Fruits, Vegetables, and Nuts

"Spring Garden Farms. Cantaloupes, grown and packed by Frederick H. Schmick, Preston, Maryland."

"Radio Pineapple Delights. Contents 14 oz. avoir. Distributors, M. J. Caplan Co., Incoporated, Lawrence, Mass. MJCCo. Accepted, American Medical Assn., Council on Foods." You know about " TV dinners " and how they became popular in the 1950s, right? Well, I'm guessing that "radio pineapple" in the 1930s probably wasn't quite as successful. 8-)

"Here's to the Birthday We Celebrate! Ellen H. Clapsaddle. Painting only copyrighted by the Int. Art Pub. Co. 1912."

"You know I love you, but you had better ask papa, as I just cantaloupe [can't elope] with you." See also I Just Can't Elope! :

"You know how much I love you, but I just cantaloupe [can't elope] with you." See also You Had Better Ask Papa :

"Enterprise Nurseries. George E. Stein, proprietor. East Prospect, York County, Pa. All kinds of fruit, shade, and ornamental trees, small fruit, nut trees, etc. Write for price list. Nurseries inspected by state inspector. Also all stock fumigated with hydrocyanic acid gas. York 'phone. Vredenburg & Co., Roch., N.Y."

"2190 - A Carload of Raspberries from ________. Copyright 1910 by Edward H. Mitchell, San Francisco."

"1893 - I'm Sending You a Lemon from ________. Copyright 1910, Edward R. Mitchell, San Francisco."

"1883 - A Carload of Mammoth Navel Oranges from ________. Copyright 1909 by Edward H. Mitchell, San Francisco."

A colorful Victorian calling card. The typeface used on the card is MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan's Spencerian Script with ornamented capitals.

"Orchilla Guano 'AA' the great soil enricher. R. A. Wooldridge & Co., importers, Baltimore, Md." Such a nice colorful Victorian-era advertising trade card for, uh, " guano ."

Signs: "Blossom Hill Peaches." A vintage photo showing a man at a roadside fruit stand selling peaches from Blossom Hill Fruit Farm. The farm was located a few miles north of the city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and the area around it had so many orchards at one time that it was known as Fruitville. Today there are housing developments where peaches and apples once grew, but some of the road names--Blossom Hill Drive and the Fruitville Pike--reflect the earlier uses of the land.

A Farmer's Love Letter Do you care at ( carrot ) all for me, for my heart beats ( beets ) for you and my love is as soft as a squash but as strong as an onion . For you are a peach with your reddish ( radish ) hair and turned-up ( turnip ) nose. You are the apple of my eye, so if we can't elope ( cantaloupe ) then let us ( lettuce ) marry anyhow, for I know we could make a happy pair ( pear )." For a fill-in-the-blanks version , see below:

A Famer's Love Letter My darling sweet ________, do you ________ all for me? My heart ________ for you and my love is soft as a ________. I am for you as strong as an ________. You are a ________ with your ________ hair and ________ nose. You are the ________ of my eye, so if we ________ then ________ be married for I know we will make a happy ________. For a postcard version , see below:

"Emmett Williamson, 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50 quart(s), not transferable." Seasonal agricultural workers who harvested fruits and vegetables received "pickers' chits" like these, which they could later redeem for cash. I haven't been able to determine what crop these chits were issued for or ascertain whether "Emmett Williamson" was the name of a farmer or a company. For information regarding the use of pickers' chits in Missouri, see Strawberry Tokens and Chits a Reminder of Bygone Era . For examples of other chits, see below:

"6 Quarts, A. J. Daisy." See also Emmett Williamson Pickers' Chits :