Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Are You Ready For Some Football













I did not play high school football, and in smash-mouth football obsessed western Pennsylvania that was not a popular choice. Sissy was the politest name I was called and , well let's put it this way; I was hit as much for not playing as I would have if I had played. Of course, my high school didn't have a very good team so that didn't necessarily mean anything. My high school team lost every game for three straight years. We came close to a win in my junior year. We were playing our arch rival and managed to loose by only six points. 6-0 to be exact. In the last ten minutes of the game, our opponents managed a seventy yard march to victory. Sixty yards on penalties. Fifteen yards when one of our players left the Field on the wrong side. There he was, a lone white uniform in a sea of blue. And just so you know, I am a fan. Steelers in the Super Bowl. I guarantee it!

Monday, September 19, 2011

Mildred Gets Around














While I know that most of these old color scenic postcards are hand tinted black & white photos, it's always nice to see some proof. Take a look at the base of the News Building card and other building that are clearly a photograph can be seen. Click on the image to bring it up in a bigger window, and you can even see people and cars. The caption of the first card, "THE NEWS BUILDING is considered one of the finest structures in New York. It cost ten million dollars to build. The tower rises 36 stories: a nine-story newspaper plant adjoining. The facade on the front of the building contains figures, carved from stone, representing people from all walks of life. The words "He Made So Many of Them" is a quotation of Lincoln's. The beautiful News Lobby draws thousands of visitors daily. An additional attraction is a guide service through the newspaper plant. Have you been through?" No caption on the second card. Publisher of the News Building card, "LUMITONE PHOTOPRINT, NEW YORK. MADE IN U.S.A." The fountain card, "Published by B. S. Reynolds Co., Washington, D.C." Post marks, "NEW YORK , N. Y. STA P, OCT 19 6:30 PM 1937" and, "WASHINGTON, D. C. OCT 26, 11 AM 1937" Both cards are addressed to, "Mr. & Mrs. J. A. Wainscott, 623 So. Vancouver St., Los Angeles, Calif." The message on the first, "Tues. Dear Folks, Arrived here yesterday. We will stay for 1 week. It is raining today so I don't know what we will do. Had a beautiful drive down from W. Hawes yesterday. We are staying in the center of New York-Love Mildred & Cliff." And on the other, "Wash D.C. Dear Folks, We arrived about 9 o'clock this morning drove around & saw many things all day. Went through the Capitol & Some institutes of Art & Science. I think we will leave for Indiana tomorrow & go to Anderson first & then Indianapolis. I hope you are all fine. Love, Mildred." Why don't parents name their daughters Mildred anymore? Seems like a nice name to me.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

The Epworth League Album 4, Ladies and Their Homes







































Happy women in small town America. There will be a car latter on in this album, but for now, people are still getting around by horse power. And the houses, other than the probability that some of these women may have lived in them, well I couldn't see giving a separate post for a couple of snapshots of houses. Click on Epworth league in the labels section to bring up the previous posts.

Friday, September 16, 2011

The Epworth League Album 3













I have a theory, completely unsupported by an facts, that photo albums are almost always put together by women. My other theory is that photo album are often put together by someone, for someone else. This album starts somewhere in the middle west and ends in California. Looking at these last two posts, makes me wonder if this album was made by a daughter for her mother, and if her mother is this lady. A mystery I would love to solve. Click on Epworth league in the labels section to bring everything up.

The Epworth League Album 2, Odd Angles




















There are a lot of angled photos in this album, and they aren't easy to scan. Interesting bunch of images on this page. The subject looks happy and very relaxed in the seated photo. The hammock, she looks pensive. And finally, like the evil aunt in The Wizard of Oz. Wasn't L. Frank Baum from the middle west? There is a middle America feel to these three images.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

The Epworth League Album 1, Love That Haircut












It's time to put up another photo album. I'll be following my usual practice of scanning whole pages to show position with separate scans of the individual photos. When there is only one photo per page, then there will not be a scan for position. There will be a few exceptions to that rule, but those will come a lot latter, along with an explanation for the album's title. While there will be some breaks in the posting of this album, there won't be the big gaps as there have been for the Green Bay Business College and German-American collections. Someone must have really loved this haircut.


Sunday, September 11, 2011

The German American Collection, Deaths in the Family














The older gentleman is labeled, "Noah Jordan 1918 Grandfather, Died: Spring 1918" Perhaps a coincidence, but that would be the zenith of the Spanish flu pandemic that killed in the millions. The group photo, "Nan Nan and her sisters at her brother's funeral 1925" Click on the photo of the old man for a better look at the pin on his vest. It looks like a smaller photo, a common mourning piece. Click on German American in the labels section to bring up the rest of the lot.