If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 431

National Park of American Samoa

When I found out that friends were on the way to Samoa I asked if they would send me a postcard, and here it is.  How nice to see a warm tropical place in the middle of winter!  Thanks so much, P & F.

The card is an Impact Photographics product and credits the picture to Tavita Togia, National Park Service (NPS).  It has a short blurb on the reverse that says: “Pola Island in the National Park of American Samoa, is on the north coast of Tutuila Island and is an important nesting area for sea birds, such as the booby.”

In 1984 Congressman Fofó Iosefa Fiti Sunia introduced a bill to include American Samoa as part of the Federal Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act.  The Bat Preservers Association made the request and the purpose of the bill was to protect the rain forest and the habitat of the Flying fox, a large fruit bat.  To control and eradicate invasive plants and animals that threaten the park’s ecosystem is the major role for the park.  While the islands of Samoa are volcanic they are not made up of individual volcanoes but are composed of overlapping shield volcanoes that developed from a hot spot on the Pacific Plate. 

Because land is traditionally held communally in Samoa, it was not possible for the NPS to purchase the property; instead the land was leased for 50 years to the Park Service from the village councils.  In 2002 Congress approved a 30% expansion on Olosega and Ofu islands.  These two islands can only be reached either by small fisherman boats or by air.  In 2009 the park the visitor center and main office were destroyed by an earthquake and subsequent tsunami.  

It was officially recognized as a National Park in 1988.  The park is distributed across three islands, covering a total of 13,500 acres, and acts as a preserve for coral reefs, tropical rain forests, and fruit bats as well as Samoan culture. It offers activities such as hiking and snorkeling.  More than 25,000 people visit the park annually.  This is the only American National Park Service unit south of the equator. 

For additional information, see:

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

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 430

“Adoration of the Christ Child”

Since this is the week before Christmas I am sharing this postcard with a photograph by C.L. Marsh of one of the two stained glass windows at Faith Chapel, Jekyll Island, Georgia.  The window was made by Maitland Armstrong and his daughter, Helen Maitland Armstrong.   It shows the Three Wise Men bringing gifts to the Christ child. The card is a Dexter Press of West Nyack, New York product and published by Marsh Post Card Service, Jacksonville, Florida.  It has the number 5127-D at the upper right corner on the reverse. 

The window is set in the eastern end of the chapel partly because the Wise Men came from the east but also so that the morning sun shines through illuminating the scene.  Faith Chapel was built in 1904 and used as a non-denominational chapel until 1942.  In 1947 the state of Georgia bought it and Jekyll Island.  Today it is administered by the Jekyll Island State Park Authority and has been open to the public since 1970.  The chapel was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. 

David Maitland Armstrong, professionally known as Maitland Armstrong, worked with his friends, Louis Comfort Tiffany and John LaFarge in the 1880s.  In 1887 he formed his own firm called Maitland Armstrong and Company of New York.  His daughter, Helen Maitland Armstrong, joined him in the business and also became an important stained glass artist.  The second stained-glass window in the Faith Chapel is called “David’s Window” and was created by Louise Comfort Tiffany. 

Maitland Armstrong was born in New York on 15 April 1836 and died 26 May 1918.  He was educated at Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut.  In 1858 he traveled to Italy where he later became the American Counsul in Rome (1869-1871).  In 1878 he was appointed Director of American Fine Arts at the Paris Exposition Universelle.  As an artist he painted landscapes and country scenes and later worked with Tiffany making stained glass. 

Helen Maitland Armstrong was born 14 October 1869 while the family was living in Florence, Italy.  She worked both as a solo artist and also in partnership with her father.  She was one of the first women artists to work with stained glass and her work is considered among the finest produced in the late 19th and early 20th century.  She died 25 November 1948 in New York.

For additional information, see:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maitland_Armstrong
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Maitland_Armstrong
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith_Chapel_(Jekyll_Island,_Georgia

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 429

First Day of Issue, John Knox Witherspoon, Patriot, 1975

The postcard this week is a “First Day of Issue” featuring the patriot, John Knox Witherspoon (1723-1794), who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. It is postmarked 10 November 1975.  This is in a series of First Day of Issue cards and stamps that featured notable early Americans.   The series was issued just prior to the beginning of the bi-centennial year of 1976. 

On the reverse is information about Witherspoon.  As can be seen, there is no space for a private message on this side of the card.  Most First Day of Issue cards, envelopes and stamps on envelopes are collectibles.  A postcard such as this one was not necessarily meant to contain a private message.  Sometimes there are first day ceremonies to generate publicity for the new stamp.  Many First Day of Issue postcards have a pre-printed stamp at the upper right corner as this one does; others have a regular stamp with the same design. 

The picture at the left side of the card is called a cachet and is designed to provide information about the subject of the stamp.  On this card it explains why John Witherspoon’s picture is on the stamp. 

For additional information, see:

https://wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Witherspoon
https://wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Day_of_Issue
http://www.afdcs.org/fdcourse.html
https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/first-day-covers-worthless-3125465

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 428

Little Bohemia, in Northern Wisconsin, ca 1940

 The postcard for this week has a black & white photograph of the Conference Room at Little Bohemia in Northern Wisconsin.  The card is a “Northwoods Postal View” from Herman, the Printer, Minocqua, Wisconsin.

The blurb on the reverse says, “Like a bit of old Europe transplanted to Wisconsin’s Northwoods.  Little Bohemia has all the charm and advantages of the old world and the new.  Picturesque architecture, authentic Bohemian cuisine, and an indefinable spirit of convivial hospitality, combined with the most modern equipment and a variety of sport on land and water, indoors and out, attract 40,000 visitors annually.  And here, too, are to be found incomparable relics of that notorious 20th century Jesse James, the late John Dillinger.” 

The message from the sender reads:  “Sunday.  Well here is the place you’ve heard so much about.  The bullet holes (& there are plenty) are the real McCoy too.  . . . “

Little Bohemia Lodge was built in 1929 by Emil Wanatka and is a rural vacation lodge and restaurant.  It is still in operation today and remains much as it was at the time on 22 April 1934 when there was a hastily and poorly organized federal raid that attempted to capture the notorious outlaw, John Dillinger.  Dillinger and his gang had connections to the lodge through the attorney Louis Piquett who knew the owner.  Wanatka claimed he did not know who Dillinger was until he caught sight of Dillinger’s pistol and noticed that the others also had shoulder holsters.  The following day Wanatka’s wife notified a friend that Dillinger was at the lodge and the FBI was subsequently given the tip.  With little time for preparation and without notifying or obtaining help from local authorities a number of agents arrived by plane from Chicago and attacked the lodge quickly fearing that Dillinger was preparing to leave soon.  The raid took place on a Sunday when the lodge offered a one-dollar dinner special and there were about 75 people inside.  A group of three people were leaving and mistaken for gang members.  The agents opened fire killing one and injuring the others and also alerting Dillinger and the other gangsters of the raid.  Dillinger and 3 others escaped out the back door, which was not guarded, and one other gang member, who was in a cabin next door, engaged in gun fire with the agents before fleeing in the opposite direction from the others.  Three of the women who had accompanied the gang members were captured inside the lodge and later released on parole.  One agent and one innocent bystander were killed, and four other individuals were severely wounded.  The botched raid resulted in severe criticism of the FBI and calls for the resignation of J. Edgar Hoover.  In 2008 scenes from Michael Mann's movie, "Public Enemies," were filmed on location at Little Bohemia.

1940 Commemorative Stamp, American Poets Series,  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The lodge has a display of historical artifacts from the Dillinger gun battle available for public viewing.  The original bullet holes are still in the walls and windows.  The cancellation date on the card is March 1941 just seven years after the event occurred.  The stamp is a 1940 commemorative in the American Poets series and features Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.



For additional information, see:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Bohemia_Lodge
https://www.stamp-collecting-world.com/usstamps_1940c.html