Kate Hang, Redondo Beach, 1911

Posted on September 13, 2022 by Annieoakley

Divided Back, Real Photo Postcard, unused. August 1, 1911. Artura stamp box.

Price: $15.00

“Taken Aug. 1st at Redondo.”

The scene behind Kate is, of course, a photographer’s backdrop, and a nice one at that, with its breaking waves, rocks, lighthouse and distant ship. Holding a pastel striped parasol (note the optical illusion – it appears to be inside-out) and in a graceful pose with natural-looking head tilt (the photographer must have loved her!) Kate is trim-waisted in long skirt, belt, and a white blouse – pleats, cuffs, and a collar folding down into a wide tie – perfect for the seaside look. I’m trying to figure out that hat with it’s missing center part – maybe just a wired velvet half-wrap with velvet flower on the side. Different, but not surprising given the myriad of styles showing up in old photos and postcards.

The surname on the back is a little hard to read but Hang is the only name that fits, according to records found, though there are not many, and the name is often misspelled “Haug.”

1916 Voter Registration: 310B Metcalf St, Los Angeles, CA. Mrs. Katie Hang. Spouse, John is a cook.

1920 and 1924 Voter Registrations: John and Kate, 1668 Echo Park Ave, Los Angeles. John works for the American Railway Express. Name spelled “Haug.”

1918 WWI Draft Registration for John Hang:

1934 Voter Registration and 1937 City Directory – John (clerk) and Kate. 710 Lucretia Ave. Name spelled “Haug.”

Sources: U.S. World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. (Ancestry.com).

Railway Express Agency. n.d. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Railway_Express_Agency (accessed September 13, 2022).

Los Angeles County, California, U.S. Voter Registrations, 1900-1968. (Ancestry.com).

Los Angeles Directory Co.’s Los Angeles City Directory, 1937. p. 882. (Ancestry.com).

A Prosperous New Year To Vera Willson

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed postcard. Postmarked December 31st, circa 1910, year missing. Publisher: International Art Publishing Co. “New Year Post Card Series No. 19.”

Price: $6.00

Two adorable bluebirds (artist interpretation) resting on an evergreen branch, are sheltering from the falling snow under an umbrella. This is the first item in The Willson Family Collection. Photos of some of the family members have been found, and will go up early this year. Lots to research!

Addressed to: “Miss Vera Willson, Bx 543, Gilroy, Cal.”

Vera’s friend wrote: “My dear friend:- I thank you for the Christmas card. I am very glad you remembered me.Yours sincerely[?] HL. Bx 238.”

The front of the postcard has the sender’s last name but we didn’t find anything for him in census or city directories, likely due to the full surname being hard to read. Looks like Linden-something. We tried various possibilities but nothing came up.

Country Meets City

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Annieoakley

Undivided back, used postcard. Postmarked March 26, 1908 from Chesaning, Michigan. Publisher: E. B. & E. Co.

Price: $12.00

A slightly comical card of an illustrated older couple, maybe they live in the country or city outskirts, and have come to downtown Detroit. Within their outline is a photo (slightly distorted probably to fit in the frame, in a fun-house type of way 😉 check out the tower) of the old Federal Building and Post Office at the Northwestern corner of Shelby and W. Fort streets.

Addressed to: “Mrs. Floyd Walworth, Fergus, Michigan”

Where is Fergus?

Fergus, Michigan is a “locale” located north of Chesaning, in St. Charles Township, Saginaw County, in the vicinity of Fergus and McKeighan roads (purple marker on map below). It was a station on the Michigan Central Railroad and had a post office that closed in 1933.

The sender writes: “Josiah and Samantha are both recovering from their colds. Hope to be able to go sight seeing soon. This is not very warm weather but expect better some time. Are you well? Lovingly Aunt Minnie.”

Floyd and Myrtle

Without a doubt (we got thrown off track at first by another possibility) the recipient of this postcard was Myrtle G. Spencer, daughter of G. H. Spencer and Emma Burrows, who had married Floyd E. Walworth on August 1, 1907 in Corunna, Saginaw County, MI. Myrtle was about age 22 when she married Floyd, but was first married to John R. Wegert (June 18, 1902 in St. Charles, MI). Floyd was about age 29 at the time of marriage and both he and his bride were residents of Fergus, MI and native Michiganders. His parents were Matthew Walworth and Lucy Merrill. Floyd’s occupation was live stock shipper and Myrtle’s was music teacher.

Aunt Minnie, a mystery

The sender of this card, Aunt Minnie, was not yet found in records. She mentions family members Josiah and Samantha, names which we expected would jump out at us from old records, but no; a more time-consuming search would be needed as far as who’s who for Myrtle or Floyd’s possible aunts.

Publisher i.d.

Last but not least, according to Publishers’ Trademarks Identified by Walter E. Corson, the postcard publisher E. B. & E. Company was Ely, Boynton & Ely of Detroit.

Sources: Austin, Dan. “Federal Building.” historicdetroit.org. (accessed September 15, 2018).

St. Charles Township, Michigan. n.d. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Charles_Township,_Michigan (accessed September 9, 2018).

Chesaning. Google Maps. google.com (accessed September 9, 2018).

“Michigan Marriages, 1868-1925”, database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NQQ4-2ZB : 9 July 2018), John R. Wegert and Myrtle G. Spencer, 1902.

Michigan Department of Community Health, Division of Vital Records and Health Statistics; Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan, Marriage Records, 1867-1952; Film: 93; Film Description: 1907 Montcalm – 1907 Wayne.

Corson, Walter E. Publishers’ Trademarks Identified. Ed. James Lewis Lowe. Norwood, PA: 1993. (print).

Girl With A Parasol

Posted on March 3, 2018 by Annieoakley

Photo in cardboard folding frame. Photographer unknown. Glossy finish, Velox paper. Circa late 1920s – 1940s.

Price: $10.00 Size including frame: About 4 and 1/2 x 8 and 1/2″

Multiple layers for photo detecting

The Velox marks that appear on the back of the photograph indicate the time frame was maybe around late 1920s – ’40s. But this one has a lot of other clues, too, though it feels like we’re dancing around the answer without quite finding it: We looked at the cardboard frame style, the dress, the striped knee socks, the floral pattern of the Japanese-style paper parasol, the metal folding chair, the shoes (Mary Janes with a alligator pattern around the heal, very snazzy by the way) and the hairstyle. And then for location, the foliage (No, we didn’t really get that crazy. But, that is a tree trunk we’re seeing behind the umbrella, not a blur in the image.) My feeling is 1930s for the era, but we’ll update it later if a better estimate comes around. And then the girl….a great girl. We don’t know her name, but wasn’t this a nice captured moment of happiness?

Source: Messier, Paul. “Notes on Dating Photographic Paper.” p. 125. Topics in Photographic Preservation, Volume 11. 2005, Photographic Materials Group of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic & Artistic Works. http://resources.conservation-us.org/pmgtopics/2005-volume-eleven/11_16_Messier.pdf. (accessed March 3, 2018).

Choose The Best Shade

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Annieoakley

Trade Card. J & P Coats. Circa1880s – 1890s.

Price: $15.00 Size: About 4 and 1/8 x 2 and 5/8″

Such a pretty card and with a clever caption! The stripes going through the waves remind me of the zigzag pattern in clothes that has materialized (just a happy coincidence on the pun) on the scene in the world of fashion in recent years, and the design on the back of the card that surrounds the lettering in bold, is delicate and almost mechanical-looking.

J & P Coats you will instantly recognize as a mega company in the world of thread. I checked my sewing tin just now and found all the labels as either Coats, under the current Coats Group logo, Clark O.N.T. (Our New Thread) or Coats & Clark.

Sources: Coats Group. n.d. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coats_Group (accessed February 25, 2018).

Coats. TRC Leiden. (accessed February 25, 2018).

A Postal Telegram….Don’t Worry!

Posted on February 19, 2018 by Annieoakley

Divided back, unused postcard. Circa 1907 – 1910s. Publisher APC or AP Co. Series or number 2119.

Price: $7.00

“Postal Card Telegram. From ______. I get the blues every time I think of leaving this place; I’m thinking of locating here permantly. Don’t Worry!

A tricky spelling for many….

Ha, well permanently was misspelled above. Interesting. In looking for “permantly” in Newspapers.com (I wondered for a sec if the spelling had changed) from years 1832 to the present, over 13,000 entries were found, the last one dated in 2016. Sure, compared to the over 8 million entries found under the correct spelling of permanently, 13k is not so very much, but still, it’s proof that the word has permanently confounded some of us English-speakers. 😉 And most definitely we can find the incorrect spelling in abundance still today, in ads, social media, etc. and though some is hasty typing, ignore spell check, no biggie type of thing, others are well, not so much.

No worries

The “not to worry” instruction to the receiver…hmmm: Guessing that is because telegrams were often needed to send bad news, especially during the war. Or maybe, the sender is saying don’t worry, I’ll be coming back, or even don’t worry about me after I leave because I’ll be fine just as soon as I get back to you! And the image, though not of the best quality, is a charmer, of a happy couple, she in her high-brimmed bonnet and he in his straw boater, holding an umbrella.

Publisher name unknown

A nice header on the reverse shows the logo of the publisher: maybe standing for AP or APC Company. If memory serves, this is one we haven’t come across yet.

The Road To The Dance

Posted on April 18, 2017 by Annieoakley

Divided back, Real Photo Postcard, unused. Velox stamp box. Circa 1907 – 1917.

Price: $4.00

The who and where are unknown in this RPPC (for some reason I keep thinking Oregon) of three young men and a young woman, dressed up for the evening, heading up the dirt road to….a country dance, we think. The young lady carries a parasol, and per the norm for the time-period, all four are wearing hats. That’s a wide hat band ribbon around the fellow’s hat, second from left: You can just barely discern the crown that’s blending in with the background.

Hen And Chicks On The March

Posted on April 15, 2017 by Annieoakley

Divided back, unused postcard. Unknown Parisian publisher. Printed in France, Series or number 595. Dated by the sender: October 1944.

Price: $5.00

A very cute French postcard for Easter (though dated in October) showing a hen and her three chicks, marching off to une Fête de Pâques. The hen is a cut-out that is pasted on for a slight 3-D effect, and some of the card’s silver glitter still remains after seventy-three years. But we love the details: the differing expressions for each of the feathered-four, and the red balloon, the green umbrella, the Pierrot-like clown hats worn by the chicks, and the artist’s realistic touch with the four-leaf clover….The card was, poignantly, sent home during WWII, from probably an American soldier, to his little girl, Elsa. He writes:

“Special for my sweet little daughter, Elsa-pie from her loving Daddy. France, October 1944.”

A close-up of the publisher logo appears below, but the company name is, for the moment, a mystery. For sure, that’s “Paris” at top and underneath would be “Marque Déposée” for trademark, but what’s the first letter there…? Our best guess for the publisher initials is either T.D.A or Y.D.A.

Giesecke Boot & Shoe Manufacturing Co.

Posted on October 30, 2016 by Annieoakley

Trade card for the Giesecke Boot & Shoe Manufacturing Co. Circa 1885 – 1901.

Availability Status: SOLD

Grand! And it is, this lithograph from an unknown company showing two children riding a duck (or goose?) The girl, sitting “side-saddle” holds a parasol, while the boy sits astride holding the reigns and is turning back to gaze at her. The duck or goose, take your pick, is about to be happily paddling his way thru some lily pads. The reverse shows:

“Not how cheap, but how good

For Fit. For Wear. For Economy buy

‘Little Shoes for Little Men and Little Women’

None genuine unless stamped on bottom ‘Little Shoes for Little Men’ trade mark registered.

The Giesecke Boot & Shoe M’f’g Co. Makers”

Owner and president of the company, William Frederick Giesecke, was born in Germany December 4, 1833. He emigrated to the U. S. around May 1, 1858. City directories show that he was manufacturing shoes and boots in St. Louis, Missouri at least from 1870, with addresses centering on Washington Ave. He paired (no pun intended) with Edward A. Meysenburg from about 1876 – 1881. And 1885 thru 1901 directories show the business name as it appears on this trade card. By 1904 the business is under the name of Giesecke – D’Oench – Hays Shoe Co., and the 1908 directory shows there were factories in both St. Louis and Jefferson, Missouri. The obit below from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, dated March 21, 1910, gives more information:

Sources: Edwards’ St. Louis Directory, 1870. p. 360. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

Gould’s St. Louis City Directory, 1876. p. 343. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

Gould’s Street and Avenue Directory, 1881. p. 428. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; NARA Series: Passport Applications, 1795-1905; Roll #: 329; Volume #: Roll 329 – 20 May 1889-24 May 1889. (Ancestry.com)

Gould’s St. Louis Directory, 1895. p. 554. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

Gould’s St. Louis Directory, 1901. p. 707. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

Gould’s Street and Avenue Directory, 1904. p. 757. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

Gould’s Street and Avenue Directory, 1908. p. 658. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995.

“W. F. Giesecke, Retired Shoe Manufacturer, Buried Monday.” St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 21 March 1910, main edition. (newspapers.com)

Just Missed The Rain

Posted on April 25, 2015 by Annieoakley

Divided back, used postcard. Postmarked February 3, 1909 from Stockton, California.

Price: $12.00

I love these type where the sender has written in their own caption, so to speak….And for me, this should be titled, “Blessed Rain” since we don’t get enough of it here in California. Reminds me of a bumper sticker on the back of a truck that I see often, when driving to work, which says, “Pray for rain” and it tickles me that I think the exact same response every time, that of “I always do.”

Anyway, this is a lovely, slightly comical silhouette type postcard postmarked in 1909, but the sender was still thinking 1908…it was February, and he or she was not used to writing the new year yet. It’s wonderful how much is going on in this scene…the couple kissing under the umbrella; the ladies running to the street car which is already full; the people that were prepared and have their umbrellas, and the poor guys who were caught unprepared, getting soaked, one looking a little zombie-ish, and the other one, bent over staring at the pavement. Is he marveling at the amount of water that is pouring off of him, or just thinking, “Gawd!” I like to think a combination of both. Not to forget to mention the kissing couple on the streetcar; the guys watching the ladies running, the one has his hand up, either waving or trying to signal to them, “Hey, the car’s full…it’s not going to work.”

The sender wrote:

“2 – 3 – 1908 Your card received. I am bound for Sonora – I’m in Stockton now – address Sonoma Ave – M.H.C.” and addressed the postcard to:

“Roy J. Andrus – 1608 – 48 Ave – Ocean Beach, S. F. Sea Shells”

Sea Shells?…Maybe the addressee was supposed to be saving sea shells for M.H.C. or it’s some kind of running joke, or any number of other possibilities. (I don’t see anything coming up regarding a district or neighborhood under this name.) But the address is clearly a San Franciscan one. This exact street number doesn’t show, but it’s residential, near Lawton Street. 48th runs parallel to the Coast and the addressee would have lived just a short walk from the beach. Lucky guy!…And just think, this was just a little less than three years after the Great San Francisco Earthquake, which was April 18, 1906.

After looking at the census records and city directories, it appears most likely that the addressee is John R. Andrus on the 1910 Federal Census. He is divorced, occupation Cutter at a paper box factory, born in California, about 1882, and living with his parents, John and Gertrude Andrus. The address given is 1612 48th Avenue, so 1608 might have been a designation for a separate entrance or the numbering could have changed or even have been incorrectly written by the sender. By 1911 Roy had changed occupations and was working as a manager for the Golden Gate Butter Co., and by 1912 was listed as a Horse Dealer.

Sources: Year: 1910; Census Place: San Francisco Assembly District 39, San Francisco, California; Roll: T624_100; Page: 15A; Enumeration District: 0241; FHL microfilm: 1374113. (Ancestry.com)

Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory, 1911, p. 192. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989.

Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory, 1912, p. 193. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989.

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