Wild Postcards

This linen postcard from the Asheville Post Card Company bears no description.  Judging from the art deco fonts on the back, it was probably made in the mid-1930s.   This particular card was among a stack of ten or so cards that were tucked into one of Kay Anthony’s albums; I had missed them but my wife noticed them a few days ago.  Unlike the cards I knew about, these haven’t had a chance to air out and smell a little bit musty, but in general the cards are in pristine condition and have very vibrant colors.  This card seems to be the exception; there’s some color fading as if portions of it had gotten damp at some point.

According to the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society, “the Monticello Hotel opened in 1926, and in 1927 boasted of having the ‘largest searchlight in the world’ on its roof, which was claimed to be visible three hundred miles away. The light scanned the heavens over Charlottesville, and was often pointed at distant Monticello at night. Famous guests at the Monticello Hotel included Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, band leaders Tommy Dorsey and Guy Lombardo, writer Gertrude Stein, and movie stars Robert Taylor, Sterling Hayden, and Joan Blondell. The dining room of the Monticello Hotel was locally renowned until it closed in 1989 and was converted into office space. Today the hotel houses condominium apartments.”  I’m glad the building is still there.

This linen postcard from the Asheville Post Card Company bears no description.  Judging from the art deco fonts on the back, it was probably made in the mid-1930s.   This particular card was among a stack of ten or so cards that were tucked into one of Kay Anthony’s albums; I had missed them but my [...]

“One of the most panoramic views of the entire Eastern section of the country is this Potomac Valley scene south of Hancock, Maryland. It shows portion of West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania and a great fruit growing section.”

This postcard bears a Curt Teich serial number indicating manufacture in 1943, but the publisher’s mark reads Marken & Bielfeld, Inc., Frederick, Md. From what I can tell, Marken & Bielfeld seems to have been (at least in the past) a publisher of local histories like this one of Carrollton Manor, Frederick County, Maryland. They are still in business in Frederick after over a century.

“One of the most panoramic views of the entire Eastern section of the country is this Potomac Valley scene south of Hancock, Maryland. It shows portion of West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania and a great fruit growing section.” This postcard bears a Curt Teich serial number indicating manufacture in 1943, but the publisher’s mark [...]

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.”

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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 [...]

“To the South and West lies Draper’s Valley, named for John Draper, who settled here in 1765. He moved hence from Draper’s Meadows (Blacksburg), where his wife was captured by the Indians in the Massacre of 1755. Six years later Draper ransomed her.” Six years? “He served as an officer in the Point Pleasant Indian Expedition in 1774.”

Waymarking.com has a little more detail: “Draper first settled at Draper’s Meadows near present day Blacksburg, Virginia but in 1755, Shawnee Indian made their way from the Ohio River Valley to raid the Virginia Frontier. As a result of one of those raids, Bettie Robertson Draper (John’s wife) and her sister-in-law, Mary Draper Ingalls and five other were taken captive and taken back to the Shawnee Camps in the Ohio River Valley. Mary Draper Ingalls escaped and traveled on foot more than 850 miles back to the new River Valley. Bettie Draper lived for (six) years with the family of an Indian Chief before John Draper found her and was able to barter for her release.”

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“To the South and West lies Draper’s Valley, named for John Draper, who settled here in 1765. He moved hence from Draper’s Meadows (Blacksburg), where his wife was captured by the Indians in the Massacre of 1755. Six years later Draper ransomed her.” Six years? “He served as an officer in the Point Pleasant Indian [...]