Frank C Bach Mandolin Orchestra Wisconsin School of Music 1901 to 1909 Teaching Mandolin Violin Guitar

Bach's Mandolin Orchestra
by Mary Katherine May of QualityMusicandBooks.com



Frank C. Bach was instructor of violin, mandolin, and guitar at the Wisconsin School of Music, 433 State Street, Madison, Wisconsin, in 1910 when this advertising postcard was sent to one Miss Mae Maurer of Arcadia, Wisconsin. As times were different in 1910, sending a postcard to Miss Maurer in Arcadia meant that no address was necessary. The postcard was mailed with the usual once cent stamp with an nice flag cancel.

We don't hear much about mandolin now, but at one time the instrument was prominent enough to have its own instructor at the Wisconsin School of Music. That was also the time when telephone numbers in Madison, Wisconsin, now in the 21st century with a population moving toward a quarter of a million people , were a mere three digits long.

Very little is reported about Mr. Frank C. Bach, yet I did find in a Wisconsin Alumni publication dated October 1901 that Mr. Bach had recently been named teacher of mandolin, and in another publication noted later that his career with the Wisconsin School of Music ended in 1909.

From the internet information on old telephone directories I discovered that Frank had at least two wives, for in 1902 his wife's name was Daisy, but in 1907 it had changed to Theresa M. In a biennial report to the Regents of the University of Wisconsin, there is reported a reshaping of the school of music with the goal of raising the standards of education to be in better comparision with other music school both nationally and internationally, which led to the release from teaching duties for Mr. Bach at the end of the 1909 collegiate year.

Yet the postcard presented here has a postmark of November 21, 1910. Perhaps Mr. Bach was now an affiliated instructor? Or, perhaps the sender still had cards to use. We don't know. We also don't know who sent the card to Miss Maurer, other than the person was in the mandolin orchestra, because of one brief sentence, What do you think of us? Lastly, as to which person in the photograph is Frank C. Bach, I cannot tell.

This postcard is currently in auction on QualityMusicandBooks.com.
LINK to this article's text in Adobe PDF format for download.

RPPC 1918 The Betrothed Stewartville Minnesota Miss Clara Radam

The Betrothed

A Stewartville, Minnesota, woman wearing spectacles, with a sense of humor and of a more mature age, most likely never married, who identifies herself only as a Hayseed writes to her friend, Miss Clara Radam, in Rochester, Minnesota, about her betrothed. 

Hello Clara:
Well I must send you the picture of myself and my Betrothed you see I think quite a little of him. I hold him in my hand so no one can get him away from me.  As you send me the picture of you and your beloved I think I would have to return a picture of the same order.  From a Hayseed.

Unfortunately for dating purposes the the last number of the year is not clear, and thus the closest I can get is March 16, 191?.  Stewartville is south of Rochester, Minnesota, and an active community.

Stewartville, Minnesota was founded by Charles Stewart (1816-1886) of New York state who came to Minnesota in 1857, building a mill in 1858, the year of Minnesota's entry into the union.  It was first incorporated in 1893.   Charles served as the village's first postmaster, as in the Minnesota Legislature in the 1860s.

Lastly, although the stamp was removed for some reason other than collecting and not done well, it does reveal the stamp box, which contains CyKo, place postage stamp here. This stamp box was in use from 1904 to into the 1920s.

This postcard is currently in auction on QualityMusicandBooks.com.

Uncle Henry Elias and Horse RPPC Real Photo Postcard

Uncle Henry Elias and Horse

AZO Stamp Box Dating 1904-1918

Photo Enhanced to Show Features

 



Who Was Uncle Henry?

Horses that were put to good use on farms were a valuable asset to the business of agriculture even for years after time-saving machinery was available.  This postcard, with identifying Uncle Henry Elias and horse, written long after the actual photo was taken because of the kind of ink used, is the reason the horse's name is not known.  Even so, the horse was important enough to the family or Uncle Henry for this photograph to be taken. Who knows? Maybe the horse was for sale? 

Although we don't know more about Henry Elias other than his name, we can see from the picture that he had a mustache and overbite, and that perhaps the photo was taken in the early morning due to the foggy mist in the background--but more likely the light area is due to overexposure.  By using editing the features of Uncle Henry and the horse can be enhanced to see the detail better.

This postcard has been sold.