Birthday Greetings To Edward Lind Haaga

Posted on October 4, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Postmarked April 6, 1911 from Geneseo, Illinois. Publisher unknown.

Availability status: SOLD

This postcard sent in 1911 has a bit of an unusual design: a wheat bundle scene as the center of a sunflower or daisy-like flower, with Birthday Greetings printed below. It’s addressed to: “Master Edward Hauga, Geneseo City.” Finding the addressee was a little challenging: the sender had spelled the last name differently. But the 1910 Federal Census for Geneseo shows Edward L. Haaga, age about three. His parents are William Haaga, born about 1881, occupation harness maker, and Jennie (Lind) Haaga, born about 1885. He has an older brother, William G. Haaga, born about 1905. All four were born in Illinois. A family tree on Ancestry shows Lind as Jennie’s maiden name, and this family name is confirmed in the birth and death record for a daughter Margaret Louise Haaga, born in August of 1910 (after the census) who died in 1927. The SSDI index online shows that Edward’s date of birth was April 6, 1907, so the sender was right on time with this postcard.

The sender wrote: “Aunt D..? won’t be over today. It’s [?] raining. and she has a very bad cold. hope this finds you all well. will bring you a little present when I come. Many happy birth days. from Aunt D. E.”
(or L. E.?)

The publisher or printer logo on the back of the card is the mystery for this one, showing three shields with a prominent “M” in the center, all making up one large shield. Above this design is a smaller stars and stripes banner. There is a letter in each shield on the left and right of the “M” – the left is difficult to determine, but the right appears to be a “P.” The bottom shield holds “Co” for Company. It’s a very nicely designed logo with the “M” making up part of the shield as a whole.

Sources: Year: 1910; Census Place: Geneseo Ward 4, Henry, Illinois; Roll: T624_291; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 0120; FHL microfilm: 1374304. (Ancestry.com)

Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 [database on-line].

“Illinois Deaths and Stillbirths, 1916-1947,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/N3XD-4Q9 : accessed 04 Oct 2014), Margaret Louis Haaga, 13 Sep 1927; citing Public Board of Health, Archives, Springfield; FHL microfilm 1614259.

Happy Birthday Rosalia Jaycox

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Postmarked November 20, 1911 from Worcester, New York. Publisher unknown. Printed in Germany, series 1460A.

Price: $15.00

Here’s another lilies of the valley postcard – this time the lilies are the main subject, and this is one of those vibrantly colored, printed in Germany cards. The composition is great, as is the detail in the basket and flowers, and the colors, typical to this type, showing a deep violet, a blue, a red, a rose, and the standout here (maybe less often used) of chartreuse. (Love the wild mix of colors.) The lilies of the valley, also called May lillies are spilling out of the basket which is tipped on it’s side.

The sender wrote: “Wish you a happy birthday. Come down and see us. From Luther Albert.” This card didn’t have far to travel, since it was postmarked in Worcester and mailed to East Worcester, New York. Today’s map shows East Worcester about 4.8 miles northeast of Worcester. Both towns are in Otsego County, and located in the northwestern foothills of the Catskill Mountains. The card is addressed as:

“Mrs. Rosalia Jaycox, East Worcester, New York.”

The sender, Luther H. Albert, born about 1860, appears on the New York State Census (and multiple census records) in Worcester with his wife Elva, born about 1862. They are farming.

Multiple census records also show for Rosalia Jaycox, who is Rosalia Ostrom according to the Find A Grave website, born in 1842. She was married to Samuel Jaycox, born 1834 and died in 1907, both born in New York. There is also another Jaycox family (on the NY 1905 Census in Worcester) John, Melinda and daughter Edna, who would likely be related.

Sources: New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1915; Election District: 01; Assembly District: 01; City: Worcester; County: Otsego; Page: 03. (Ancestry.com)

New York State Education Department, Office of Cultural Education. 1892 New York State Census. Albany, NY: New York State Library. (Ancestry.com)

New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1905; Election District: E.D. 02; City: Worcester; County: Otsego; Page: 2. (Ancestry.com)

Rosalia Ostrom Jaycox. Find A Grave Memorial #117167470. (Findagrave.com)

Samuel Jaycox. Find A Grave Memorial #117167409. (Findagrave.com)

Here’s A Handshake

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed, used postcard. Postmarked October 22, 1913 from Long Island, Kansas. Publisher: E. Nash, series G40.

Price: $6.00

“Here’s A Handshake – And May You Live A Long Time”

A lovely thought on a postcard of the same, showing an artist’s image in oval of a red-roof house and outbuildings set behind a marshy wetland, with trees and sunset in the background. The oval is nicely framed by lilies of the valley and stylish gold lines.

This is another addressed to “Lena Davis, Almena, Kan” and the sender wrote:

“Long Island, Oct. 20. Dear Cousin. I got your card O.K. We have the wheat in the hay stacked after so – a time [?] I think you might bring the buggy down, that would be a nice ride I think it’s about time. You was coming down anyway – K.”

Probably the sender meant “the wheat and the hay” but directly after this part, I am not sure. It looks like the embossing was making it a little difficult.

George’s Handmade Card

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Annieoakley

Handmade card. Circa early 1900s. Size: About 3 and 1/2 x 5 and 1/2″

Price: $7.00

On the reverse: “Bessie Geo made this card.” “J. H. + ? ?”

It’s not often that you come across handmade cards and here’s a nice one, kind of funny, too. The artwork is pretty good, the leaves at the top, in particular. That would be a poinsettia in the gold heart, and of course a rose. If you can imagine one possibility for the life of this card: It gets made, maybe for Christmas, but not sent, handed off to some family member who’s going to use it later for Valentine’s Day. That person puts their initials and their sweetheart’s initials on it, “J. H. + “whoever.” Then the boyfriend or girlfriend falls out of favor, the initials get erased, (top left front) and J. H. decides he or she will leave this sweetheart question to be determined in the future. Later, another family member comes across it and sends it to Bessie. (See the writing on the left side of the back.) And how about that embossing, pretty good, eh?

Lydia M. Wickline

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Annieoakley

Price: $15.00

Size: About 2 and 1/2 x 3 and 3/4″

This was a great find: A calling card with a photo! The card bearer’s name appears as Lydia M. Wickline, and her photo, which was glued onto the top part of the card, shows a beautiful young woman in a “Gibson Girl” hairstyle. The expression is open to interpretation, as always. Does she have a little bit of a sadness about the eyes? Maybe, maybe not, in any case it’s a lovely image, even though quite faded, and is surrounded by forget-me-nots and roses with a bow underneath the oval. For me, the contrast between the faded portrait appearing in the center of the brightly colored flowers and greenery enhances the “looking back in time” feel. This is the type of calling card consisting of two parts, where the top die-cut of embossed flowers with photo, is glued to the bottom heavier card containing the name. It opens about three quarters of the way. So as not to damage the card, a photo was taken of the name and cropped as shown above. (The color on the second image is incorrect – in reality it’s the same as the background on the top one. My Photoshop expert was out the door already.)

As to the identify of the young lady, this was not verified but the most likely candidate is Lydia M. Kirby who married Henry A. Wickline in Summers County, West Virginia December 24, 1903. The marriage record shows both were born in Monroe, West Virginia; Henry is age 21, and Lydia age 17; Henry is the son of John Wickline, the mother’s name is not readable (Va?); Lydia is the daughter of James C. and Eliza Kirby. The Wickline name seems to come up most frequently in West Virginia, and others were looked at, of course, but the age or middle initial or spelling of first name did not coincide. So, if this is the correct Lydia, then this photo could have been taken just before or after her marriage, and the calling card made around 1904.

Source: “West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FTV8-12S : accessed 22 Jul 2014), Henry A Wickline and Lydia M Kirby, Summers, West Virginia, United States; citing ; FHL microfilm 589346.

From A Sister Of Yours

Posted on July 13, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, unused, embossed postcard. Publisher unknown. Circa 1908

Price: $20.00

Here’s a wonderfully unusual one: A postcard with a cropped photo attached to it! The card shows a likeness of a pink rose and bud with the stems holding an unfurled piece of birch bark which bears the inscription “With Best Thoughts.” Underneath these well wishes, the sender has glued a charming photo of herself, and written, “from A Sister of Yours.” At the top corners she wrote, “Oakland, Calif.” and “September 1, – ’08.”

The card is addressed to: “Mrs. L. L. Collins, Iola, Kansas” and signed, “With Love.”

Thankfully, for research purposes, the date and place of the card were given, if not the sender’s name. The addressee turns out to be Lydia Loretta (Pember) Collins, born Michigan, July 19, 1867, died Alameda (county or city) California, February 19, 1946; parents John Wesley Pember and Sarah Elizabeth Christie. The Iola, Kansas city directory for 1908, shows Lydia married to Louis L. Collins, occupation travel agent, with their residence at that time being 414 S. First St., Iola, KS. Later, on the 1910 census, Lydia and daughter Lucille are shown living with Lydia’s parents and some of the siblings in Oakland, CA.

The identity of the woman in the photo has to be either Goldie, Edith or Alice Pember. The 1910 Federal Census for Oakland, California shows the girls living with their parents and a brother James Lewis Pember. Goldie, Edith and Alice were all born in Kansas, and at the time the 1910 census was taken, Goldie was about 23, Edith about 22, and Alice about 19. The photo would have been from at least a couple of years earlier, so it could be more likely that it is of one of the older two girls. (Doesn’t she look like she might be in her early twenties rather than seventeen?)

Were we doing a family tree for the Pember and Collins families, we would have plenty to work with, and would be including records from locations in Ohio, Michigan, Kansas, California and Canada. (Interesting to note some moving back and forth between Kansas and California and to take note of Louis Collins’ seemingly unusual occupation, for that day and age, of travel agent – but this likely meant traveling salesman, as we see the term come up in pretty often in census records.) And per the census records, the full list of Pember children appears to be: Lydia, Valentine, Charles, Miles, Mary, John, James Lewis, Goldie, Edith and Alice. The 1880 Federal Census for Jamestown, Michigan shows Mary, age three, and she could be the woman in this photo but this seems highly unlikely, as no other records were found on her. So, we’ll venture to go out on a little bit of a limb and state that here is either Goldie, Edith or Alice Pember! We hope the answer to which Pember sister this is will come to us at some future date.

Sources: Year: 1880; Census Place: Jamestown, Ottawa, Michigan; Roll: 601; Family History Film: 1254601; Page: 559A; Enumeration District: 247; Image: 0319. (Ancestry.com)

R. L. Polk & Co.’s Iola City Directory including Gas And LaHarpe, 1908. p. 60. (Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989)

Year: 1910; Census Place: Oakland Ward 1, Alameda, California; Roll: T624_69; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0077; FHL microfilm: 1374082. (Ancestry.com)

California, Death Index, 1940-1997. Place: Alameda; Date: 19 Feb 1946. (Ancestry.com.)

A Hearty Greeting

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, used postcard. Postmarked June 17, 1912, Arapahoe, Nebraska. Publisher unknown – possibly John Winsch.

Price: $4.00

“June 17, 1912. Dear Cousin Lena. I got your letter saturday. I was away sewing all week. I will be looking for a card most any day to say you are coming. They are going to celebrate the fourth at Gosper. you must be here for that. we will meet you when you come down at the depot. well good by hoping to see you soon Ellen.”

Addressed to “Miss Lena Davis, Almena Kans. R. R. #3.”

Another in our collection for Lena. A nice colorful country scene of a couple greeting a neighbor at sunset. The scene is inside an outline of a four-leaf clover and to the right is a small bunch of probably forget-me-nots. The background is unusual in a stone-type gray pattern, and the caption is “A Hearty Greeting.” This card was postmarked in Arapahoe, Nebraska, but I’m not sure what the stamp above the barely discernible month of June is. Looks like it’s “GPM” but I’m not finding any explanation for this acronym.

There is no stated publisher info on this postcard but the header design was used by publisher John Winsch according to many other sites, and postcards that are showing up online with his info on the front of the card. But it could have been a design that more than one publisher used.

Art Nouveau Violets

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed postcard. Postmarked March 20, 1915. Publisher: E. Nash. Series or number L-11.

Price: $10.00

“Greeting you with friendship so warm,

As to pierce the gloom of any storm.”

A stunning Art Nouveau style, embossed postcard showing violets, the above verse, and an unusually “framed” rural rainy day scene, on a sort of pale peach background. The artist depicted a person up there on the path getting caught in the rain. But what about the part where the path crosses over the stream? It just sort of flows magically across the water. Anyway, this is one from the “Lena Davis Collection” and the sender wrote:

“Long Island. March 17. Dear Cousin. how are you. have a cold. how do you like the mud. Ralph went to the sale to day. Harrold[?] is coming home with him. have drove my colts once. did you have a good with Will. the boys are going to Norton tomorrow I guess. did you go Sunday School. guess Irvin Kickly is maried to day that is what I hear. I haven’t made up my mind to go to German yet. …….?…….As ever your Cousin J. K.”

J. K. sent this postcard from Long Island, Kansas. Norton and German are nearby towns. I’m not sure what town this says for Lena. It’s possible it’s a misspelling of Culver, as it looks like Calvert or Colvert which are not showing up as towns in Kansas. Also it’s hard to read the writing on the bottom left and side. Not sure what that says there. It’s interesting to take note of how much is going on in this sender’s message, what with his or her cold, the mud, the colts, Ralph, the boys, Irvin’s supposed marriage, the Sunday School question and the uncertainty of the trip to German, KS (!)

Golden Eagle For Hattie Patuno

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, embossed postcard, unused with writing. Printed in Germany. Publisher unknown. Series 1460 C.

Price: $7.00

Beautiful postcard printed in Germany of purple flowers with green centers, an eagle in gold, with the rays of the sunrise or sunset in the background. The card is addressed to “Hattie Patuno, Wellsburg Iowa” and was never postmarked. And it looks like the sender’s initials are “A. U.” but Hattie’s name is not showing up online in Iowa or anywhere for that matter, which is unusual. But wow, the colors on this card!

Boat And Roses Birthday Greetings

Posted on June 29, 2014 by Annieoakley

Divided back, unused, embossed postcard. Printed in Germany. Circa 1907 – 1914.