If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 694

 

 

 

 

 Skykomish River, Washington

 

Used as an advertising postcard for Union Oil Company, this unused card features a view of the Skykomish River from a spot near Index, Washington.  The card was part of the Natural Color Scenes of the West series in “Tour the West this year with 76 gasoline”.  There is a information blurb at the upper left corner on the reverse.  See is you can find the spelling error in the blurb: “Skyhomish River, Washington, wends its way from the Cascades to Puget Sound amid such scenic beauty as this.  Take State Highway 15 from Monroe.”  The card has a color photograph, a one cent stamp required, and names the highway as 15.  This information can help place the date of publication to before 1954 because the postage rate for postcards increased from one cent to two cents in 1954.  State Highway 15 was renamed and became U.S. Highway 2 in 1964.

 

The name, Skykomish, comes from the Lushootseed name for the Skykomish people and means “upriver people.”  Nicknames for the river are Sky River and The Sky.  The North and South Forks of the Skykomish merge near the town of Index.  The snow-capped mountains seen in the background are part of the Wild Sky Wilderness.  There are several tributaries that feed into the Skykomish, that later joins the Snoqualmie River then together they join to form the Snohomish River eventually emptying into Puget Sound. 

 

The Skykomish is a large, wide, fast running river.  Many of the smaller tributaries also are known to have rapids and rushing waters.  When I was a girl, our family had friends who owned a dairy farm near Sultan.  One tributary, called The Little Sky, ran through part of their land.  All of us had been warned not to swim or play in the river because the water was cold, had a strong current, ran extremely fast and could be dangerous.  My brother told me of a time when he was staying there during one summer that the farm dog went into the water and was swept away.  One of the girls jumped in after the dog to save it and was almost also caught in the current.  The kids on the bank watched with fear as she struggled to reach her dog.  Somehow, she managed to save the dog and herself and they both ended up safe downstream.  All the kids who witnessed this event were told by the girls who lived on the farm not to breathe a word of the incident to their parents.  I don’t think anyone did.  It is not uncommon during the summer months to learn of drownings in pools formed in the river that look deceptively inviting but can be treacherous.  Watching that event probably was more a deterrent to the kids than the warnings of their parents. 

 

For more information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skykomish_River

 

 

The spelling error:  Skykomish is spelled as Skyhomish in the blurb.

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 693

 

 

 

 

 

Jack Miner’s bird sanctuary at Kingsville, near Windsor, Ontario, Canada

 

This used Canadian Art Deeptone series, postcard was published by Windsor News Co., of Windsor, Canada and features of photograph of Jack Miner’s bird sanctuary at Kingsville, near Windsor, Ontario.  The inset at the upper left on the front of the card shows Jack Miner releasing a wild goose in flight.  The card has a divided back and was made in Canada.  There is a blurb at the top center on the reverse side:  "The Miner Migratory Bird Sanctuary near Kingsville, Ont. was established in 1904 by Jack Miner, farmer and philosopher.  It was authorized as a Provincial Sanctuary for bird life by the Ontario Government in 1916.  As many as 25,000 Canada geese and other birds may be seen there at one time.  Jack Miner was a pioneer in banding birds for the study of migration, banding the first bird in 1909.”  The stamp used on the card is a King George the VI, 2 cent stamp, first issued in 1937.  Canadian stamps do not expire and can be used any time after issue, with added postage if necessary to meet the current rate. 

 

 

King George VI, stamp issued in 1937

 

John Thomas Miner was born in Dover Township, Westlake, Ohio in 1865.  In 1878 he and his family moved to Canada.  The family had a free homestead at Gosfield South Township, part of Essex County, near Kingsville, Ontario.  The fifth of ten children, John did not receive a formal education and was illiterate until the age of 33.  He worked as a trapper and hunter in the 1880s and also in the family business manufacturing tiles and bricks from a claybed on their land. 

 

Eventually he became known as “Wild Goose Jack,” because of his growing interest in conservation and specifically in birds.  He first noticed that bobwhite quail seemed to have difficulty surviving winters.  He built brushwood shelters and provided grain to help the quail.  About the same time, he also raised ringnecked pheasants.  His interest expanded when he noticed that Canada geese were stopping at ponds on his land during their migration northward in the spring.  In 1904 he created a pond on his farm and used tame Canada geese to attract wild geese.  It took 4 years before wild geese began settling at Miner’s sanctuary.  By 1911 and onward large numbers of geese and ducks were arriving necessitating an enlargement of the pond.  By 1913 the entire homestead had become a bird sanctuary.  The provincial government provided funding so he could add evergreen trees, shrubs and more ponds surrounded by sheltering groves. 

 

Miner began banding birds with his own hand-stamped tags.  The tags had his address information and a scripture.  By this tagging method, and the return of the tags he received back, he was one of the first conservationists to determine the migratory paths of birds.  His efforts Increased interest nationwide and spurred on an expansion of tagging.  In 1916 hundreds of geese and other waterfowl.  Using the information from the returned bands, the migratory habits of Canada geese were mapped.  The tags were often returned by poachers, curious Native Americans, or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.  They came from the eastern shore of Canada to as far south as the gulf coasts of Florida.  The tagging also helped to establish the U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 which represented an agreement between six nations making it unlawful to capture, sell, or kill certain migratory birds.  In 1923 Miner published an account of his banding and waterfowl conservation studies in Jack Miner and the Birds.  The book sold all 4000 copies of the first print-run in two months. 

 

The Jack Miner Bird Sanctuary was one of the first of its kind in North America, and remains in existence today.  Miner died at age 79 in 1944 at Gosfield South Township, now part of Kingsville, Ontario, Canada.

 

Kingsville is located in southwestern Ontario.  The town, incorporated in 1901, has a population of approximately 22,000.  In addition to the bird sanctuary Kingsville is also home to Colasanti’s Tropical Gardens which also attracts people from all over Ontario. 

 

For more information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Miner

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingsville-Ontario

 

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 692

 

 

 

 

 

 “Declaration of Independence,” painting by John Trumbull

 

This unused postcard was found in a jumble box of cards in a local antique mart.  It has the code:  R-45533 to the left of the dividing line on the reverse.  Along the left margin the publisher is identified as:  B.S. Reynolds & Co. of Washington, D.C.  In the area designated for the stamp is the notation:  “Place stamp here.  One Cent for United States and Island Possessions, Cuba, Canada and Mexico.  Two cents for foreign.”  These postal rates were used between 1914 and 1922.  

 

There is a blurb at the upper left corner on the reverse:  “Declaration of Independence, U.S. Capitol.  Painting by John Trumbull, in the Rotunda of the Capitol, Washington.  John Hancock, President of the Congress, is seated at the table, and in front of him stand the Committee of Five—Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert L. Livingston.”  Note:  while the blurb identifies Robert Livingston as Robert L. Livingston, other sources show him as Robert R. Livingston.

 

John Trumbull, the artist of this famous painting, was born 1756 and died 1843.  As a veteran of the Revolutionary War, he was most well-known for painting historical events of that era.  Four of his paintings can be found in the United States Capitol rotunda.  The Declaration of Independence painting on the postcard can also be found on the reverse of the current $2.00 bill.  In addition to group pictures, such as the one on the card, he also painted portraits. 

 

Three of the members of the Committee of Five, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin, are very famous figures in American history.  The two others, Roger Sherman and Robert Livingston, are generally less known.  On 11 June 1776 the committee was appointed to draft a statement to outline why the Colonies were seceding from the British Empire.  They were allotted 3 weeks to work on the statement.  The final version was published as a broadside on 4 July 1776, and the committee dissolved on 5 July 1776. 

 

Roger Sherman (1721-1793), is the only member of the committee who signed all 4 the U.S. state papers, the Continental Association, The Declaration, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution.  He also proposed the Connecticut Compromise.  Although he did not have formal education he became an early American statesman, lawyer, and Founding Father of the United States.  Despite not having formal legal training he was encouraged to read for the bar exam and was subsequently admitted to the bar of Litchfield, Connecticut in 1754.  He became justice of the peace in 1762, a judge, elected to the Governor’s Council of Connecticut General Assembly, a judge of the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, and Justice of the Superior Court of Connecticut.  He was also appointed treasurer of Yale College and received an honorary Master of Arts degree.  He was married twice and had a total of 15 children, 13 of whom survived to adulthood.  He was elected mayor of New Haven in 1784 and held that office until his death at age 72 in 1793.

 

Robert Livingston, 1746-1813, was also an American lawyer, politician, a diplomat from New York, and a Founding Father of the United States.  He helped draft the Declaration of Independence, but was recalled to the state of New York before he could sign it.  Livingston was appointed the recorder of New York City for a short time.  His association with the anti-colonial Whig Party caused him to be replaced a few months later.  He held the position of New York state Chancellor for 25 years.  He was the one who administered the oath of office to George Washington when he became the first U.S. president, on 30 April 1789.  Livingston was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 1801.  From 1801 to 1804 he was the U.S. Minister to France and negotiated the Louisiana Purchase.  He was a Freemason. He was married to Mary Stevens (1751-1814) and they had two children. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committee_of_Five

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Trumbull

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Sherman

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_R._Livingston

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 691

 

 

 

 

 

Happy New Year, illustration by Frances Brundage, 1910

 

The two postcards shared this week feature reproductions of Vintage cards printed by Laughing Elephant, a small local company.  The card above dates from 1910 and the second card, found below, is dated 1930.

 

The first card provides the illustrator’s signature as Frances Brundage at the lower left, and a printed name with the date of the card, 1910, at the lower right corner on the front of the card.  Frances Isabelle Lockwood Brundage was born in 1854 and died in 1937.  Most of her illustrations include endearing children and can be found on postcards, valentines, paper dolls, and calendars originally published by Raphael Tuck & Sons, Samuel Gabriel Company, and Saalfield Publishing.  She also illustrated children’s classics, such as, novels by Louisa May Alcott, Johanna Spyri, and Robert Louis Stevenson.  A prolific artist she was still producing as many as 20 books when she was in her late sixties.  Her work is said to be highly collectible. 

 

Frances received training in art from her father, Rembrandt Lockwood, who was an architect, a wood engraver, and artist.  She began her professional career as an illustration sometime between the ages of 17 and her early 20s.  There are conflicting reports that her father abandoned the family when she was about 17 and that forced her to go to work as an artist.  However, census records show him still living with the family up until she was in her early 20s.  She married William Tyson Brundage in 1886.  They had one child who died before age 2.  Frances and her husband worked on some projects together. 

 

 

A Very Happy New Year, illustrator unknown, 1930

 

This brightly colored card with a message poem is dated 1930.  The illustrator is unknown, but the artwork is typical of the style in the 1930s. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Brundage

https://laughingelephant.com/

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 690

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas greeting card illustrated by Helen Marion Burnside, early 1900s

 

Merry Christmas!

 

These three Victorian Vintage postcards are reproductions by Laughing Elephant, a small printing company in Seattle that preserves and reprints vintage illustrations.  The card above has the signature of H. M. Burnside [1841-1923].  She was famous not only for her illustrations but also for the verses she included on the cards.  Over 6,000 of her verses were put on Christmas cards and 150 of her songs were put to music.  She aspired to become a musician when she was young but she became deaf as a result of scarlet fever and chose to write verse and became a talented artist at a young age.  She also wrote several children’s books.

 

 

Christmas greeting with an illustration by James Brundage

 

Not all the early 1900s postcards have the name of the illustrator or their signature but this one was signed by James Brundage. 

 

 

 

Christmas greeting with an illustration by E.A.S.

 

This third card dates from the same era as the other two but has only the initials of the illustrator. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/library-rnid/2017/10/06/helen-marion-burnside-r-a-carried-the-radiance-of-her-very-soul-in-her-face/

 

https://laughingelephant.com

 

 

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 689

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coit Tower, San Francisco, California

 

Featured on this unused Selithco [Security Lithograph Co.] True Color, from Ektachrome, postcard is a photograph of Coit Memorial Tower, San Francisco, California.  The card was published by E F. Clements of San Francisco.  The number 1652 and a blurb appear at the upper left corner on the reverse.  The blurb:  “Coit Memorial Tower, Pioneer Park, San Francisco, is on the summit of Telegraph Hill.  The glass enclosed observation gallery atop the slim fluted-concrete column, is 540 feet above the water of the Bay, affording a view of the entire Bay Area.”

 

Also known as Coit Tower, it was built between 1932 and 1933 using a bequest from Lillie Hitchcock Coit to beautify the city of San Francisco.  In 2008 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.  The tower is constructed of unpainted reinforced concrete and designed by architects Arthur Brown, Jr., and Henry Temple Howard.  It has an Art Deco style that was popular during the 1930s.  Fresco murals in the American Social Realism style were painted by 22 different onsite artists and assistants.  Other artworks were completed on canvas offsite. 

 

The views from the tower of San Francisco from Telegraph Hill are spectacular.  There were two bequests from the Coit estate.  One was to honor volunteer firemen, the other to beautify the city.  Some have confused the two and erroneously claimed that the design of Coit tower resembles a fire hose nozzle.  However, the monument to the firemen is in the form of statuary located in Washington Square and is not connected with the tower.  Above the main entrance to the tower there is a concrete relief of a phoenix by sculptor Robert Boardman Howard.  The relief was commissioned by the architect and cast as part of Coit Tower. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coit_Tower

 

 

If this is Thursday this must be postcards, 688

 

 

 

 

 

Laie Hawaii Temple

[photo by Loye Guthrie]

 

This unused postcard features a color photograph of the Laie Hawaii Temple by Loye Guthrie.  It is a Mirro-Krome Card by H.S. Crocker Co., Inc. of San Bruno, California and published by Hawaiian Service, Inc. of Honolulu, Hawaii.  There is a blurb at the lower left corner on the reverse:  “The beautiful Hawaii Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is at Laie on the windward side of the island of Oahu near the Polynesian Cultural Center and the Hawaii campus of Brigham Young University.  Construction of the temple was undertaken in 1916 and completed three years later.  The temple is one of the earliest examples of architectural concrete in America.”

 

The temple is located about 35 miles or 56 km from Honolulu and sits on a small hill ½ miles from the Pacific Ocean in the town of Laie.  As the blurb mentioned it is near the Polynesian Cultural Center and the Hawaii campus of Brigham Young University.  The Visitor center attracts more than 100,000 visitors annually.  Groundbreaking for the temple occurred in 1915 with the temple completed by 1919 and dedicated by Heber J. Grant.  Since then the temple was expanded in 1978 and rededicated by Spencer W. Kimball, and then after seismic upgrades and remodeling it was rededicated again in 2010.  This temple is the oldest temple to operate outside of Utah and is the 5^th oldest temple still in operation. 

 

 

Laie Hawaiian Temple, 2008

 

 

George Q. Cannon, BoPa (aka FarFar)’s great-grandfather, was among the first 10 missionaries to arrive in Hawaii in 1850.  There is a statue with a commemorative plaque of him and Jonathan Napela on the grounds of the cultural center.  When were there in 2008 we visited the cultural center and took a picture.  

 

 

 

George Q. Cannon and Jonathan Napela

 

Commemorative plaque

 

 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laie_Hawaii_Temple