Alan Mays' photos

It's somewhat difficult to see, but the caption, "The Kids from Butler, Pa.," is written in gold lettering across the left side of this postcard. Multiple baby cards like this were published in the early twentieth century. Printed on the back: "Serie 1525. United Art Pub. Co., New York." Postmarked Butler, Pa., March 24, 1910, and addressed to Miss Twila Daniels, Clarington, Pa. Unsigned message on back: "I love my wife but O you kid . You know who."

A Vintage Photos Theme Park posting for the topic of hands/feet (a photo in which hands or feet are prominent)--if you have both, please feel free to post 2 photos . This jolly bunch documented their trip on board the steamer Dubuque by writing "STR DUBUQUE" on the bottom of their shoes and then propping their feet up for the photo (mouse over the image for a better view of the shoes). If you look closely enough, you may be able to see a faint erased "S" on the "T" shoe. Notice also the steamboat's smokestack, which is located behind the boy on the right. Part of the boat's decorative trim is visible to the right of the smokestack, too. This Dubuque was the fourth and last steamboat with that name, according to the Encyclopedia Dubuque . The description for a postcard in the collection of the Davenport Public Library (see Steamer Dubuque on Mississippi River ) provides some additional details about this Dubuque , which was "a stern wheel packet steamboat originally named Pittsburgh and built at Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1879. It was rebuilt at Dubuque, Iowa, in 1896 for the Diamond Jo Line and renamed Dubuque . The boat sank in 1901 but was raised and Streckfus Steamers [another steamboat company] took over. In 1919-1920 it was converted to an excursion boat and renamed Capitol ." Given that chronology, it seems likely that this photo was taken sometime in the 1900s or 1910s. Whatever the date, I'd wager that this photo was a shoe-in for the funniest one taken of this bunch during their excursion on the steamer Dubuque .

For more information, see the uncropped version of this photo:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park posting for the topic of hands/feet (a photo in which hands or feet are prominent)--if you have both, please feel free to post 2 photos . All but one of the gents in this photo have raised one of their hands in order to point upward with their index fingers (mouse over the image for a closer look ). Are they pointing toward heaven? Is their sports team ranked number 1? Whatever their gestures might mean, the guys certainly don't look too enthusiastic about it.

For more information, see the uncropped version of this photo:

A waiting photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. This snapshot shows a crowd of people standing along both sides of a wide tree-lined street. Across the street is a bus, and there are various buildings in the distance, but there's nothing that identifies the location. In the foreground, a man is looking down the street to the left, and next to him a woman is glancing back toward the photographer--perhaps she's a friend or family member. Visible on the lamppost near the woman is what I think the photographer was trying to capture--a poster of Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower with the caption, "Welcome, Ike. Buy extra E bonds" (mouse over the image to see an enlargement ). After a couple of Google searches, I located a front-page article in the Daily Republican , Monongahela, Pennsylvania, June 18, 1945, that mentioned the poster: "If Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower has any loose money lying around, he'll know what to do with it after today. On practically every lamppost along his homecoming parade route is a big poster bearing his photograph and the words: 'Welcome Ike. Buy extra E bonds.'" In 1945, General Eisenhower, who was later to become the thirty-fourth U.S. President (1953-1961), returned home to the United States following the end of World War II in Europe, which occurred on May 8 (hostilities didn't end in the Pacific, of course, until later that year). He continued to promote the sale of E bonds , which were U.S. Savings Bonds used to finance the war effort. So it's possible that the people in this photo are waiting to see General Eisenhower in a homecoming parade on June 18, 1945, in Monongahela, or maybe the parade actually took place in nearby Pittsburgh. Or perhaps this photo was taken at another in a series of homecoming parades for General Eisenhower. In any case, it's interesting to catch a glimpse of the people who were there in this little window to the past.

For more information, see the uncropped version of this photo:

Mouse over the image above to see a close-up of Mr. and Mrs. Geo. W. Davidson . This real photo postcard doesn't bear a stamp or postmark but was addressed to: "Jessie Warner, Croton, Ohio." Handwritten message: "April 10, 1914. Dear Jessie, We wish you many more happy birthdays. Mr. and Mrs. Geo. W. Davidson, Croton." If you have any interest in vintage photos like this that show people posing in front of their homes, please consider joining my new group Vintage House-Proud People . Here are some more examples of this kind of photo:

For more information, see the full version of this real photo postcard:

I received this slide as a Christmas present in 2015, but the Star Wars Death Star Space Station that they're putting together here in front of the Christmas tree dates to 1978! Take a look at the full slide to see the entire Christmas-day scene:

For more information, see the cropped version of this slide:

It looks like this photo was taken at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve. The couple on the right are smooching, and the others are taking a drink or otherwise making merry in this undated and slightly out-of-focus Kodachrome slide.

From a Kodachrome slide, date and location unknown.

"Godt Nytt År" (Norwegian for "Happy New Year) is the message on this postcard, which was postmarked in Stockholm, December 31, 1912.

A photo marking the passage of time (any interpretation of "time" in a photo) for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. Although the couple in this real photo postcard paradoxically seem to be looking up at a cuckoo clock that's hanging on a wall behind them, the "Gelukkig Nieuwjaar" caption (Dutch for "Happy New Year") lets us know that they are counting down the seconds until the clock strikes midnight and the cuckoo makes its first appearance in the new year. Gelukkig Nieuwjaar and Happy New Year to all the members of the Vintage Photos Theme Park, and hearty thanks to Lisa and Angelica for their time and effort in keeping the group going this year! I'm looking forward to seeing some more fun and interesting vintage photos in 2016!

A New Year calling card. This may have belonged to Judge John G. Van Etten (1863-1927) of Ulster County, New York.

"Happy New Year. Christmas cards and holiday goods. John F. Clarke, 104 Fulton St., N.Y." An interesting item of Victoriana despite its discoloration, this trade card served as an advertisement for John F. Clarke's business and provided a New Year greeting for his customers. In the curious illustration on the card, Father Time has dropped his scythe and hourglass. He's wearing sandals on his feet as he trudges away through the snow, and he's taking refuge behind a huge open book. Was he planning to "close the books" on the old year with the oversized ledger? Father Time is using the enormous tome to deflect the snowballs that an impetuous young schoolboy (apparently an older-than-usual representation of Baby New Year ) is hurling at him. The boy's snowball barrage is so relentless that Father Time has given up—he's departing the scene and yielding the New Year to the new kid on the block.

"H. & H. Restaurant. Food that's deliciously different. Something superior for your interior. Beers and wines. 1364 N.E. Second Ave., Miami, Florida. Phone 3-9469. The right place to eat."