Real Photo Postcards

A souvenir photo (no. 3344, according to the photographer's notation) of a family visiting the Devil's Den area of the Gettysburg Battlefield in Adams County, Pennsylvania. For additional photos, see my album of Souvenir Photos from the Gettysburg Battlefield .

A parades photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. In this undated real photo postcard, a girl playing the part of Lady Liberty stands in a decorated car and holds her torch high as she poses for the photographer. A man and a woman (Lady Liberty's parents?) in the front seat of the car and three girls (her sisters?) in the back seat are also dressed in patriotic garb and seem to be awaiting the start of a parade (note the second vehicle behind this car). The word "Liberty" appears on the windshield of the car and on Lady Liberty's cap. If you look closely (mouse over the image above to see an enlarged view of the occupants of the car ), you'll notice that no one seems to be too enthusiastic about their participation in the parade--Lady Liberty is frowning, her mother is givng the photographer an icy look, the kids in the back don't seem happy, and dad is hiding his face. I certainly hope their moods changed once the parade began!

A disaster (fires, earthquakes, floods) photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. Caption: "Trucks Aiding Marooned People at Main St., Johnstown Flood, 3-18-36." The Johnstown Flood of 1889 decimated the city of Johnstown, Pennsylvania , killed over 2,200 people, and--like the Chicago Fire and the San Francisco Earthquake--was sensationalized and documented in numerous books, songs, photos, and other media (see the Johnstown Flood Museum's article on <a href=" Remembering the Johnstown Flood " target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Remembering the Johnstown Flood for a brief discussion of the flood's impact on popular culture). While the failure of a dam was the culprit in the 1889 flood, heavy rains caused more flooding in Johnstown in 1936 and 1977 (about two dozen died in 1936 and eighty-five in 1977). This real photo postcard shows rescue efforts on March 18, 1936, the day after the flood began that year. Men and women stand awkwardly in the bed of a truck as it sloshes through the floodwaters on Main Street in Johnstown (mouse over the image above to see an enlarged view of the truck and its passengers ). Other details worth noting: the "Rothert's 'Furniture That Keeps Faith'" billboard down the street, the neon "Bus Depot" sign just behind and to the right of the rescue truck, and the "Arrow Furniture" van ("America's Finest Furniture") parked below the "Cambria Theatre" sign.

See also the full version of this real photo postcard:

A real photo postcard. "Lucky Lindy. Spirit of St. Louis. X211."

Real photo postcard, postmarked Juneau, Wisconsin, Sept. 21, 1912.

A blankets and quilts photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. For another interesting quilt photo, see Baby on a Crazy Quilt . An undated real photo postcard of a man dressed in a suit, vest, and tie. The photographer has posed him next to a chair, with a quilt hanging behind him as a backdrop and a blanket (I think that's what it is) covering the ground underneath his feet.

A people playing musical instruments photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A cornet band marching in a Fourth of July parade or for some other patriotic occasion. A horse-drawn float is following the band. Note the church, partially obscured by trees, in the background and the flag-bedecked house on the left. Baby carriages are parked in front of the house, and a woman holding a closed parasol and wearing a white dress and hat is standing on the porch. The only clues to the origin of this real photo postcard are the "M.P. Church" (" Methodist Protestant Church "?) sign visible on the horse-drawn float, part of the band's name ("---ld Cornet") that's barely visible under magnification on the bass drum, and the letters "C.R.P." on a shirt worn by one of the marchers.

The chart on the right-hand side provides details for a "Bible Plan of Salvation."

Do you have ideas for future topics for the Vintage Photos Theme Park ? If so, please add them to the Suggestion Box ! A photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park monthly topic of cats (submit a photo on this topic each week in addition to—or instead of—a photo for the weekly topic) . "Looking through the news you may see something which might interest you. I will send the papers to you. J.R." A real photo postcard with a cat that's literally looking through a newspaper in 1906. For another postcard with a similar punning message, see Breaking the News, Lititz Express, July 4, 1907 .

The dealer from whom I bought this real photo postcard identified it as a North Dakota scene, and I'm guessing that it shows a threshing crew. I'm not sure what kind of steam engine they're using to power the threshing machine (which is presumably connected to the other end of the belt that extends beyond the left-hand side of the photo).

A real photo postcard for the Schultüte - School Cone group. Wikipedia explains the Schultüte traditon: "When children in Germany, the Czech Republic, and Austria set off for their first day in school upon entering first grade, their parents and/or grandparents present them with a big cardboard cone, prettily decorated and filled with toys, chocolate, candies, school supplies, and various other goodies. It is given to children to make this anxiously awaited first day of school a little bit sweeter." Stamped on the back of the photo: "Egon Sonntag, Photo-Atelier, Reinickendorf, Auguste-Viktoria-Allee 2."

A real photo postcard for the Taylor-Tot Stroller Vintage Memories group. A street photographer evidently snapped this photo of a sailor and his family as they walked past a W. T. Grant Co. store in some unidentified town. The sailor and his wife seem surprised--and perhaps even annoyed--by the photographer, but their daughter seems to be excitedly holding on to a toy as she enjoys the ride in her Taylor-Tot stroller.

A vintage real photo postcard advertising a now old-fashioned type of washing machine. "Good Morning, Sir: Do you want to know how to make money? It is easy, if you know how. I made and sold washers for 25 years. Many dealers have made big money with my washer. You failed to do much with it. May I help you? All my experience is at your service and will make money for you. Do you want it? Yours for success, J. H. Knoll, Reading, Pa."

A proud of their blooming plant photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. In 1910, sixty-year-old Sarah Hetyke posed for this photo next to the blooming mock orange tree in her yard and then wrote a poignant message to her three-year-old nephew on the back of it (see below). Handwritten on the back of this real photo postcard: Lewis Stifler Aug. 9, 1910 Dear Lewis, I am 60 and you are 3. You keep this to look at when I am dead and gone, and remember me. And I hope you will grow up to be a good and useful man. Lovingly, Your Aunt Sarah Hetyke Taken in the yard beside the mock orange tree when [it was] in full bloom.

There isn't any identifying information on the back of this real photo postcard, but I suspect that these ladies were related to Bonnie and Clyde .

Or at least it looks like they're trying to drive away in "The Red Devil." Unfortunately, there aren't any clues regarding the origin of the devilish vehicle on this real photo postcard.