A Happy Birthday From Percival

Posted on May 14, 2022 by Annieoakley

Vintage birthday card, circa 1930s. Made in the U.S.A.

Price: $5.00 Size: 6 and 1/4 x 4″

“A Happy Birthday

I’m sending this Greeting

To joyfully say,

May you have many Happy

Returns of the Day.”

A striking card for its colors and design: Bright and pale pink, purple, blue (what was the Crayola crayon color for that blue? It’s driving me nuts 🙂 ) black, thin gold trim throughout…..Two houses in the background (with pink roofs), tree in the foreground (windy day or it might remind you of Dr. Suess, like Thing 1 and Thing 2 but, not really), long flower bed (with daffodils). Similar cards can be found indicating Art Deco, and I’m no expert, but definitely the repeating gold pattern at the bottom of the card, gives it that look. I wish I knew who the artist was, or the publisher. We’ll keep a look out for more info.

Birthday Wishes For Felix Schneble

Posted on August 25, 2018 by Annieoakley

Divided back postcard. Postmarked August 17, 1917 [?] Perrysburg, New York. Publisher: NAF Co. [?] Series 101G.

Price: $10.00

Forget-me-nots and beautiful block lettering with the following sentiments from father to son…..

“A Birthday of happiness,

Radiant with hope’s rosy light.

And many another to follow.

As years take their flight.”

Addressed to: “Felix Schneble, 157 Rauber St., Wellsville, N.Y.”

“Dear Son: I didn’t forget your birthday. Meet me at the depot Sat. night. We will have a big time next week. Pa.”

A nice card from Elmer Schneble to his son Felix, the postmarked year looks like it might have been 1917 and from the sound of the note (hope they had a great time) that sounds about right. Felix, from his WWI Draft Registration Card was Felix Covill Schneble, born August 16, 1900. In September 1918, he was going to school and working at Kerr Turbine Company, and living at home at the Rauber St. address. Eight years earlier, the 1910 Federal Census for Perrysburg at 157 Rauber shows Elmer F. and Lena Schneble and children Felix, Edwin and Isabella. All are natives of New York.

And not to leave readers with a vague (or pronounced) question in mind since we mentioned WWI….and we don’t know if Felix was actually in the war, but thankfully, he appears on the 1925 New York State Census, with his family again, same address, and at this time his grandparents, Felix H. (native of Germany) and Hannah M. Schneble, are also in the household.

Last, but not least, the publisher is undetermined at this time. Cropped from the back of the card, their logo:

Sources: Registration State: New York; Registration County: Allegany; Roll: 1711955; Draft Board: 1. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918.

Year: 1910; Census Place: Wellsville, Allegany, New York; Roll: T624_924; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 0039; FHL microfilm: 1374937. (Ancestry.com).

New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1925; Election District: 04; Assembly District: 01; City: Wellsville; County: Allegany; Page: 13. (Ancestry.com).

Best Birthday Wishes, 1910

Posted on August 27, 2017 by Annieoakley

Price: $2.00

Pink roses and a muted country scene in a pink flowered border – another in our ongoing Alice Ellison Collection. The sender wrote:

“Dear Ma: All are well. Bert is working, but not on a steady job. Did Irv & Minta get away. make some of the kids write me and tell me. and get Ella address and name and send it to me. we are going up town again. love to all. Lena.”

Addressed to: “Mrs. J. M. Ellison. 26th Cheyenne Ave. Pueblo, Colo.”

As to the publisher, the first name and location for J. Baumann is unknown. We don’t see a huge amount of cards for him online; the time frame found is 1910 – 1912.

White Rose Birthday Greetings

Posted on October 16, 2016 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Postmarked August 7, 1915 from Alta Loma, California. Printed in Germany. Series 444/10.

Price: $3.00

From the Alice Ellison Collection, this appears to be husband writing to wife; he writes:

“Aug 7, 1915. Dear Ma, wee got to Lena’s at nine oclock this morning and found them all well. But Lena she has Poisen yet. Wee dident have any troble. Wee only changed cars at Stockton. With Love from Dad.”

Addressed to: ” “Mrs. J. M. Ellison, Tutten[?] av. Box 382, East Sacramento, Calif.”

A few comments:

Yikes (!) on the “poison” if that’s what the sender meant, but maybe it was just that Lena was still sick.

The publisher logo on the back (the W inside the diamond) appears to belong to the F. W. Woolworth Co., New York, NY, the “Five & Dime” store or by my own era, just “dime store” (funny how these old terms creep up sometimes still, dime store, ice box…..) See Metropostcard’s website under W for more on Woolworth.

And lastly, the name of the avenue for the address is not showing up online, maybe Fifteenth? even though that’s quite a stretch when looking at the writing.

Source: “W – Publishers, F. W. Woolworth Co. 1878 – 1997.” Metropostcard.com. (Accessed October 16, 2016).

Dear Little Sister

Posted on March 20, 2016 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed, used postcard, postage stamp removed. Postmarked from Sacramento, California, 1912. Publisher: Pacific Novelty Company, San Francisco, California. Made in Germany.

Price: $4.00

This is a beautifully designed “Birthday Greetings” postcard of an Ireland-looking scene of boats in the bay, green hills, a castle in the distance, bordered by four-leaf clover with flowers and three cheerful birdies. The embossing is wonderful, the detail of the clover…it’s kind of too bad this got so soiled over the years, but then again, what’s a few coffee stains, etc? It’s another from The Alice Ellison Collection, and the sender, Lizzie, writes:

“Dear little sister, I hope you passed to the third grade. How is Mamma? We are all well. Dos. & Geo. was out last sunday. love from your sister Lizzie.”

Addressed to: “Miss Henrietta Ellison, 26 st. & Cheyenne Ave., Pueblo, Colo.”

This postcard is unusual in that when you flip it over, it’s upside down. Wonder how many others turned out that way.

Happy Be Thy Birthday

Posted on February 6, 2016 by Annieoakley

“The wish of thy friend is

Happy be thy Birthday”

Per musings from the prior post, here’s another card with the often seen stone bridge. A simple design in a fancy frame: a winter scene with red bridge over a stream and a red house that’s supposed to be further in the background. One of the Lena Davis collection, and the sender wrote:

“Oct. 4, 1912. Dear Cousin. Many happy birthday greetings from Mr. and Mrs. C. Haney[?]”

Addressed to: “Miss Lena Davis. Almena, Kans. R. F. D. #3”

And what almost went unnoticed was the publisher info which barely appears from under the postage stamp, indicating Copyright E. Nash.

Last but not least, this same design with a different message shows up on another card in the same collection.

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Postmarked October 5, 1912 from Elwood, Nebraska. Publisher: E. Nash. Landscape Series, No. 16B.

Price: $3.00

Birthday Greetings For Maggie Miller

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Annieoakley

“Dear Sister, we are all vell [well] and hope you are the same we would like to see you. we pretty near for got you Birth days. write sone [soon] from Bessie.”

Addressed to: “Miss Maggie Miller, Gentryvill, MO.”

There’s a common name (for an uncommon girl, no doubt!) Maggie or Margaret Miller. Nothing shows up in city directories or census records in Gentry Village for Maggie, or even under just the last name and with this exact location. We have an earlier post that went to a Maggie Miller in Saint Joe, and it’s possible they are the same person. The postmarked date and place are unreadable. It’s a beauty of a card, though: roses, forget-me-nots and daisies frame a view of a home (ever so commonly depicted) at river’s edge, and with a foot bridge in the foreground.

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Printed in Germany. Series 1620b. Circa 1907 – 1911.

Price: $4.00

Two Birthday Cards For Mrs. Barbara A. Hester

Posted on February 3, 2015 by Annieoakley

“Each year holds special gifts in store

You would not want to miss one

My wish is ‘Many Birthdays more.

And happiness on this one.’ “

This cute little card of Birthday Wishes used to have a gold ribbon (of which there was just a small piece left) hence the discoloration where the ribbon was….The card came with an insert on which the daughter wrote: “Dear Mother: This little card come to you on your birthday. We got home OK this eve and we all feel good. Paul & his girl are at the house.”
And on the inside of the card was written, “Jean will come home next Wed. for a few days. Love from us all. Margaret.”

We find a Margaret H. Copeland (this makes sense after looking at the second card) on the 1930 Federal Census for Logansport, Indiana; married to Percy H. Copeland, both born about 1877; their son, Paul H. Copeland, born about 1907, is single; and daughter Ada, is born about 1916; all are born in Indiana. With the family are lodgers Ethel Richardson and Alice Shorter. This is a good possibility for the correct family. Shoring up the odds we see that the 1920 census for Jackson Township, Indiana, shows all the same family members with the addition of daughter, Jean, born in Indiana, about 1909.

An index of Paul H. Copeland’s marriage record was then found. He married Alice M. Tucker on August 8, 1931 in Cass County, Indiana. This record shows his parents Percy H. Copeland and Margaret Hester. So, it looks like Margaret used the initial of her maiden name as her middle initial, after she married, which was a very common thing to do at this time. (We see Ancestry trees with Margaret’s middle name as Pearl.) We could estimate then that these two birthday cards were from about 1926 – 1931. From here we found Margaret’s parents Barbara Ann Loop and James William Hester. Ancestry family trees have Barbara’s date of birth as January 29, 1855. If this date is correct, this means that these cards were sent in 1926, since Margaret put “Thursday…Tomorrow is your birthday….” on the second card (below) and the 1926 calendar shows that January 29th fell on a Friday.

Above is the second card, found along with the first. It has a name written in pencil on the front which is, “Aunt Maggie Copeland.” And this must be the sender who’s initials on this one are M.H.C. So, maybe Maggie’s niece wrote on the front later. In any case, the sender wrote:

“Thursday….Dear Mother: Tomorrow is your birthday and I wish we might be together. This weather is terribly cold and I hope you are comfortable. We got more cole and can be nice and warm. If I send you some material & that wool do you feel like making a comfort for our little bed? I’ll send Pa a card soon as I find a good one. Love, M.H.C.”

Ha, it looks like Margaret is saying “we got more coke” but I think she meant coal…..I especially love the design of this card. (For me those flowers have a “sixties look” to them. I’m thinking of an album cover with similar flowers but forget who the group was.) This second card has the artist’s initial’s “E. N.” with copyright.

Set of two birthday cards, circa 1929. Artist on the second card shows initials “E. N.”

Price: $15.00 Size: About 4 and 1/4 x 3 and 1/2.”

Sources: Year: 1930; Census Place: Logansport, Cass, Indiana; Roll: 579; Page: 5A; Enumeration District: 0017; Image: 805.0; FHL microfilm: 2340314. (Ancestry.com)

Year: 1920; Census Place: Jackson, Cass, Indiana; Roll: T625_426; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 50; Image: 113. (Ancestry.com)

Ancestry.com. Indiana, Select Marriages, 1780-1992

“United States Census, 1880,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/MH94-G8Q : accessed 3 February 2015), William Hester, Howard, Howard, Indiana, United States; citing enumeration district 48, sheet 339B, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 0285; FHL microfilm 1,254,285.

Hand-Painted Rose

Posted on February 2, 2015 by Annieoakley

Divided back, hand-painted, used postcard. Postmarked April 21, 1911 from San Jose, California. Printed in Germany.

Price: $1.00

“May loves rarest dearest treasures

Fill life with o’erflowing pleasures,

And this greeting true and tender

Oft remind thee of the sender.”

– W.H.S.

“April 21 – 1911. Dear Ethel. I received your letter. Will write a letter someday when I have time. I hope you are all well. and that Bill is all right again. Larry[?] didn’t go home to day. Will go to morrow. You can come down when ever you want to. Will be glad to see you. May and Alice are well. She walks all over now. Mrs. McGrath – love to all.”

Addressed to: “Miss Ethel Main, 253 14th st., San Francisco, Calif.”

This Birthday Wishes postcard is much the worse for wear, but it must have really been nice when brand new. The pink is very bright. From scrutinizing the card, that appears to be dirt rather than mold; there is no mustiness, but it’s still kept separate from all the others, just in case. This is part of The Ethel Main Collection, which we haven’t researched yet, but will later. The verse is lovely, but wasn’t found online. So, the identity of the poet W.H.S. is a mystery.

Birthday Greetings To Edward Lind Haaga

Posted on October 4, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Postmarked April 6, 1911 from Geneseo, Illinois. Publisher unknown.

Availability status: SOLD

This postcard sent in 1911 has a bit of an unusual design: a wheat bundle scene as the center of a sunflower or daisy-like flower, with Birthday Greetings printed below. It’s addressed to: “Master Edward Hauga, Geneseo City.” Finding the addressee was a little challenging: the sender had spelled the last name differently. But the 1910 Federal Census for Geneseo shows Edward L. Haaga, age about three. His parents are William Haaga, born about 1881, occupation harness maker, and Jennie (Lind) Haaga, born about 1885. He has an older brother, William G. Haaga, born about 1905. All four were born in Illinois. A family tree on Ancestry shows Lind as Jennie’s maiden name, and this family name is confirmed in the birth and death record for a daughter Margaret Louise Haaga, born in August of 1910 (after the census) who died in 1927. The SSDI index online shows that Edward’s date of birth was April 6, 1907, so the sender was right on time with this postcard.

The sender wrote: “Aunt D..? won’t be over today. It’s [?] raining. and she has a very bad cold. hope this finds you all well. will bring you a little present when I come. Many happy birth days. from Aunt D. E.”
(or L. E.?)

The publisher or printer logo on the back of the card is the mystery for this one, showing three shields with a prominent “M” in the center, all making up one large shield. Above this design is a smaller stars and stripes banner. There is a letter in each shield on the left and right of the “M” – the left is difficult to determine, but the right appears to be a “P.” The bottom shield holds “Co” for Company. It’s a very nicely designed logo with the “M” making up part of the shield as a whole.

Sources: Year: 1910; Census Place: Geneseo Ward 4, Henry, Illinois; Roll: T624_291; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 0120; FHL microfilm: 1374304. (Ancestry.com)

Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 [database on-line].

“Illinois Deaths and Stillbirths, 1916-1947,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/N3XD-4Q9 : accessed 04 Oct 2014), Margaret Louis Haaga, 13 Sep 1927; citing Public Board of Health, Archives, Springfield; FHL microfilm 1614259.

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