Calendars

An advertising calendar and blotter for Pluck Art Printery--also known at different times throughout its history as Pluck Print, Pluck Electric Print, and Landis Art Press--which was a letterpress print shop operated by David Bachman Landis (1862-1940) in Lancaster, Pa. Blotters by the Basket or Barrel Briskly printed whenever you order 'em! Yearly Calendar--1897. Pluck Art Printery is ever on the alert throughout the entire year for new ideas and new customers. Try us and remain a patron. D. B. Landis. Most up-to-date job office in Lancaster. The number--38 East Chestnut Street.

George Tarlson's Orchestra. 5 years of rhythm. Large or small orchestras for all occasions. Phone, Weirs 2213, 2542. George W. Tarlson, Jr., mgr. The Weirs, N.H. Calendar, 1936-1937. Check your date with George Tarlson's Orchestra on this calendar card.

The choice of a nation. Red Seal Dry Battery. Guaranteed for all open circuit work. For ignition and all other work requiring high amperage. Red Seal Dry Battery. For ignition and all work requiring high amperage. Positively guaranteed for all open circuit work. A battery suitable for every use. Battery of 5 dry cells connected in series. Voltage about 7½. Amperage above 20. Battery of 10 dry cells connected in multiple series. Voltage about 7½. Amperage above 40. The guarantee protects you. Ideal Auto Co., 19-21 S. 9th St., Lebanon, Pa. 1919. 1920.

"Oscar L. Bussell, special representative, 23 E. Broadway, Eugene, Oregon, Telephone: Bus. 942, Res. 3274. California-Western States Life Insurance Company, home office, Sacramento. Safe. 1940. Inches."

Given its placement on a pedestal, this patriotically packaged loaf of bread must have been the tip-top pinnacle of perfection. This advertising blotter dates to World War II and includes a calendar for the last four months of 1942. The bread wrapper packaging in the illustration also suggests, "Buy U.S. War Stamps." "Ward's Tip-Top Bread. So good to eat and so good for you. Enriched with vitamins and minerals. Fresh. Enriched. Buy U.S. War Stamps. September, October, November, December 1942."

"For dependable transportation, be specific, say ' Union Pacific .' Road of the Daily Streamliners. 1952. 1953." Places listed on the map: Portland, Seattle, Spokane, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sun Valley, Butte, Ogden, Pocatello, Salt Lake City, Hoover Dam, Cheyenne, Denver, Omaha, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Kansas City, St. Louis, Chicago.

"Compliments of S. Kronenberg's Sons, clothing, 6-8 S. Hanover St., Carlisle, Pa. A bit of gossip. Copyright, 1911, R. Hill. January 1913."

"Broad View Farm, Stearns Bros., props. Pure milk from our accredited herd. Telephone: 68-M. Rochester, N.H. Make sure your milk is a grade higher. Order it from Broad View Farm. January 1927. A splendid New Year's resolution--'I will return my empty milk bottles daily.'"

"This is Leap Year, I want to propose; give me a chance before the year goes. 1912."

A graduation photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. "Alberta Mays, Class of 1936, Mulberry High School, Mulberry, Ind. Kobel Studio. April 27, 1936." A unique graduation photo for Alberta Mays (no relation) that combines a portrait of the student, a photo of the high school, and an image of a calendar for the month of April 1936.

Dressed up for "Halloween" in the Vintage Photos Theme Park . I found this photo at an antique co-op in western Pennsylvania a couple of years ago. I was able to determine the month and year--October 1916--from the Mellon National Bank calendar that's hanging on the wall.

Posted as an "interiors" photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park group. The bartender with a stogie in his right hand, the well-worn surface of the bar, and the spindly looking bar stools initially attracted my attention to this photo, which the dealer's label described as a Lenhartsville, Pennsylvania, bar interior. What made me decide to purchase it, however, was the wide array of items visible on the shelves and walls behind the bar. Old photos can be windows to the past, and it's fun to look through them to see what they reveal. In this bar scene, I first noticed the advertising calendars (there are at least four of them), particularly the one featuring U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which is situated just above the bartender's head. After enlarging the image, I discovered that the calendar displays the month of August 1934. A sign partially visible in the upper left-hand section of the photo humorously explains the bar's credit policy--"Credit makes enemies, let's be friends"--and on the shelves below the sign are open boxes of cigars. Some of the cigar brand names include John Hay Junior, Henrietta, Rose-O-Cuba, and Gilbert's Deuces. To the right of the credit sign is an ad for Daeufer's Peerless Beer that depicts a smiling woman, who's holding a glass of beer and saying, "What you like I like." Another copy of this same Daeufer's Beer ad, which additionally claims that the beverage is "Allentown's Favorite," shows up on the far end of the bar near the window, where there's also a display rack with packages of Tas-T-Nut snacks. A different Daeufer's Beer ad appears on the wall to the right of the clock above the far end of the bar. And on the other side of the clock are two framed certificates, one of which includes the year (1934) printed in large numerals. Below the certificates is an ad for Camel cigarettes. Back over at the cash register (behind the bartender) is a second ad for Camels, and hanging on the mirror above the cash register is yet another ad for Daeufer's Beer, along with a sign that suggests, "Try our delicious sandwiches." To cap off a night of smoking, drinking, and sandwich eating, patrons of this establishment could indulge in some of the candy displayed in open boxes in the far corner behind the bar, just above what appear to be two beer taps. Milky Way, Mr. Goodbar, and Zero candy bars as well as boxes of Cracker Jacks and packages of Beech-Nut Gum were available. For a closer look at the area behind the bar, see the cropped version of this photo (thumbnail image below).

For additional information, see the full version of this photo (thumbnail image below).

This real photo postcard shows a teacher standing in front of his classroom in what was probably a one-room schoolhouse located in York County, Pennsylvania, sometime in the 1910s. Handwritten on the blackboard is "Elias M. Baugher, Teacher." The calendar in the upper left-hand corner displays the month of March, but the photo isn't clear enough to make out the year. Another interesting detail is the printed sign hanging above the blackboard, which says, "Try, try again." For a close-up of the blackboard, calendar, and sign , mouse over the image above, or select the thumbnail image below. Elias M. Baugher's gravestone appears on the Find A Grave site and reveals that he was born on February 15, 1892, and died September 25, 1918, at the age of 26. He is buried in the Chestnut Grove Brethren Cemetery, located in Jefferson, York County, Pa. The calendar that's visible in the photo tells us that March 1 occurred on a Friday in the year the photo was taken. Since March 1 fell on Fridays in 1907, 1912, and 1918, the photo probably either dates to 1912, when Elias was 20 years old, or to 1918 (the year he died), when he was 26. It's less likely, I would think, that the photo was taken in 1907, when Elias was only 15. A Google Books search turned up the Pennsylvania State Education Association's Report of Proceedings for 1919 , pp. 64-65, which included his name in a list of educators who passed away in 1918 and noted that he "died in camp." The report explained the circumstances: "During the year just closed war and disease exacted from us a heavy toll. Influenza proved a veritable scourge.... It left in its wake sorrow and sadness. More than one hundred teachers of the State were victims of its deadly attack." Another book, York County and the World War (1920), p. 124, relates that Elias was drafted into the army during the last months of World War I (1914-1918) and confirms that he died of flu: "Private Elias M. Baugher. U. S. Infantry, Camp Lee, Va. Private Baugher was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Freeman Baugher of near Jefferson, York County, Pa. He left for Camp Lee, June 24, 1918, with the third County quota of drafted men, where he died of influenza. Prior to entering the service he was engaged in farming in Frederick County, Md. Interment was made at the Chestnut Grove Church of the Brethren. He was 26 years old at the time of his death. He is survived by three brothers and three sisters besides his parents." So it turns out that Elias M. Baugher, a young teacher drafted into the army, fell victim to the 1918 flu pandemic , which, unlike other influenza outbreaks, "killed predominantly previously healthy young adults." As detailed in The American Influenza Epidemic of 1918: A Digital Encyclopedia , Camp Lee, located in Petersburg, Virginia, just 25 miles from Richmond, was home to almost 48,000 soldiers. The camp experienced its first case of the flu on September 13, 1918, and by September 19 there were more than 1,000 cases. Elias died on September 25, and the flu epidemic continued to rage locally in Camp Lee and then in Richmond. Influenza afflicted the country and the world in a global pandemic during the remaining months of 1918 and on into the following year.

See the full version of this real photo postcard for additional information.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of furniture (one piece or a roomful; extra credit if your photo includes something instead of—or in addition to—a chair or a table, which we featured in previous themes) . Penciled notation on this photo: "Lewis Walker Co., 2/25." I haven't been able to locate any definitive information about the Lewis Walker Company, but I believe that it was located somewhere in Pennsylvania, possibly in Pittsburgh. The photo shows an office full of furniture and equipment. A solitary man sits at a desk , and additional desks, tables, chairs, and bookcases fill up the rest of the room. Interesting items in the middle of the room include a Dalton Adding Machine on its own stand, a Comptometer case on a desk, and a calendar hanging on the wall. See also close-ups of the man seated at the desk and the equipment in the center of the photo .

A number of interesting details are visible in this detail from the center section of this 1925 photo of the Lewis Walker Company Office . First, a Dalton Adding Machine is positioned on its own stand in the foreground. The machine was capable of printing calculations onto the paper from the roll that's positioned on top. Secondly, a case for a Comptometer —"the first commercially successful key-driven mechanical calculator"—is lying on the desk located behind and to the left of the Dalton machine. The label on the outside of the Comptometer box says, "Comptometer (Pronounced like thermometer). Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, U.S.A. Adds. Divides. Multiplies. Subtracts." Finally, an advertising calendar hanging on the wall at the back of the room confirms that the photo was taken in February 1925 and suggests that the location may be Pittsburgh or somewhere else in western Pennsylvania. The advertisement on the calendar says, "Brown & Zortman Machinery Company, machinists supply company, machine shop equipment and supplies, Pittsburgh, Pa. February 1925." See also the full version of this photo and a close-up of the man seated at the desk .

In this detail from a 1925 photo of the Lewis Walker Company Office , a young man is working diligently at his desk as he ignores the photographer who's taking his picture. The man is surrounded by the tools of his job. A clock and a holder with several rubber stamps are among the items I could identify on the desk. There's a pencil sharpener mounted on the windowsill, and a candlestick telephone is visible on another desk that's situated behind the man. See also the full version of this photo and a close-up of the equipment in the center of the room .