May of Quality Music and Books

Real Photo Postcard
Undivided Back Era

This postcard example offers many details that can be pointed out for the collector of topicals, postcards, and stamp collecting, as well as the possibility of identifying the person to whom it was addressed.

The Montgomery Ward building in Chicago, complete with tower, was the "talk of the town" in its day. When completed in 1899, the 25-story structure at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Madison Street was the tallest building west of the Allegheny Mountains. Aaron Mongtomery Ward, known as Monty to his friends, was a creative innovator. Ward and his well-known rival, Sears & Roebuck, also centrally located in Chicago, took their retail goods to the whole of America through catalogue offerings.

The postcard, dated in the message on Sept. 25 1905, 1 PM, shown here displays a clear date of Sep 26 1905, 7 AM, arriving in Rockford, Ill. (see next paragraph) on its way to Versailles, Ohio, R.D. No. 2. Marked upon arrival to its destination city, the stamp is faint but still mostly readable: Versailles Ohio, Sep 27 1905, 8 AM.

Also of interest will be the stamp, Scott No. 300, Benjamin Franklin 1¢, which very nicely has the plate number 2258 attached below the stamp. And, to top off delightfully for the collector, the back is stamped MISSENT TO ROCKFORD ILLINOIS.

The paper used for the postcard itself, though looking a bit soiled because it is, is a rough-to-the-touch, non-white card stock. The brief message below the Montgomery Ward building shows that Amanda Miller, the sender, had a playful side to her character.

The Message

This is written in the sky to let you know I am living high. ... Amanda Miller

The postcard recipient: Miss Beth Maurer, Versailles Ohio, R.D. No 2.

Signed Postcard CAPTURED Messages on Postcards Early 1900s

CAPTURED

Postcards are still a good, economical way to send a message today if you don't mind the lack of privacy and your message is short. In the early part of the 20th Century it cost one penny to mail a postcard. It would be interesting to find out what else cost a penny at that time.

The writing on this postcard is faint, so I have darkened the card a bit to make it easier to read. The postmark is barely there and completely unreadable.

Here is a postcard where the image presented doesn't come close to matching the message. As with previous messages posted here, this one comes right to the point.

Addressed to:
Mrs. M. Austin
962 Gilmore
Winona Minnesota

Message:

My dear Mrs. A.
I heard that you come pretty close to being burned up. That was too bad. It must have been a pretty bad scare and you flat on your back. How is that little granddaughter of yours? Did you get April fooled? I did and prety bad too. With love, Ruth

RPPC Million Dollar Trio MERLE PEET Martelle IA MARY DOROTHY DALY

Million Dollar Trio

Million Dollar Trio

Around the border: Mary Dorothy Daly and her prize winners.

This is one cute little girl, dressed in a coat with fur collar, a huge fur scarf, fur leggings, and a beanie cap! Then to top it off--Two huge fowl birds that she is "walking" while holding their leashes.

The question begs to be answered: Who was Mary Dorothy Daly? IS this RPPC photo really of Mary Dorothy Daly? And certainly...if these prize-winning birds, presumably the honors given at some sort of county or state fair...this little girl didn't do the feeding, grooming and cleaning up of the you-know-what! I have been to enough Minnesota State Fairs to know that any living creature that wins a prize is groomed down to where the skin and folicles meet.

Oh, well. Does it matter? It's cute! Unfortunately the postcard is not in good shape, missing a corner and all.

Postmark: Anamosa, Iowa, Jan 24, 1911, 6 PM

Addressed to:
Miss Merle Peet
Martelle, Iowa

Message:
How is my little girlie? Any mumps or measles yet. How are mama and papa? What do you think of my other girlie and her team? She is very proud of this picture. Wish you knew her! Aunt-None(?)

RPPC Wagner Family Neighbors of Asfeld's

RPPC Wagner Family Neighbors of the Asfeld's. What can anyone say about this particular postcard? Not wanting to wish anyone grief either in the present or in the past, yet in this case I am hoping that the photograph was taken at a family gathering in relation to a funeral.

There are a few expressions that attempt congeniality--perhaps because the woman sitting in the middle had her back turned and couldn't see their faces?

Anyhow, this postcard has no message on the back other than the brief identification as to who the people are--though at this time there is no way to know anymore than the two names without being related this group, which are a Wagner family and an Asfeld family that lived in the same community. Whether the community was rural or city, we can't deduce that either.

Everytime I look at this photo it tells me to write a story.... unfortunately for me, the line "It was a dark and stormy night..." has already been taken!

The Feisty BANTAM and War by Mary Katherine May

The Feisty Bantam and War
by Mary Katherine May of  Quality Music and Books.


Though a postal envelope rather than a postcard, I think this it is interesting to trace the use of the word "bantam" through history.

Civil War: the BANTAM as a symbol of power
WWI: the BANTAM as a description of soldier height
WWII: the BANTAM as associated with the JEEP motor vehicle

The description “bantam” associated with American Civil War postal covers has its origins in Indonesia and the city of Bantam, once a major seaport. European sailors found that the Indonesian diminutive bantam along with other similar-sized chickens and roosters throughout Southeast Asia useful when restocking food supplies on ships. Over time, any small-sized poultry came to be known as a bantam. The male bantam is known for its quick agility and spunky aggressiveness, as well as its puffed-up, prideful stance. Thus, it is fairly safe to assume that the description of the foul’s exhibited behavior is the reason for its use as a symbol in war.

The practice of printing pictures, slogans, flags, battle scenes, and other morale-boosting propaganda on envelopes during the Civil War originated in the Union states. Found to be very popular with the public, postal covers with such printing became quite common, and thus today can still often be purchased fairly inexpensively as a topical philatelic collectible and historically-edifying hobby. The example to the right has the following slogan: “Uncle Sam’s Bantam. I’ll Crow While I Live.” The most rare covers are from the Confederate states, as far fewer were printed due to economic conditions and resources available. 

During World War I, the British Army included Bantam Divisions, comprised of men whose height was between five feet and five-feet three inches. This second relaxation of recruitment rules that allowed men of shorter stance to sign up for military duty came in September of 1915 due to the need for more soldiers to fill the battlefields. By the end of 1916, Bantam Divisions lost their name as the supply of men of this stature dwindled and the height limitation was extended. The term bantam was used in the 1934 film, Here Comes the Navy . James Cagney is described as bantam-cock sailor who runs up against chief petty officer Pat O’Brien. To read an interesting article about the British Bantam Units click here. Author Sidney Allinson wrote the book, Bantams: the Untold Story of WWI, published in 1982 and still available both as new and used today.

In 1922 Sir Herbert Austin who was knighted following WWI, introduced the Austin 7. It was a small, light weight, well built and economical vehicle for use by the mass-market public. The success of the Austin 7 brought Sir Herbert’s company out of bankruptcy. The model and concept of the car was the beginnings of development that led to the vehicle called a Jeep at the outset of World War II. On February 20, 1941, at a press conference on the steps of the US Capital building that followed the display of the bantam-size Jeep, a reporter asked the representatives of the Willys-Overland Motor Company what it was called. The response was, “We call it a Jeep,” the term jeep being what Army greasemonkeys were called beginning sometime during WWI. Production of the Jeep and its parts for use during WWII was handled by three companies: Bantam Motor Company, Ford Motor Company, and Willys-Overland Motor Company. Claim of ownership of the name Jeep ended in 1943, when the Federal Trade Commission ordered Willys to cease and desist using it, although the dispute went on publicly through the press for several years following. Today, Jeep is a registered trademark of Chrysler Group LLC. To read the full article click here.

Thus Bantam, once a seaport of significance in Indonesia, became a term that represented something or someone of small stature or size while at the same time having the ability to be powerful under extreme circumstances.

1924 Postcard with Fort Snelling MN Connection Major Geo A Sanford

1924 at Fort Snelling
Blog Post by Mary Katherine May

It is pretty obvious that most people would not collect this postcard for its appearance. Creases with cracks, soil, ruffling, edgewear... and St. Mark's Episcopal Church from Loring Park in Minneapolis, Minn. is hardly a rare view.

What I find interesting, as I always do, is the brief message on the back. The message on this card is a bit longer--tightly fitted words written with a fountain pen that either had surges in the flow of ink, or else the paper of the postcard absorbed the ink each time even the briefest of pauses occurred.

Postmark: St. Paul, Minn., March 18, 1924, 10:30 AM
Written: March 14th, 1924, at Fort Snelling, Minn.

There really is no Fort Snelling, Minnesota, although when first erected and used, at one time the furthermost outpost, it might have seemed such--way back when...

Addressed to:
Mrs. Arthur Lafferty
Lake City Minnesota
R R

Fort Snelling Minnesota
Care of Major Geo. A. Sanford
Come to St. Paul
Write to Us

My dear niece and family...

The Message
My dear niece and family

Just a card to let you know that I am here with my son George and family. I expect to go to Amarillo, Texas to visit Grace &and her family the last part of this month. He would like to have make us a visit before I if you can. George and Veta(?) join me in love and best-wishes--with love to all of you--from Aunt Mary Sanford.

Mary and Rick may own Quality Music and Books, an online Book, Music and Gift webstore, based in Minneapolis, MN.

Birthday Greetings with Real Photo Inset Bricelyn Wells MN

Birthday Greetings to Miss Florence Scriver, Wells Minnesota
August 4, 1909

A third postcard about Florence, the three acquired at the same time. This postcard has some gilt Birthday Greetings, whether or not written by the sender--I don't know. This postcard is a welling wishing to Florence, who now must be home, since now going to where her mother lives Wells, Minn.

Postmark: August 5 1909 6 PM Bricelyn MN

Addressed to:
Miss Florence Scriver
Wells Minn

The Message:

Dear Flo (I can't make out the rest on this line)


I was home 4 weeks and come back Sun. We had a lot of compony yesterday from town. We got some flowers. Good by.

Rosomond.

Artwork:"Birthday Greetings" in gold-tone or gilt cursive writing by hand, inset photographs of boaters (? 2 women, 1 man ?) and geese on the lawn. Location currently undetermined.

Rick and Mary May operate the webstore Quality Music and Books.

RPPC Scenery WHO was Scheuer? by Mary Katherine May

ALONEby Scheuer

Postmark:
February 13 1909
6 PM
Bricelyn Minn

Addressed toMrs. W. H. Scriver
Wells, Minn.

Dear Mama:

I was going to tell you when was home but forgot it. You take enough of my money and get 50 yds of that 5-1/2 cent sheeting for home. You need it so you get it.

Florence

Often in the past when communication was limited between locations, or at best there was the telephone complete with operator and party line where anyone could listen in, the postcard was used to relay useful information...sometimes important, sometimes just general family things between brother, sister, mother, father, and other relatives.
Florence

Here is another RPPH (real picture postcard) by Scheuer, titled ALONE. Though I doubt that the cow in the water was staged, the title of the photograph gives the implication that it was.

Seen in the background are 3+ buildings laid out so that it appears to be a neighborhood rather than a farm. Since I don't have any information about Scheuer, I have no way of telling whether there is a possibility that the bridge in the background of this photo is the same bridge as the one in the previous post.

This blog post by Mary Katherine May May of Quality Music and Books.

RPPC Scenery WHO Was Scheuer? by Mary Katherine May

There are a few scenic photographic image postcards available on the internet for purchased created by a person named SCHEUER. Just this weekend, I picked up two real picture postcards (RPPH) in a quaint town near Rochester, Minnesota where the Mayo Clinic is located, by the name of Mantorville. Should you be in the Rochester area, I suggest visiting Mantorville. There is some historic interest, a few shops, a lunch spot with fabulous sandwiches, and the famed Hubble House.

Then, if you still have a few moments to spare, continue south about three miles into Kasson, MN, where there is a fabulous, old-fashioned five-and-dime on Main Street that is called, simply... Variety Store, that is a fun browse. While there, you just may be able to buy a few inexpensive raffle tickets and have a chance to win a locally made quilt, for which the winning name will be drawn during the Dodge County Fair.

An Ideal Spot
by Scheuer

Postmark: April 22, 1909
5 PM

Addressed to:
Miss Florence Scriver (Scriven?)
Bricelyn, Minn.
c/o Edd Buscho (?)

Message:

Dear Florence

Your card took me by a surprise I thot you had forgotten me altogether. I am fine now busy cleaning house. The boys have been seeding but is too cold now. How long more school do you have. Everybody is well and busy. Hope you will write again.

Lillian

Rick and Mary Katherine May operate the webstore Quality Music and Books..