Postcard Project: Odds & Ends, Part 2

All of these cards are undated and/or without send-to addresses. I've placed them in a semblance of chronological order based almost entirely upon guessing. As always, spelling and grammatical errors are copied verbatim from the cards.

No address. Name of addressee too
faint to read.

There is a limited amount of writing on the back of this card. It's in a foreign language. At first, I thought it might be German but it could also be something like Hungarian or Czech. I can actually read German fairly well, but none of the words on this card look familiar to me. The handwriting is extremely ornate.

Addressed to Grandma but doesn't appear to have been sent
in the mail.

"Dear [redacted]: I want to keep my promise and drop you a few lines besides I want to let you know that I got here allright everything is O.K. Like South Bend so far only if it..."

The sentence literally cuts off in the middle. It doesn't appear to have been sent in the mail (perhaps it was sent as part of a package or given to Grandma later in person). There's no signature. South Bend, Indiana isn't actually that far from where I grew up, but I suppose 30 miles or so was a great distance back in the 1930s.

Addressed to Great-Grandma & Grandma from one of Grandma's
brothers (same one who sent the cards in previous post).

"Dear Mother so sorry to hear you are not well. Just hope you will hurry and get well. Take good care of yourself. Love [redacted]."

Below that, addressed to Grandma:

"[redacted] If Mother would like [redacted] to come he can any time. Leave us know."

During the mid-1930s, my great-grandparents died about six months apart from one another, both unexpectedly (I think). My grandma was living in Virginia at the time her father died. My understanding is that she went home afterwards to look after her mother. This card must have been sent after my great-grandma fell ill. Based on the nature of what was said, I believe it was written by my great-uncle's wife, not by him.

No address or addressee.

The only thing on this card is what we can safely assume are these men's names:

"Herman Smith, Elmer Rardatzke, Herb Thompson, Bill Wood."

I don't know who any of these handsome gents are or if they might have been related to my family or perhaps were family friends. I love how they all have classic "old guy" names except for Bill.

Addressed to Grandma. Was likely sent as part of a letter as there
is a "2" written in the corner like it's the second page. The rest
of the letter is missing.

"I expect to get a spring boat real soon. I really do need so much a Girl sure does need much just to have to work for Clothes alone and that's where all the money goes. [redacted] do you want the words of some songs. Maybe you have got them my sisters Girls copies them from the Victrola. They are Oh Petreshka (In a little Spanish Town. Mary Lou) This is my Lucky Day. They play them so much in the Theaters. I love to see you right now and wonder how you look because you say you have changed did you reduce. I have gained a few pounds. Love and kisses, Tillie."

I don't know who Tillie was (probably a childhood friend of Grandma's) but I'm both appalled by and in awe of her stream-of-consciousness style of writing. I've never before heard of anybody asking someone if they've lost weight by asking "Did you reduce?". Also, I wonder what a spring boat was. Is she talking about an actual boat or something else?

Postcard Project: Odds & Ends, Part 1

All of these cards are undated and/or are without sent-to addresses. I've placed them in a semblance of chronological order based almost entirely upon guessing. As always, spelling and grammatical mistakes are copied verbatim from the cards.

No date or address. I don't recognize the children pictured.

". . . tired when we got . . . the train ride. Be sure . . . of May then Harry will . . . He is going to be confirmed . . . with . . . and I am . . . I hope . . . me along. I am there already when you get this picture and so is Louie."

Doesn't make much sense when you can't read the whole thing, does it?

Card addressed but not stamped.
Name of addressee too faint to read.

"From [town name redacted] Wis to [town name redacted] Mich. I am sending you only a half a dozen of Postcard, for some one took them while I was out working & so now I am sending you all I have left. Am sorry But I couldn't find out who took the rest. Will write more with time. From your Dad."

My best guess is that this is from my great-grandfather (who I never met because he died in the 1930s) to one of his children. I'm thinking that, after the family moved to Michigan, he might have stayed behind in Wisconsin for a while to work.

I do find it curious that the card is written in English. Great-Grandpa emigrated from Germany to America as an adult, so English definitely wasn't his first language. I know that my mom always said that my grandma (who I also never met because she died a few months before I was born) was embarrassed by her German heritage. I wonder if my great-grandparents just tried really hard to put Germany behind them. If my guess about the timing of this card is correct, it would have been sent after the Great War, but before WWII.


The following three cards are all from the same person, one of Grandma's older brothers, to different people. None of them are addressed or stamped, so they were probably sent as part of a letter or a package. My guess is that all of them were sent somewhere between the mid-1920s and the early 1930s.

Not addressed to a particular person, probably meant for
the family in general.

"Wishing you a merry Xmas and a Happy New Year. From [redacted]."

Addressed to his parents.

"Easter Wishes To Mother & Dad. From [redacted]."

Addressed to his brother.

"Easter Joy to [redacted]. From [redacted]."

Postcard Project: 1950s & 1960s

Since there's only one from the 1950s, I decided to lump it in with the 1960s. We're nearing the end of the project. After these, the only cards I have left are undated and/or unfinished (you'll see what I mean in the next post). As always, grammatical/spelling errors are copied verbatim from the cards.

June 20, 1951
Addressed to Great Aunt Vi & Great Uncle Bill.

"HERE WE ARE. [last name redacted]"

This is from my grandparents to Grandma's sister & brother-in-law. I wonder if my mom & uncle went along on this trip to Wisconsin? My mom would've been pretty young.

July 12, 1963
Addressed to Great Aunt Vi & Great Uncle Bill.

At top of card: "(Sunday evening)".

Body of card: "Dear Mom & Dad & Family: We had a real nice time at your cousin's house (farm). We stayed there a couple of days. We got here at the Wis. Dells today and just got back from going on the last trip through the Dells. It was just Beautiful. It looked just like this picture on the card. We took some pictures which were hoping some will turn out. Were leaving tomorrow morning for Maulwakee to see my [illegible]. We will probably be home in the Middle of this week sometime. The weather has been awfully warm. It was 93 degrees this noon. See you soon. Roger & Jean."

Roger is Vi & Bill's oldest (I believe) son. We never spent much time around him growing up. I'm not sure why, because he seemed to be my mom's favorite cousin. Maybe he didn't live especially close by? Oddly enough, after a childhood friend of mine's father was killed in a car accident, her mother later married Roger (I don't recall what happened to Jean by that point, if they had been divorced or if she had died as well).

It beats me why Roger randomly capitalized words.

July 26, 1965
Addressed to Great Aunt Vi & Great Uncle Bill.

"Hi, made it here Sun. at 1:00 PM & came to the fair today (MON.). Pretty big town. Hope to see a T.V. show tonite and the Yankees tomorrow. We got a room on 42nd street a few blocks from 'Time Square.' Bill."

Bill is Vi & Bill's other son. Mom was good friends with Bill's wife Marlys, so we spent quite a bit of time with them & their sons when we were kids until Bill & Marlys got divorced. I'm amused that Bill refers to NYC as a "pretty big town." Seems a bit of an understatement. The fair he refers to is the 1964/65 World's Fair.

July 27, 1965
Addressed to Great Aunt Vi & Great Uncle Bill.

"Hi, It's Tuesday Morning and we saw "To Tell the Truth" today & we're gonna see the Yankees this afternoon. Been bying souvenirs? & the money is going fast. Bye now, Bill."

That question mark is Bill's, not mine. I'm not sure if he's questioning whether he actually bought souvenirs or if he's questioning that they could be considered souvenirs, haha.

Postcard Project: 1940s

As always, all grammatical/spelling errors copied verbatim from the cards.

September 6, 1940
Addressed to Grandpa.

"Hello [redacted]: Watt do you no. Volta."

It would perhaps help you to know that the "know" in "what do you know" rhymes with Grandpa's nickname, so his friend was being a little funny. Family lore has it that Grandpa was a very friendly, well-liked guy, but it's still a little weird to me to see evidence of all these friends he had that I never got to know. Of course, I never got to know my grandpa either.

March 4, 1941
Addressed to Grandpa.

"[Illegible] Friend, When I get there I shell talk  frekly[?] to you. Your Friend W.S.H., Hot Springs, S.D."

I don't know who W.S.H. was. I'm guessing that "frekly" is "frankly" either misspelled or the handwriting is so poor that I didn't read it right. Or maybe it's "friendly"? "Frankly" seems more likely which, if that's what it is, it seems pretty serious to me.

June 9, 1942
Addressed to Grandpa.

"Hi [redacted]: Having a grand time. Frank thanks you for the candy & sends his best regards. Pretty country down here but plenty hot. Everybody really friendly here make you feel right at home. Regards, Jeanne & Frank."

Inspired by my friend P, I looked up this building online. While the hospital system appears to exist, this building itself no longer does (unless my googling skills failed me).

All three of these postcards were sent to my grandpa at his job, which I think is a little weird.

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 7

As always, all grammatical/spelling mistakes copied verbatim.

June 24, 1938
Addressed to Grandma & Grandpa

"Dear [redacted], Taking a trip with five other girls & it certainly has been wonderful so far. Visited 'Will Rogers Ranch' while driving thru Okla. also saw plenty of cowboys, one of them took us to one of the ranches here in Texas this morning. The weather plenty warm 104 but at nite it gets so cool you have to have [?] cover. Saw acres of wheat, corn which [illegible] is 5 ft high and fields of cotton wish I could tell you more. Tomorrow we are going to visit Mexico. Love Mary."

While I think a trip with one's girlfriends sounds fun, six women crammed into a car (or hopefully two?) during a Texas summer in the 1930s - with no AC & presumably terrible roads - sounds absolutely horrific. Glad Mary had a good time anyway.

July 7, 1938
Addressed to Grandma

"Hello [redacted] - Having a swell time here - I'm going down the cave now. Peg."

The back of the card indicates that this is the Rainbow Room of Wonderland Cave, three miles west of Cave City, Kentucky. I can't find Wonderland Cave on the map, but Mammoth Cave appears to be just west of Cave City, Kentucky. I'm thinking maybe Wonderland Cave had a name change some time after 1938. My mom took us to Mammoth Cave when we were kids. It was pretty cool.

July 23, 1938
Addressed to Grandma & Grandpa.

"Hello Folks. Enjoying the country up here very much. This is the last Post Office in Michigan. Love, Mary & Don."

Copper Harbor appears to be at the very tippy tip of the "finger" of the Upper Peninsula that juts out into Lake Superior, so I don't think Mary was exaggerating when she calls it the last post office in Michigan. This is the last card in the collection from Mary.

August 8, 1938
Addressed to Grandma.

"Hi [redacted]: Here I am in Detroit doing as the Detroiters do. Hope your not melting away at the office. Marie."

I was honestly unaware that Grandma continued to work after she married Grandpa. When I thought about it, though, it kind of made sense. My uncle wouldn't be born for another couple of years, so why not work? I wonder what she did though, if she continued to be a telephone operator, as she was when she lived in Virginia.

November 8, 1938
Addressed to Grandma & Grandpa

"HELLO PEOPLE - AT LEAST WE DO NOT FEEL LIKE THE ROCK. JUST LOOK AT US. [names redacted]."

This is another card they sent to themselves. It made me laugh. Obviously, they weren't "starving" while they were on vacation. I always heard that my grandpa had a good sense of humor, and I can see it shining through in his writings (it's his handwriting on this card).

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 6

All grammatical/spelling mistakes copied verbatim.

Date illegible. Chronology guessed based on ship-to address.
Addressed to Grandpa

"SAME OLD STUFF. - [redacted]"

It took me stupidly long to figure out that Grandpa sent this card to himself, even though the handwriting is obviously his. I guess I just wasn't expecting to see something he sent to himself.

July 28, 1937
Addressed to Grandma with her married name.

"Hello, Having a grand time. Hope I'll be able to take a trip like this every year. Talk about beautiful scenery of [redacted] County. I think some of the places around here have it beaten. See you next week. Love, Minnie."

My grandparents married some time in 1937. I know I've got the marriage certificate around somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look for it right now. I think maybe they didn't know each other very long before they got married. They allegedly eloped (according to my mom anyway).

August 29, 1937
Addressed to Grandma & Grandpa.

"Dear [redacted]: Just drove up here for the weekend - I wish we could stay for a month. The city & bay are lovely - tonite we are going out to dine & dance. Don & Mary."

The Mary in question is the same one as all the other postcards. Not sure when she got married. I visited Traverse City about 50 years after this postcard was sent & have to agree that it is indeed lovely.

October 1, 1937
Addressed to Grandpa.

"HI THERE [redacted]!"

This is another one that Grandpa sent to himself.

October 2, 1937
Addressed to Grandma.

"HAVING A SWELL TIME." - J.W.F.

Grandpa sent this to Grandma, although I suspect they were traveling together. A belated honeymoon, perhaps?

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 5

As always, all grammatical/spelling mistakes are copied verbatim from the postcards.

August 28, 1934
Addressed to my great aunt Vi. Text below.

"Dear Vi: I thought I might as well write you while I was at it. Having a swell time working here. Seen Alice lately? Of course its sort of lonesome here without the Buick & the gang. Vera."

I'm not sure why Grandma frequently had postcards in her collection that belonged to other family members (in particular her sister Violet). Perhaps she was the family archivist? The almost begrudging tone of the first sentence cracks me up.

October 30, 1934
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"[Redacted]: I received a card from Rev. Ray Clearwaters and he will be our speaker. We got Bessie Todd from First Church to put out the Annuals. They are done. Don had no machine and I was so all firen [?] busy at that time. Bessie wasn't and she is good that way. Everything is O.K. now I believe isn't it? Will be in Old B.H. Friday - Alice."

This is one of my favorite cards picture-wise and one of my least favorite content-wise. I believe it is the last card from the mysterious Alice. I'm kind of glad she goes out with yet another confusing statement ("so all firen busy") and, seemingly, some snark at poor Bessie Todd.

July 8, 1936
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Hello Kid! Am having a good time here in the Loop now. Be good. I'll be seeing you soon. Miss me yet. as Ever Mary."

I wonder what Mary (or her husband) did that she always seemed to be traveling so much, especially during the Great Depression.

August 1, 1936
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Dear kiddo: This certainly is some swell joint. Wishing you were here. Mary."

I agree, Mary. That looks like a swell joint. 

August 29, 1936
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Hi kid: Spending the weekend here visiting the exposition. Rode over on a steamer from Detroit and it surely was wonderful. Mary."

Call me crazy, but I think that riding a steamer from Detroit to Cleveland sounds like a lot of fun.

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 4

Any grammatical/spelling mistakes are copied verbatim from the postcards.

August 28, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Hi Pal - We came thru [redacted town name] yesterday about 9 a.m. I wanted to stop but I thought you wouldnt be up. We're coming home Tues. P.M. Maybe I can stop then. If not come to B.C. sometime. The sights are wonderful. See you at B.Y. convention - Alpha."

I wonder what B.Y. convention was? I find it strange that Grandpa might not have been up at 9 a.m. I'm not a morning person at all, and even I am usually up before 9. I wonder if he worked nights?

The above is one of my favorite cards of the collection. I think it's so pretty.

August 31, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [redacted] - Are you going to be busy next Saturday nite? The kids are having a surprise party on Mary Stone. Could you come? I'll be home Sat. forenoon. Please call and let me know. Having a swell time. Minnie."

The card definitely says that the surprise party is "on" Mary Stone. I wonder if that was the turn of phrase back then, rather than having a party "for" someone. Curious. Also, I love how everyone in the 20s and 30s seemed to be having a "swell" time.

December 1, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [redacted], Got in here on time for dinner. I like Hillsdale very much. Did some Sec. work for one of the conf. this afternoon. Kazoo took charge of devotions tonight before the main address. Dr. Franklin was good. As ever your Friend, Alice."

I neglected to mention before that "Kazoo" (which has appeared on other postcards) refers to Kalamazoo, Michigan. I suspect that Alice means that the Kazoo faction of whatever group she was with took charge of devotions, not the city itself. I gather from the postcards that Alice did some kind of traveling secretarial work for (probably) a church group.

I love the two women sitting on the steps of the building in this picture. It just seems like such a nice touch.

December 3, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [redacted]: They brought me your special at 9:15 a.m. Saturday morning, during first session in the College Baptist Church. The Convention has meant much to me. Wish you & Fred could of come and injoyed our Fellowship. Have lots of business for a meeting soon. Score 1450. Alice."

Were Grandpa and Alice playing a 1930s version of "Words with Friends" with each other? Also, I bet Alice wanted Grandpa to enjoy her "fellowship." wink wink nudge nudge

July 5, 1934
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"[Redacted]: Have enjoyed my trip over. Had to change trains in Detroit and stations in Cleveland. Had to wait over 2 1/2 hrs in Cleveland. Took me 15 hrs to get here. Jo & Ralph were here ahead of me and Jo's was worried because I didn't get here sooner. The Convention is great - so is Pittsburgh. Alice."

A 15-hour train trip doesn't sound particularly enjoyable to me, but whatever floats your boat, Alice.

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 3

As always, any spelling/grammatical mistakes are copied verbatim from the cards.

July 3, 1932
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Just to say Hello and hoping you'll write soon how do you like it? Guess."

My guess is that this is from Grandma's friend Mary, and I'm almost positive my guess is right. This was sent to her during the brief time she lived in Virginia. Also, this card is kind of naughty, haha.

May 19, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [redacted]: Could you mail me the name & address of your new President? Was over to [city name redacted] last Saturday. I saw the Parade. It was good. Was that you in the old black ford with white printing on. "WAIT UNTIL I BECOME PRESIDENT." The funniest thing he stoped in front of me & performed then turned & went back towards [city name redacted]. Your guilty! I heard something nice about Fred & not from the preacher either. Will see you at the next business meeting. Sincerely Alice M."

It amuses/baffles/vaguely annoys me that I almost never understand what any of these people are talking about on these cards. Seriously, what is going on here? I have virtually no idea, although I will say that I don't think Alice is referring to the President of the USA here. I gather from the cards that Grandpa knew Alice from church. I think she may be referring to president of the Board of Trustees at church. Or, since Grandpa was a police officer, perhaps the president of his union.

Also, I chuckled at someone from 1933 referring to any car as "old." Hadn't the car really only been a part of the American landscape for about twenty years at this point?

July 11, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [nickname redacted]: I bet [location redacted] is running along smoothly by now and that most of your time is spent entertaining the girls. We've had a swell time in spite of our seasickness. The lake was terribly rough when we came over. Minnie."

Although I hardly knew him, it's hard to imagine my grandpa as a ladies' man. He seems to have been running some kind of camp this summer. I find it interesting that, rather than driving to Milwaukee back then, people took a boat across Lake Michigan.

July 21, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [redacted]: Assembly is great. I must miss Piggott [?] from your church. Sorry Kelly was sick I couldn't come. There are 15 from Kazoo Asso. that I know of. Did you know Allen W. has gone to North Carolina? As Ever, Alice Moffit."

Maybe it's just Alice Moffit who never makes any sense.

July 27, 1933
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Dear [redacted] - Just arrived today. We have seen a great deal of Chicago already - not the Fair, yet. There are four other girls in the same room with me and it is a grand room. Wish you were here. We are staying until Sat. nite - Bessie."

Grandpa sure had a lot of lady friends, didn't he? None of them are my grandma. Yet.

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 2

As always, any spelling/grammatical mistakes were were made by card authors & copied verbatim by me.

July 7, 1931
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Dear [redacted]: We got here O.K. Wont to go north tomorrow. Were up to see Ted. [illegible] to-nite. Everything is fine. Good luck till we return. bye [names redacted]."

This card is from Grandma's elder sister & her husband.

August 12, 1931
See below for text.

This card has no postage, so it was never sent. The text on the back is as follows:

On the correspondence side - "Souvenier of Barbar Beach Mich. Aug. 12, 1931."

On the addressee side - "Paul Domke [address follows], John Greszer [address follows]."

I'm under the impression that, as the card indicates, it was purchased as a souvenir from a trip. I believe that the two male names & addresses were gentlemen that the person who bought the card met on the trip & that the card bearer intended to write correspondence to them in the future.

September 18, 1931
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"How do you like it. Believe it or not. M.N."

Let's not forget that "M.N." is Mary, Grandma's good friend.

September 21, 1931
Addressed to Grandpa. See text below.

"Dear [nickname redacted]! Am down among the colored folk during Sept. 18, 1920. Its hot as whiz down here. I've been up in my first mountain - 5 1/2 miles high. Some mountains! At least I think so. With friendship - Doris."

I am aware that the date that Doris references in the card makes no sense, unless she held onto the card for 11 years before sending it. I assume that she wrote the wrong date, or that it was some kind of joke that I don't even remotely get.

I don't know who Doris was, but we shall see over the rest of the 1930s that a lot of ladies wrote postcards to my grandpa. Apparently he was popular.

October 9, 1931
Addressed to Grandpa. Text below.

"Hello Big Shot: Im still waiting for a letter & have some good snaps waiting. Tell Nonnie to write to. Billy [address follows]."

Oddly enough, this is the exact same racist postcard that Grandma received earlier in the year. I referred to my decision to censor the picture in my post here. I find it odd and somewhat amusing that both of my grandparents received a copy of this card long before they ever knew each other. I guess it was a popular card in 1931. Or at least, it was amongst the people my grandparents associated with.

I don't know who Billy was, other than obviously a friend of Grandpa's. I'm not even sure if "Billy" was male or female. I assume that "snaps" were pictures? Hmm, I'll have to see if I can find out more about 1930s slang.

Postcard Project: 1930s, Part 1

As always, any spelling/grammatical mistakes were made by card authors & copied verbatim by me.

July 7, 1930
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Hello Honey: Am sorry I couldn't see you before I left. Hugo called me in the morning and we drove over, left at 130 had a swell drive over. See you sooner. Love, Mary."

Scribbled along the side: "Hello darling know you are joy August."

Mary was one of my grandma's best friends. I found a picture of her amongst my family photos. There was a relative of ours named August but I don't think he was the same one who scribbled the note on the side of this card, as I don't know why he would have been traveling with my grandma's friend (unless it was a chaperoned trip of some short).

August 2, 1930
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Hello Honey: Am at Oshkosh now having a swell time. But do wish you could be here to injoy it with me. I am as ever yours. Do write soon. Al."

Al was Grandma's sweetie long before she ever met my grandpa. I have a newspaper article about a car accident they were in while out joy riding one night. I'll have to post it sometime!

August 18, 1930
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Hello Honey: Am having a swell time hope you were here. It sure is Beautiful here. Your old man I mean Sweetheart. Al."

Whoa, slow down there, Al. ;)

May 23, 1931
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Hey Kid. Not lost yet and going strong. I'll be seeing you. M.N."

"M.N." is Grandma's friend Mary. The image on this card has been censored due to its extremely offensive, racist nature. I debated long and hard about whether or not it was right to censor the image. Ultimately, I decided that I didn't feel comfortable having a picture like that on my blog, even in the commission of a historical project like this.

July 1, 2931
Addressed to Grandma. Text below.

"Dear [redacted]: We got here fine hope you are the same it was 99 degree in the shade yesterday so you cant think how hot it was in the sun Violet. [address follows]"

Since I've mentioned Violet by name in my blog previously, I've included her name here. She was Grandma's younger sister.