Photos, videos and docs of Alan Mays, with the keywords: "black"

Halloween Party Invitation, Lancaster, Pa., October 31, 1912

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 01 Nov 2019 03:10:50 +0000

Eight years after Alice Graybill and her sisters held their Halloween party at 718 North Plum Street in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the 1920 United States Federal Census recorded that the Graybills still lived at the same address. Alice was 31 years old in 1920, and she worked as a weaver in a silk mill. The census listed Alice as the owner of the home and the head of the household.

There were six family members living at the house on Plum Street that year:

-- Alice W. Graybill, 31, single, head of the house, weaver, silk mill
-- Susan W. Graybill, 29, sister, weaver, silk mill
-- Ada W. Graybill, 27, sister, cleaner, silk mill
-- Weidler Graybill, 25, brother, machinist, machine shop
-- Marie Graybill, 15, sister, winder, silk mill
-- Grace Graybill, 12, sister, no occupation listed

So at the time of their Halloween party in 1912, Alice and her sisters would have been about 23, 21, 19, 7, and 4 years old (perhaps they allowed brother Weidler at age 17 to attend, too).

Alice eventurally married, and as Alice Graybill Harrington (1888-1969) she lived to the age of 80.

For some other early twentieth-century Halloween invitations, see:

-- Witches Watch Halloween Party Invitation, October 31, 1914
-- A Halloween Masquerade Invitation! October 23, 1920
-- Greetings for Halloween—Invitation for Revelry on Mystic Halloween, 1923

Yourself and friend are cordially invited to attend
A Hallowe'en Party

to be given at the home of
Alice Graybill and sisters

On Thursday evening, October the thirty-first
nineteen hundred and twelve

No. 718 North Plum Street, Lancaster, Pa.

R.S.V.P.

Greetings for Halloween—Invitation for Revelry on Mystic Halloween, 1923

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 01 Nov 2019 03:10:46 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A 1923 invitation for a Halloween get-together at the Edwin Forrest House, which was the location of the Philadelphia School of Design for Women (now the Moore College of Art and Design).

I haven't been able to determine whether "Amy Lee" and "Mrs. Kuhir" were associated with the school in any way.

Greetings for Halloween

We invite you to meet with us at Edwin Forrest House at the hour of any o'clock to hold revel on the mystic Hallowe'en.

Handwritten note on the back of this postcard: "To Mrs. Kuhir, All good wishes from Amy Lee. 1923."

Printed on the back: "Series No. 297, Hallowe'en, 6 designs."

Continental Congress Session at York, Pa., 150th Anniversary Celebration, Poster Stamp, 1927

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 07 Mar 2016 23:01:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A poster stamp advertising the celebrations in 1927 that commemorated the 150th anniversary of the sessions of the Second Continental Congress that were held in York, Pennsylvania, after British troops occupied Philadelphia.

"150th Anniversary, York, Penna., of the session of Continental Congress at York, Pennsylvania, from Sept. 30, 1777, to June 28, 1778. Big celebration, Oct. 13, 14, 15, 1927."

Cutting the Cake in '58

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 06 May 2019 00:06:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A weddings photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

This is a Kodachrome slide processed by Kodak in Jan 1959, so I'm guessing that the wedding actually took place in 1958

Notice how no one seems particularly excited as the bride and groom pose for photos while cutting their cake. Perhaps they would have been more impressed had they turned around and taken a look at the elaborate design of that wallpaper.

P.S. I didn't realize how many wedding-related pics I had already used for various themes in the VPTP until I started searching for this week's photo. Check out two of my six previous matrimonial postings:

Merry Christmas Anyway

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 25 Dec 2018 04:11:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

The illustration on this Christmas card from 1930 is a reference to the stock market crash that devastated the economy the previous year and signaled the beginning of the Great Depression. We see ticker tape spewing out of a stock ticker machine as brokers run around in the background trying to place buy or sell orders for stocks as the chaos of the crash unfolds. Despite the volatility of the market, the card's message is to have a "Merry Christmas anyway."

"The Bulls and Bears may have their day / But Merry Christmas, anyway. Your son, Ross."

"You can take stock in this greeting."

Handwritten date on the back of the card: "Dec. 15, 1930."

Halloween—A Witch Out for Mischief

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 28 Oct 2018 04:22:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Bats, an owl, and a black cat accompany a witch as she rides her broomstick over a snow-covered landscape in this illustration from a postcard dated 1910.

For a similar postcard, see Halloween—Witch and Black Cat on a Broomstick.

Woolen Suitings, Dress Fabrics, Housekeeping Goods! Spangler and Rich, Marietta, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 05:39:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

For the front of this advertising trade card, see Spangler and Rich, Dry Goods and Groceries, Marietta, Pa.

Woolen Suitings, Dress Fabrics, Housekeeping Goods!

Choice styles. Satisfactory prices.

An early visit is respectfully solicited from yourself and friends.

Spangler & Rich.

Spangler and Rich, Dry Goods and Groceries, Marietta, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 05:39:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Spangler & Rich, dry goods, groceries, Marietta, Pa. Marietta Times Print."

A nineteenth-century advertising trade card for Spangler & Rich's store in Marietta, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. For the other side of this card, see Woolen Suitings, Dress Fabrics, Housekeeping Goods! Spangler and Rich, Marietta, Pa.

For another card from the store, see Spangler and Rich, Dealers in Dry Goods, Marietta, Pennsylvania.

Halloween—Witch with a Black Cat on a Pumpkin

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sat, 13 Oct 2018 06:17:00 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Halloween postcard addressed to Mrs. Chas. Studt, Lilly, Pa., and postmarked at Conemaugh, Pa., Oct. 29, 1910.

Handwritten message on back: "Dear Grandmother, I wish you were down to get some taffy & fudge and nuts. I hope you are well and I will be up soon. Roy.

Printed on back: "Raphael Tuck & Sons' 'Hallowe'en' Series of Post Cards No. 174."

For another postcard sent to the same person in 1910, see Halloween—Witch with Jack-o'-Lantern.

Halloween Greetings—When the Candles Flicker

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 05:42:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Halloween postcard, circa 1920s.

Hallowe'en Greetings
When the candles flicker
When the wind goes woo-oo
May it mean a fortune
Mighty good for you.

Greetings from the Grange Encampment and Fair, Centre Hall, Pennsylvania

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 14:16:44 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Postcard addressed on the other side to: "Prof. H. C. Klinger, Liverpool, Pa., R.F.D. #1."

Partial transcription of the message (no year and no postmark): "Sept. 17th, 9 a.m. At Grange Park C. H. in remembrance of the hunting . . . J. J. Jordan."

The Centre County Grange Encampment and Fair--usually just called the "Grange Fair"--has been held annually in Centre Hall, Pennsylvania, since 1874.

For another postcard with the same ears-of-corn border, see Memorial Day.

Will You Be My Socialist Valentine?

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 22 Jan 2018 04:53:30 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"To my valentine. I'm a socialist, will you be one? Free drinks, free money, free love. Ellam."

Postmarked Saginaw West Side, Mich., Feb. 4, 1911, and addressed to Ward Brown, 820 North Mason, Saginaw West Side.

Handwritten message: "I hope you are as I am and don't forget that day. You know and I know, and why should we forget it."

Artist-signed postcard by William Ellam.

Astro Bow—Get in Orbit and Go Go Go!

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 10 May 2017 18:01:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Astro Bow. Get in orbit. Go-go-go. 39¢. Buser Century, Inc."

A black velvet hair bow shaped like a space capsule!

"Get in Orbit" and "Go Go Go" with "Astro Bow" is what the printed card is telling us. What Space Age gal could resist something like this?

Hotel Astoria, Wien

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 27 Feb 2017 20:07:08 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A vintage luggage label from the Hotel Astoria in Vienna, Austria.

Merry Christmas

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 16 Dec 2016 18:54:43 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A small Victorian-era greeting card that's about the size of a modern business card. This is a generic "stock card" that could have served as a calling card, advertising trade card, reward of merit, or--as in this case--greeting card, depending on what was printed on it. The colors of the leaves in the illustration, of course, suggest an autumn theme rather than a winter-time Christmas celebration.

Halloween–Friendly Fairy, Witch, or Fay, Fulfill the Wish You Wish Today

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 18:32:58 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Hallowe'en. Friendly fairy, witch, or fay, fulfill the wish you wish to-day. Ellen H. Clapsaddle."

Charles Smith—Ornamental Pensmanship on a Calling Card

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 18 Aug 2016 20:27:20 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Chas. H. Smith. Compliments." (I'm not sure that the middle initial is H, however.)

An impressive example of ornamental penmanship on a hand-drawn and -lettered "flourished" calling card that likely dates to the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. Note how the bird appears to be eyeing an insect of some sort.

Here are some other similarly ornate cards:

Although it's not as ornate, this flourished card also features a bird chasing after an insect:

This one's even simpler:

The design on the following calling card is printed, but it imitates the hand-drawn and -lettered cards:

The Ghost Card, or the Skeleton on the Wall (Rotated)

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 25 Jul 2016 22:21:08 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

For more information, see The Ghost Card, or the Skeleton on the Wall (below). For the back of the card, see Whip and Fan Flirtations (below).

The Ghost Card, or the Skeleton on the Wall

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 25 Jul 2016 22:21:10 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A novelty card with instructions for experiencing a ghostly afterimage of a "skeleton on the wall." For a vertical view of the skeleton, see a rotated version of the card (below). The other side contains a list of Whip and Fan Flirtations (below).

For other cards that use the afterimage effect, see Hank Keene's Magic Picture and Lasting Impressions.

The Ghost Card, or the Skeleton on the Wall

Directions. Select a small black spot on a white wall, or white sheet—a spot that you can find again at once; let this spot be in a deep shadow. Then holding the card in the hand gaze intently on the eye of the skeleton, while the light falls brightly on the card. Keep the eyes on this one spot without moving or winking for two minutes; then suddenly look at the spot on the wall for two minutes. Keep the eye very steady in both cases, you will then see distinctly the same skeleton on the wall. For a parlor entertainment this is one of the grandest things ever witnessed.

Next Sunday Is Rally Day

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 19 Jul 2016 20:27:06 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

The inside of a Rally Day Treasure Chest, which has a postcard backing. Mouse over the image to see the closed (folded) treasure chest.

Next Sunday is Rally Day

The day of 100% attendance in our school. We must have you present to make our goal! Let's make our school better than ever!

The contents of the treasure chest are all for you: The Book of Books. A Place of Prayer. A Place of Song. A Happy Place. God Is Here! Helpful Friends. Truth and Honor Taught Here. Golden Hours.