Happy New Year!
Although it is hard to tell here, this early 1900s unused postcard is embossed. That means the leaves, and decorative border around the central illustration are raised. The reverse of the card shows the indentations of the design. Along the left margin is: New Year series No. 34. The card has a divided back. At the upper right corner, just under the box outlined for a stamp is: “Corp. E. Nash.” The left side of the card is identified as Correspondence. The right side as Address. No other information is printed on the reverse. The colored illustration features a cozy house, snow, trees, stream and waterwheel.
The front of the card has "A Happy New Year" title. The divided back dates from 1907/1908 in the United States and indicates that the card was printed, published, and distributed in the early 1900s before 1920. Other countries had slightly earlier or later dates for divided backs. Prior to 1907 cards in the United States were not divided and only the name and address of the recipient plus the postage stamp could be place on that side of the card. Any correspondence had to be written on the picture or front side of the card.
E. Nash Logos
At the bottom left on the front, are two small marks, one is a circle with the letter C, the second is a triangle with the letter N. These two logos are a second confirmation that the card is one produced by E. Nash. These logos were used by Nash sometime around 1912-1915.
Holiday greetings cards similar to this were a popular and convenient way to send wishes to friends. During the golden age of postcards, 1905-1915, stamps were one cent, the cards were mass produced and not expensive. In addition to cards sent as greetings, many of the cards, like this one, were never sent but instead were kept by collectors.
For additional information, see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_postcards_in_the_United_States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postcard
https://www.laurelcottagegenealogy.com/?p=6114
