Bill Poster — Magic Yeast Makes Perfect Bread

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of Labor Day (laborers and/or the day).

This man is a bill poster or bill sticker, a worker who posts (or sticks up) advertising bills and posters on walls and other public places.

The long-handled tool he's holding (see a close-up) is a bill poster's hammer. A tool collector's site explained the hammer's function:

"These specialized hammers were used to 'post' handbills and advertising cards well above the normal reach of the user, or potential remover or defacer, making them both easier to see and less subject to vandalism or being posted over. . . . These hammers are cleverly designed with two clips. The upper clip holds the initial tack while the lower clip holds the bill, card, or poster to be tacked on to a pole, wall, or tree."

This man is also holding an advertising sign that says, "Magic Yeast Makes Perfect Bread." At his feet is a satchel containing more copies of the sign (see a close-up).

This is a real photo postcard with a divided back, and the type of Azo stamp box (with four corner triangles pointing up) printed on the other side suggests a date between 1907 and 1918. The name "William Mere" is handwritten on the other side.