Dec 07
“December 7, 1941, Japan’s sneak attack on Pearl Harbor sinks the Arizona, Oklahoma and Utah. The Oklahoma was salvaged and scrapped. The remaining six battleships returned to duty. U.S. Losses: 2388 killed, 1178 wounded, 12 ships sunk or beached, 9 damaged, 164 aircraft destroyed, and 159 aircraft damaged.” This modern chrome postcard was published by the late WW2Cards.com. My guess is that the original photo started out as a black-and-white photo, and was taken from either Ford Island or Hickam Field.
Nov 15
Mississippi State Capitol Building at Night, Jackson, Miss.
“The new Capitol fronts on Mississippi Street, between N. President and N. West Sts. It is constructed of Bedford Stone and stands with dignity on a high terrace. The building was designed by Theodore Link and was dedicated and opened for use on June 3, 1903.” Did anybody else notice that every light in the place is turned on? I’m guessing that’s just some artistic license on the part of the illustrator.
The back of this card has a very odd overprint which leads me to believe that the wrong description was originally printed on the back. Also interesting is the stamp box, with a blank line between “place” and “stamp here”. I’m sure that the blank line used to say “one cent”, which implies that the card was produced around 1952, when the postcard rate increased to two cents. This “Colourpicture” card, number K 9006, was distributed by the City News Company of Jackson, Mississippi and came to me from the collection of Kay Anthony.
Mississippi State Capitol Building at Night (Back)
Nov 10
In honor of the Marine Corps Birthday, here is one of the few (and proud, I suppose) Marine Corps cards in my collection. The colors on this card are great, despite being a bit faded from age. There’s some wear on each corner; it might have lived inside an album for a time. I’m going to guess that it was manufactured around 1945; the card is postally unused. It was made by the E.C. Kropp Company of Milwaukee.
Here’s what the Official Website for Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton has to say about the site’s history:
In 1769, a Spaniard by the name of Capt. Gaspar de Portola led an expeditionary force northward from lower California, seeking to establish Franciscan missions throughout California. On July 20 of that same year, the expedition arrived at a location now known as Camp Pendleton, and as it was the holy day St. Margaret, they baptized the land in the name of Santa Margarita.
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Nov 05
Mount Rushmore at Night
“Illuminated by three banks of lights (about 150,000 watts) the faces of four great presidents, carved on a granite mountain, stand out in awesome splendor against the deep blue of the night sky.”
I spent the 4th of July, 1987 here and sent this card to Aunt Brenda. It is postmarked from Newcastle, Wyoming, just across the border from Mount Rushmore. Why Wyoming? Because I was a young airman at the time, and the drinking age in Wyoming was still 18.
Oct 23
Broadcasting the Navy's Greatest Hits!
The description on the back of this card is so long that there’s only about an inch of space in which to compose your message. “The United States Naval Radio Station at Radio, Virginia. Situated at the southwestern end of Fort Myer Military Reservation opposite Washington, D.C. Build by the United States Navy Department (Bureau of Steam Engineering). Land ceded to the Navy Department by the War Department. Rated power of station 100 kilowatts. Towers, one 600 feet high 150 feet square at the base, two 450 feet high 120 feet square at the base, located at angles of an isosceles triangle, large tower at the apex base of triangle 350 feet between centers of towers, perpendicular to base 350 feet. Normal range: day 2,000 miles, night 3,000 miles. Cost about $250,000.”
For extra credit, draw the triangle described.
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