If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 579

 

 

 

 

Reprint of Halloween themed postcard, 1908

 

 

Halloween is coming in a few days and I thought it would be fun to share some more vintage Halloween themed postcards.  All the cards shared today are reproductions from Laughing Elephant, a small company that specializes in vintage art, books, and posters. 

 

The postcard above has an illustration by Bernhardt Wall, dated 1908.   Bernhardt Wall was an American historian and lithographic illustrator who was born in 1872 and died 1956.  He is credited with designing more than 5,000 comic cards and was called the “Postcard King.”  Wall worked with several different publishers, such as, Valentine & Sons, Bergman, Barton and Spooner, International Art Co., the Illustrated Postal Card Co., Gibson Art Co., and J.I. Austen.  In addition to the comic and holiday themed cards he also designed patriotic cards and American propaganda cards printed during WW I.  Much of his work had western themes after he visited Colorado, Nevada and California in 1915. 

 

 

 

Reprinted Halloween themed postcard, 1935

 

This second card has a design by Maginel Wright Enright Barney (1877-1966) who was an American children’s book illustrator and graphic artist.  Her unusual first name, which she used professionally, is a nickname and a contraction of Margaret Ellen, or Maggie Nell, created by her mother.  Maginel was the younger sister of the architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, and mother of the children’s book writer and illustrator, Elizabeth Enright.  Maginel illustrated 63 children’s books including a lesser-known L. Frank Baum, (Wizard of Oz author) works, one called The Twinkle Tales, 1906, using the name Laura Bancroft.  Her first husband, Walter J. “Pat” Enright, was also a young artist who worked on books written by Baum.   Maginel and Enright were divorced and she later married a lawyer, Hiram Barney.  During her career she was a magazine illustrator working for McClure’s and Ladies’ Home Journal.  The card above was a magazine cover dated 1935.  Other enterprises included writing and illustrating textbooks for younger children.  She was said to have been one of the very best artists for children.  In the 1940s she also became a shoe designer creating high-fashioned jeweled and sequined shoes manufactured by Capezio. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

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

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

https://laughingelephant.com/

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 578

 

 

 

 

 

Paradise, Mt. Rainier National Park, Tatoosh Range, ca 1943

 

This used Linen-type postcard is dated 1943 and has a note written from an U.S. Army Cpl. John G. Peck to his parents in New York.  The card was published by Adams News, Col. Of Seattle, Washington and distributed by E.C. Kropp Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  The blurb found at the upper left on the reverse:  “The rugged Tatoosh Range, encircling the south side of Paradise Valley, extends from Longmire Springs, the Southwest entrance to the park, to Chanapecosh [Ohanapecosh] Hot Springs, the Southeast entrance.  Eagle Peak, Lane Peak and Pinnacle Peak stand out in the rugged range.” I found this card in a jumble of cards at an antique pavilion.  Paradise at Mt. Rainier National Park is a place we have been to hike and enjoy the beautiful scenery. 

 

Like many postcards of this era, it looks like this one was originally a black & white picture that has been colored in and reproduced as a color postcard.  Shown are the old inn, parking lot, and the Tatoosh Range in the background.  The park was closed to the public during World War II; however, in 1942 and 1943 the U.S. Army used the inn to house troops training for winter mountain conditions.  This card was mailed in August of 1943 and as noted, was sent by a soldier to his parents.

 

The Tatoosh Range seen in the background is located in the park and in the adjacent Tatoosh Wilderness.  This range runs roughly east to west and has 25 named peaks.  The peaks average nearly 6,420 ft or 1,960 meters high.  Views of these mountains and Mount Rainier are visible from Paradise.

 

 Tatoosh Range, 2016

 

Mt. Rainier National Park has many wonderful hiking trails and we try to visit there each year.  There is an entry fee or pass required.  We are fortunate to have a senior National Park pass that gives us entry to National Parks and also some other attractions.  This year the cooler weather extended the snow conditions and has meant a shorter hiking season for us.  Both the Sunrise side and Paradise are long drives from home for us.  We know we have to get there early because so many people visit the park most of the available parking is full by around 10 am.  Since Sunrise is a slightly shorter distance we have been there more often. 

Mount Rainier, Paradise, wildflower season, 2016

 

 

Marmot enjoying the sunshine

 

 

For additional information, see:

 

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

https://en.wikiopedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Washington

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 577

 

 

 

 

 

Henry M. Jackson Visitor Center, Paradise, Mt. Rainier National Park

 

The photograph on this postcard shows the former visitor center of Paradise, Mt. Rainier National Park.  The card is from Dexter Press, Inc. and published by Ellis Post Card Co., Arlington, Washington.  At the lower left corner on the reverse is the code:  45087-C.  At the upper left corner on the reverse is:  “Visitor Center at Mt. Rainier National Park.  This five level building provides a circular picture window which gives a panoramic view of Mt. Rainier and the surrounding scenery.  W-434.  Ektachrome by Clifford B. Ellis.”  The card has scalloped edges that were produced on postcards from the beginning in late 1930s. The cards are punched out with a die cut.  They are not particularly scarce but also not common.

 

The Paradise Visitor Center opened in 1966 and was renamed the Jackson Visitor Center in 1987 after the late Senator Henry M. Jackson who had promoted the development of the project.  It was demolished and replaced by a newer day-use facility in 2008.  The original building, seen on the card, was part of the Mission 66 program to expand National Park visitor services.  Many people did not like the way the building looked, comparing it to a sunken version of the Seattle Space Needle or a flying saucer, and did not think it blended in with rustic style of older park buildings or the location.  However, similar modernist style buildings were consistent with other Mission 66 projects.  The most significant problem with the building turned out to be the roof which was not able to handle the amount of snow that falls during the winter at Paradise.  The winter snow had to be melted off the roof, at great expense, in order to prevent the roof from collapsing.  Adding ramps and other features failed to meet newer accessibility codes and signaled the demise of the building. 

 

 

 

New Jackson Visitor Center, 2019

 

The new smaller, energy efficient day-use building that opened in 2008 is still named the Jackson Visitor Center. It was designed and constructed in the more popular National Park Service Rustic style.  The new building offers exhibits, films, guided ranger programs, a book store, snack bar, gift shop, public restrooms and informational brochures and maps. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_M._Jackson_Visitor_Center

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/1288182986

 

'Tis the season -- Applesauce

 

 

 

 

This time of year the garden is dying back, turning colors and the apples are ready to pick when they turn mostly or all red and that is usually the same time the evenings start to cool down.  It has been a long, dry summer that is still lingering on.  In previous years our small Jonathan apple tree has been ready for harvesting before now.  This year we just finished picking them a couple of days ago.  It is always a challenge to get the majority of the apples picked before the birds and squirrels, who have been harvesting before the apples are completely ripe, knock down all the good ones.  We sort, count, separate into Good, Medium, and Flawed categories, and set some good ones aside to share.  This year we had 180 apples with probably 20 or 30 more going to the wildlife.  Instead of tossing out flawed apples we cut out the bad parts and use the good sections for applesauce.  We leave the partially eaten or pecked downed apples for a few days to see if the animals and birds will finish dining. The remains, cores, peels, and pieces on the ground, go into the city compost bin.  The medium and good quality apples we use for pie filling.  The applesauce is a simple recipe, originally from a 1963 McCall’s Cookbook, page 280.

 

 

 

 

Applesauce

 

½ cup water

7 ½ to 8 cups of pared, cored, and quartered fresh apples

½ cup sugar

 

Bring the ½ cup water to a boil in a large pot.  Add the prepared apples.  Bring apples and water back to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 25 to 30 min or until the apples are the consistency that you desire.  Remove the pot from the heat, add the ½ cup sugar and mix.  Any core pieces that got in by mistake will turn dark and can be easily scooped out with a spoon.  Pour the cooked sauce into freezer containers, 2 cup size or smaller, and freeze.

 

 

 

After the apples are added to the boiling water, reduce the heat, cover and simmer.  Stir occasionally and watch the pot frequently to avoid a boil over onto the stove top. 
 

 

To make spiced applesauce:  add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg with the sugar.  Mix thoroughly. 

 

 

 

Sample of the the finished product.   When using about 8 cups of cored, peeled, and quartered apples and containers that hold 2 cups, the yield is 2 containers of applesauce. 

 

The applesauce can be enjoyed warm or cold, with or without cream. 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 576

 

 

 

 

 

The Creamery Bridge, Brattleboro, Vermont

 

This is an unused Dexter Press, Inc. produced postcard published by Lewis R. Brown, Inc., Brattleboro, Vermont.  At the lower left on the reverse is:  24674-B.  No postal codes are found on the addresses for Dexter Press or Lewis R. Brown, Inc.  Beginning in 1943 two digit codes began being used, by 1944 some areas were using a 3 digit code, in 1963 five digit zip codes were introduced and in 1983 the 4-plus was added, making today’s zip codes a total of nine digits.  Without any postal code numbers this card can be dated most likely to before 1943.  The photographer is not identified.

 

At one time there were a large number of these wooden covered bridges in the Brattleboro area of Vermont.  The Creamery Bridge was built in 1879 out of spruce lumber is the last surviving 19^th century covered bridge here.  It is 80 feet or 24 meters long and 19 feet or 5.8 meters wide.  Around 1920 a 5.5 feet or 1.7 meters wide sidewalk was added on the downstream side.  Looking carefully at the picture on the card it is possible to see the stone abutments that support the bridge.  Construction is a Town lattice truss bridge that formerly carried Guilford Road across Whetstone Brook.  Ithiel Town designed and patented the truss system used by this bridge.  Guy wires add additional lateral support and are attached to the upstream side.  A slate roof covers the roadway and a metal roof is over the sidewalk.  The bridge was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1973.  The Creamery Bridge was closed to traffic in 2010 but remains a significant tourist attraction. 

 

Ithiel Town (1784 – 1844) was an American architect and civil engineer.  He was granted a patent for a wooden lattice truss bridge, later known as the Town bridge, in 1820.  This design allowed for relatively unskilled workers to quickly build a bridge from readily available material.  The lattice truss design was widely known throughout the world and made Town a wealthy man.  He is said to have changed $2 per foot in royalties for his designs.  The design avoided the need for the heavy piers required for bridges with stone arches.  The card shows what the lattice work looks like on both the inside and outside of the bridge.  Below is Town’s lattice truss patent drawing.

  

 

 

Town’s lattice truss patent drawing

[from:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ithiel_Town]

 

 

For additional information, see:

 

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

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