Album Buggies, Carriages, Wagons from Alan Mays

Girl with a Spinning Wheel and Dogs with a Cart

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 04 May 2026 03:40:21 +0000

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of a dog and a tree.

In this photo, a little girl sits in front of a spinning wheel next to two large dogs who are hitched to a cart. A tree is visible behind the girl, and there's also a fence and smaller trees or bushes in the background.

This is a divided-back real photo postcard with "Made in Canada" printed on the other side. There's no message, address, or stamp on the verso, but the type of Velox stamp box design on the back may indicate that this card dates to between 1923 and 1939.

In a different photo, the same girl, spinning wheel, dogs, and cart appear, but there's also a boy sitting in the cart and the dogs are adorned with hats, glasses, and pipes (see Spinning a Tale of Dogs in Glasses).

I have to do some more checking, but I believe that these photos may have originated in Quebec, Canada, where spinning wheels were manufactured and dog carts were used in rural areas.

Robert and Maud Pulling a Wagon

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 10 Oct 2022 03:43:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of horses, carriages, or wagons.

The handwritten message on the other side of this real photo postcard says, "This is our horses Robert & Maud in front of Fulton Miller's house." There's no stamp or postmark, but the card is addressed to "Mr. Glen[n] Lyle, RFD, Brookville, [Pennsylvania], c/o Herbert Lyle." The Velox stamp box (with diamonds in the corners and "Place Stamp Here" in the middle) indicates that it may date to as early as 1907-1917.

On a Slow Train through Arkansas

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 02:01:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of odd backdrops or backgrounds.

A souvenir real photo postcard from "Happy Hollow" (McLeod's Amusement Park), which was located in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Some of the signs and labels visible in the photo are:

"Gambling room down stares. No drinks served."
"Wild cat mine for sail chepe."
"Don't ask for no darn fool dude drinks."
"Old Crow, 2 bits a drink."
"Wite mule, 2 bits per drink, good stuff."
"Ky. booze XXX."
"Pabst Blue Ribbon on drought."
"Shiref's offis."
"Tanglefoot strate, 2 bits."
"Pabst Blue Ribbon, the beer of quality."
"On a slow train through Arkansas."

Too Much Pork for Just One Fork

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 13 Sep 2020 23:59:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

The caption on the front of this exaggeration postcard is "Feeding Time," but I borrowed "Too Much Pork for Just One Fork" from Southern Culture on the Skids, who used it as a song and album title.

This is a photomontage by Kansas photographer William H. Martin (1865-1940). For more examples of Martin's work, see Good Corn Makes Good Hogs and A Mess of Potatoes.

This real photo postcard is addressed on the other side to Mr. Richard Storey, Medora, Ill., but there's no stamp or postmark.

Handwritten message: "5/15 1910. They raise 'em like this in Indiana. J.O.B."

A Mess of Potatoes

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 17 Aug 2020 03:58:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the monthly theme of pick your favorite theme(s)—why is it (are they) your favorite(s)? (submit a photo on this topic each week in addition to—or instead of—a photo for the weekly topic).

William H. Martin (1865-1940), a Kansas photographer who was a master of photomontage, created this real photo postcard in 1908. Postcards like this by Martin and other photographers were especially popular in the early twentieth century and featured gigantic fruits and vegetables, dangerously oversized animals and fish, and amusingly huge products. These humorous trick photos are some of my favorite kinds of vintage photographs. For more examples, see my album of Tall-Tale and Exaggeration Postcards, which includes both photographic and printed cards.

This particular postcard bears a postmark of April 7, 1909, and is addressed to "Mrs. Susan W. Dick, Roaring Springs, Penna. Care [of] Ora L. Dick." The message on the other side refers to the photo on the front: "Dear Mother, Hope you are better. I thought I would send you a mess of potatoes. They look good. Thad & Sue."

Leck Kill Post Office Building, Leck Kill, Pa.—Then and Now

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 03:55:06 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

This is a composite image of old and new views of a building in Leck Kill, Pennsylvania, that served as a post office, store, and tavern. The top view is from an early twentieth-century real photo postcard, and the bottom view is a Google Maps capture from 2009.

See the full version of the real photo postcard for more information.

Leck Kill Post Office Building, Leck Kill, Pa. (Detail)

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 03:55:08 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Two men stand in front of the "Leck Kill Post Office" in Leck Kill, Pennsylvania, as indicated by the lettering in the window. The building also contained a store with some merchandise, such as brooms and a watering can, stored on the porch.

For more information, see the full version of this real photo postcard and a composite image of old and new views of the post office building.

Leck Kill Post Office Building, Leck Kill, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 03:55:10 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A photo of mail carriers, post offices, mailboxes, etc. for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

This is an early twentieth-century real photo postcard showing four men and a boy posing in front of a building. The boy is holding the reins of two horses hitched to a wagon, and a variety of items, including benches, barrels, and tools, are visible on the porch and on the ground in front of the building.

After scanning and enlarging the photo, I was able to read the lettering on the window in the middle of the building and discovered that it served as the "Leck Kill Post Office" (see a close-up view of the window).

Leck Kill is a small community located in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, and its Wikipedia entry indicates that the post office there closed in 2004. Amazingly enough, I was able to find a 2009 view of the building on Google Maps (see my composite image of old and new views).

A 2018 online real estate listing provided additional details: "Property at one time was used for the local post office with a store and tavern. Presently used as a home with apartment and still has P.O. space." So it's possible that the post office in the building was still in use as late as 2004.

A Joyous Easter—His Morning Drive

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 21 Apr 2019 08:48:40 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"With all good wishes for a joyous Easter. His morning drive."

A real photo postcard of a boy with his toy wagon and rooster.

A Very Happy Easter to You

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 04:25:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

An early twentieth-century Easter postcard.

A. W. Davis, Manufacturer of Carriages, Wagons, and Sleighs, Syracuse, N.Y.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 13 Feb 2019 21:18:10 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"A. W. Davis, manufacturer of carriages, wagons, and sleighs. No. 1523 North Salina Street, Syracuse, N.Y."

W. R. Cheney, Carriage Builder, Lancaster, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 14 Sep 2018 20:21:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"W. R. Cheney, Carriage Builder. Repairing and repainting done promptly. 26 North Christian St., Lancaster, Pa."

William R. Cheney (1859-1932) was a blacksmith and carriage builder in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

For similar business cards from the same job printer (Pluck Print), see Chas. O. Ursprung, Horse Collar Manufacturer, Lancaster, Pa. and William C. Myers, Practical Artesian Well Contractor, Salunga, Pa.

For a card from another carriage maker, see Bardens Carriage Company, Horseshoers and Wagonmakers, West Orange, New Jersey.

Bringing in the Corn

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 16 Oct 2017 03:35:42 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A photo of horses, carriages, or wagons for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

Handwritten note on the back: "I think [this was] taken at Guthrie farm." The AZO stamp box on the other side suggests a possible date as early as 1904 to 1918.

This young fellow has placed his jacket on the ground to strike a jaunty pose in front of a wagon containing a bumper load of corn.

Spinning a Tale of Dogs in Glasses (Cropped)

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 02 Jan 2017 19:04:25 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

For more information, see the original photo:

Spinning a Tale of Dogs in Glasses

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 02 Jan 2017 19:04:27 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Mister Peabody, the cartoon dog in the Rocky and Bullwinkle TV show, wore eyeglasses, and Addison MacHenry, the fictional dog in Ransom Riggs's Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children book series, had goggles and a pipe, but I'm not sure why the dogs in this real photo postcard are wearing glasses and a top hat, smoking pipes, and pulling a cart (mouse over the image above for a closer look).

And then there's the girl with the spinning wheel. What are these kids up to?

Girls Pulling Themselves on a Wagon (Detail)

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 22:16:46 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Detail from a trick photo of two Girls Pulling Themselves on a Wagon. For more information, see the full photo:

Girls Pulling Themselves on a Wagon

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 22:16:48 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park that has us seeing double (a photo with 2 things/people that are the same or that look the same).

A real photo postcard that uses a double exposure to show two girls who are inexplicably pulling the same wagon that they're riding in. This trick photo is so well done that I haven't been able to detect the dividing line between the two exposures.

Compare this photo with these others in which the trick is more obvious:

Gruber Wagon Works, Mt. Pleasant, Berks County, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 14 Aug 2014 05:02:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Gruber Wagon Works, Mt. Pleasant, Berks County, Pa. P.O., Bernville, R.F.D No. 2. Telephone. Presented by J. W. Gruber. (over). West Hydraulic Cold Tire Setter. Have them set while you wait."

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The Gruber Wagon Works, built in 1882 and originally located near Mt. Pleasant, Pa., was moved five miles away from the area that is now Blue Marsh Lake, which was constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers in the 1970s. The Gruber Wagon Works has been designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark and is now part of the Berks County Heritage Center.

I had the chance to visit the relocated Gruber Wagon Works this summer (2014) and will eventually post some photos from the site. During the tour of the wagon works, I learned that the Gruber family purchased the West Hydraulic Cold Tire Setter in 1908. This machine was able to set tires "cold" in minutes by using massive hydraulic pressure to compress an iron rim (the "tire") around a wooden wheel. This was a significant improvement over the blacksmith's "hot" setting method, a lengthy process that required the iron tire to be heated in a fire, affixed to the wooden wheel while hot, and then quenched in water to shrink the tire around the wheel.

It's no surprise, then, why the Grubers included an illustration of the West Hydraulic Cold Tire Setter on their business card--the machine did its work so quickly that they could now offer to set your tire and repair your wagon wheel "while you wait."

Bardens Carriage Company, Horseshoers and Wagonmakers, West Orange, New Jersey

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 19 Jul 2016 19:25:45 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Bardens Carriage Co., Horse-Shoers and Wagon Makers, 41 Washington Street, West Orange, N.J. Telephone. Repairing. Painting."

I haven't been able to find any trace of the Bardens Carriage Company, but I'm guessing that the company's horse of a different color on this business card had something to do with the town in which it was located.

For some other farrier cards, see Lewis Kramer, Practical Blacksmithing and Horseshoeing, Pottstown, Pa., and Fred Hollinger, Practical Horseshoer, Lancaster, Pa.

For items from carriage and wagon works, see Harrisburg Carriage Repository Letterhead, Harrisburg, Pa., and Gruber Wagon Works, Mt. Pleasant, Berks County, Pa.

A Bunch of Rowdies (Cropped)

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 31 May 2016 16:16:21 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

See also the full version of this real photo postcard: