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

Fallen from the Crust, Jacksonville, Florida, March 31, 1906 (Cropped)

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 03:24:02 +0000

For the message accompanying this picture, see the full version of this real photo postcard.

Fallen from the Crust, Jacksonville, Florida, March 31, 1906

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 03:24:04 +0000

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of unique or outrageous hats.

This is a real photo postcard sent from Jacksonville, Florida, to Newton, New Hampshire, on March 31, 1906.

Printed on the other side: "Post Card, Souvenir, Jacksonville. J. A. Hollingsworth, Tourist Photographer, Hogan St., Opp. Park Hotel, Jacksonville, Fla."

Message written on the front: "Jacksonville, Fla., March 31. Whatever you do, don't come to Florida. Look at this picture and see how we have 'fallen from the crust.' Am so weak that I can hardly manage my auto. Hope to be better by tomorrow. Will."

If Will could afford an automobile like the one he's pretending to drive, then he must not have "fallen from the [upper] crust," as he jokingly suggests.

See a cropped version for a better view of Will and his wife, their hats, and the automobile.

Midway Diner, July 13, 1950

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 03:06:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of this was the [you name the decade] (please explain why the photo represents the period).

"Midway Diner, where we ate our dinner. On our trip to Atlantic City. Thursday, July 13, 1950."

This was the 1950s -- just barely -- but diners like this have played a significant role in fifties nostalgia. As Wikipedia observes, "In television and cinema (e.g. The Blob, Happy Days, Grease, and Diner), diners and soda fountains have come to symbolize the period of prosperity and optimism in America in the 1950s. They are shown as the place where teenagers meet after school and as an essential part of a date."

Based on other photos I purchased along with this one, I believe that the family members who ate their dinner here on July 13 were traveling to Atlantic City, New Jersey, from their home in or near Allentown, Pennsylvania. This suggests that the Midway Diner was located somewhere in New Jersey or Pennsylvania, but I haven't been able to determine exactly where.

As I was getting ready to post this picture, I discovered that I used a different diner photo for a previous 1950s theme for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. See Good Food Federal Diner, Brookline Avenue, Boston, Mass., 1956.

Labor Day Photo from Elitch's Gardens, 1905

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 03 Sep 2019 01:42:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Handwritten caption: "Labor Day, 1905, Elitch's Gardens."

This real photo postcard wasn't postally used, and there's no address, message, or postmark on the other side that might help identify these three individuals.

According to Wikipedia, "Elitch Gardens was a family-owned seasonal amusement park, theater, and botanic garden in the West Highland neighborhood in northwest Denver, Colorado, United States, at 38th and Tennyson streets."

C. B. Winchell, Harrisburg, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 21 Mar 2018 02:25:10 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Presented by C. B. Winchell, Harrisburg, Pa."

This inscription, handwritten in elaborate Spencerian script, appears on the reverse of a business card for "E. R. Parker, manufacturer and dealer in new hardware specialties, 227½ Wyoming Avenue, Scranton, Pa."

E. R. Parker, Hardware Specialties Manufacturer and Dealer, Scranton, Pa.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 21 Mar 2018 02:25:12 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"E. R. Parker, manufacturer and dealer in new hardware specialties, 227½ Wyoming Avenue, Scranton, Pa. Parker's Patent Combined Clamp and Filing Guide."

Handwritten in elaborate Spencerian script on the other side of this business card: "Presented by C. B. Winchell, Harrisburg, Pa."

The illustration of "Parker's Patent Combined Clamp and Filing Guide" refers to a patent for an "Improvement in Saw-Clamp and Filing-Guide" (see below) that was issued to Edwin R. Parker in 1879.

Improvement in Saw-Clamp and Filing-Guide. U.S. Patent No. 219,650, dated September 16, 1879.
"Be it known that I, Edwin R. Parker, of Scranton, in the county of Lackawanna and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new and Improved Saw-Clamp and Filing-Guide . . . . The object in making this invention is to produce a convenient instrument or machine for clamping and holding the saw-teeth and guiding the file in filing all sizes of circular and mill saws of any gage, size, and shape of teeth, and whether the saw be on the arbor or removed therefrom; and the improvements consist, respectively, in the several devices, and in the combinations and sub-combinations, as hereinafter described and claimed."

Move the Sun Please, We Just Can't Help Squinting

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 16 Feb 2018 05:38:08 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Move the sun please, we just can't help squinting. M.C.L."

A real photo postcard addressed on the other side to Mr. Earl Cady, Laramie, Wyo., and postmarked in Laramie on April 27, 1909.

For other squinty photos, see the Flickr group Squinting at the Sun. Vintage Photographs.

Grin and Bear It

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 05 Dec 2016 21:43:32 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A what a grin photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

Written on the front of this real photo postcard: "Hello Enulia, this is me. Harold Andersun" (my best guesses for the spelling of the names).

Stamped on the back: "Downers Grove Photo Studio" (which was probably located in Downers Grove, Illinois).

Poor Harold has evidently heard the bad news about Ipernity but is still putting on a brave front (unlike me, who's having a bit of trouble mustering up a smile).

Come and Join Me in a Bath, Heinz Pier, Atlantic City, N.J., 1906

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 22:33:58 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"5/1/1906. Come and join me in a bath. Bathing scene, Heinz Pier, Atlantic City, U.S.A. Seashore home of the 57 varieties."

Addressed on the back to "Miss Sue I. Barger, 1307 Flora St., Phila., Pa."

This amusing advertising postcard published by the H. J. Heinz Company features the Heinz Pier in the background and includes the food processing company's pickle logo and 57 Varieties slogan. The pier was destroyed by a hurricane in 1944.

For another Heinz card from the early twentieth century, see H. J. Heinz Company, Main Plant and General Offices, Pittsburgh, Pa.:

High Water Mark Monument, Gettysburg, Pa., December 2, 1906

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 12 Dec 2013 20:22:25 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Handwritten message on the front of this real photo postcard (see writing at right, above): "High Water Mark. 12/2/06. This was all done today. What do you think of that grin? The fellow tried to take the picture without exposing the plate and we were trying to keep from laughing."

The giant book behind the two men is part of the High Water Mark of the Rebellion Monument, which is, as Wikipedia explains, "a Gettysburg Battlefield memorial which identifies the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia units of the infantry attack on the Battle of Gettysburg, third day, with a large bronze tablet, as well as the Union Army of the Potomac's 'respective troops who met or assisted to repulse Longstreet's Assault.' The memorial is named for the line of dead and wounded of Pickett's Charge which marked the deepest penetration into the Union line at The Angle when '4,500 men threw down their arms and came in as prisoners.'"

For later views of the monument, see Bicyclists at the High Water Mark Monument, Gettysburg, Pa., 1912 and High Water Mark Monument, Gettysburg, Pa., August 8, 2013 (below).

My Heart Has Turned from Red to Grey

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 19:50:38 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

My heart has turned from red to grey
And is heavy as lead on account of you;
For it's loved you long, and it's loved you true,
And your coldness has turned it a dismal hue.

(This handmade greeting card isn't really a vinegar valentine--it's downright sulfuric!)

Witches Watch Halloween Party Invitation, October 31, 1914

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 29 Sep 2014 15:41:48 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Witches Watch - Oct. 31st, '14. 8:00 p.m. - Masks! 2439 No. Eleventh Street. Admission - 25¢. ea. Guess you know who all!"

Handwritten note on the back of the invitation: "George: Let me know if you come and how--singles or doubles! Marg. Hunsicker, 2852 N. Orkney St."

A hundred-year-old Halloween party invitation! The flustered jack-o'-lanterns appear to be printed die-cut pumpkin shapes, but I'm not certain whether the witch silhouette was cut by hand or from a die. After using Google to search for the addresses (2439 N. Eleventh Street and 2852 N. Orkney Street), I believe that the location is probably Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

I was surprised to discover that I couldn't find any precedent for the term "Witches Watch." I assumed that watching for the appearance of witches would be a common activity--and party theme--during the Halloween season, but the only reference to a similarly named event that I was able to locate came from the Spokane Daily Chronicle, Oct. 21, 1937, p. 3: "'Witches' Watch Halloween Ball. Chewelah, Wash., Oct. 21--(Special.)--Witches and pumpkins of paper decorated the Masonic hall Wednesday night when the Eastern Star held its invitational dance. Refreshments were served."

Or perhaps I have it all wrong--maybe the witches are the ones who are doing the watching. Or--on a sillier note--could it refer to a timepiece worn by witches? Any other sightings of "Witches Watch" out there?

We Had a Big Old Time--Playing Cards and Drinking Wine

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 18 Sep 2014 13:28:49 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A playing cards and board games photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

A scary scene during a card game! The four young men pictured in this real photo postcard have obviously been playing all evening. One of them is holding a bottle of Tokay wine, and we can see that a tobacco pipe, playing cards, and various coins and bills are strewn across the table (mouse over the image above for a close-up view of the table).

The guy on the left with the unruly hair is staring intently at the one on the right, who has drawn a gun and seems to be trying not to laugh. The two other fellows, however, haven't even noticed the gun. Perhaps the guy with the gun is angry because he suspects that one of his friends has been cheating, or maybe he's just upset that the print hanging on the wall behind him is starting to fall down.

Judging by the humorous poem that's written on the other side of this photo postcard (see below), it's doubtful that any gunplay ever took place. Instead, considering that we can see a bed on the right-hand side of the photo and a dresser piled with books on the other side, it seems likely that these lads are simply students in a dorm room or apartment posing for an amusing photo of a card game gone wrong.

--------

Handwritten poem on the other side of this real photo postcard (note: "out of chine" seems to mean "out of alignment" or "out of sync" in this context):

Perhaps we had a big old time
And maybe it was a spree
But really I don't know
What actually did happen to me.

I only know my poor intellect
Was most awful out of chine
And I longed for just one drink of---
Well it wasn't wine.

L. Messersmith,
Fairmont, Minn.

Looking Through the News

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 03:56:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Do you have ideas for future topics for the Vintage Photos Theme Park? If so, please add them to the Suggestion Box!

A photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park monthly topic of cats (submit a photo on this topic each week in addition to—or instead of—a photo for the weekly topic).

"Looking through the news you may see something which might interest you. I will send the papers to you. J.R."

A real photo postcard with a cat that's literally looking through a newspaper in 1906. For another postcard with a similar punning message, see Breaking the News, Lititz Express, July 4, 1907.

Remember That Day, Jefferson Rock, Harpers Ferry, W.Va.

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 15:07:42 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A tattered & torn (or otherwise damaged) photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

Handwritten caption: "Remember that day."

Handwritten note on the back: "Isn't this sweet. Give me one in the place of this."

An undated and well-worn photo taken at Jefferson Rock, which overlooks the town of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. According to Wikipedia, "The name of this landmark derives from Thomas Jefferson, who stood there on October 25, 1783. He found the view from the rock impressive and wrote in Notes on the State of Virginia that 'this scene is worth a voyage across the Atlantic.'"

Note that the silhouette of someone's head and shoulders is visible in the background between two of the pillars that hold the top slab of the rock in place.

Here's a 2009 view of the rock taken from a similar vantage point:

Helen and Mary, Friedens, Pa., Aug. 28, 1907

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sat, 14 Jul 2018 05:43:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo of squinting into the sun (subjects obviously struggling to keep eyes open while facing into the sun for the photographer; borrowed from a Flickr group). For additional examples, see my album of Vintage Squinters.

Handwritten on the front of this real photo postcard: "Aug. 28, '07. Dear Grandma: I told you I was coming Thursday, a [week?]. How do you like Helen and I? I am not very well, Mary."

Addressed to: Mrs. Mary E. Mock, Stoyestown, Pa., Route 2.

Postmarked: Friedens, Pa., Aug. 28, 1907.

Eleanor Henderson and Her Dog in Eva, Oklahoma, October 24, 1914

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 12 Mar 2018 03:59:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A photo of flowers in the garden for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

Handwritten note (above left): "Eleanor Henderson, Eva, Texas Co., Okla., Oct. 24, 1914." There's no message or address on the back of this real photo postcard.

Little Eleanor posed with her dog among the flowers and plants, all rendered in blue due to the cyanotype photo processing.

Use This to Keep the Mice and Rats Away

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 25 Aug 2014 23:35:50 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A cyanotypes photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

"You can use this to keep the mice and rats away. Yes, I will keep the dog in and put out the key. A.S."

Addressed to: Miss Maud W. Parker, North Lubec, Maine.

Postmarked: South Lubec, ME, Oct. 18, 1906, and North Lubec, ME, Oct. 18, 1906.

The joke about a photographic portrait being so bad or ugly that it scares away rodents, insects, and burglars was evidently a common one in the early twentieth century. Another version, for instance, appeared in a 1911 letter sent to American musician and composer William D. Dawson:

"My Dear Mr. Armstrong: I duly received, welcome, and possessed myself of your portrait and am glad to have it. At the same time I am ashamed to recall that I have so long neglected to acknowledge it or to send the reciprocal photo to you. I have autographed one this evening and it will be shipped by freight tomorrow. It is warranted to scare away rats and burglars" (see W. T. Norton, William Dawson Armstrong, American Composer, New York: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1916, p 87).

For another 1906 real photo postcard with a "scare away the rats" joke, see Guaranteed to Rid Any Cellar of Rats, Roaches, or Other Creatures (below).

Guaranteed to Rid Any Cellar of Rats, Roaches, or Other Creatures

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 25 Aug 2014 23:35:48 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Guaranteed--to rid any cellar of rats, roaches, or other undesirable creatures. In case of failure to do so as represented, your money cheerfully refunded and no questions asked. September 15th, 1906 A.D."

Addressed to: Miss Olive L. Carpenter, Box #99, Yantic, Connecticut.

Postmarked: Philadelphia, Pa., Sep. 16, 1906.

Judging by a Find A Grave search, the recipient of this real photo postcard was probably Olive L. Carpenter Bullard (1878 - 1917) ("wife of E. E. Bullard"), who is buried in the Yantic Cemetery, Norwich, Connecticut. If so, she would have been 28 years old when she received this postcard in 1906 and only 39 when she died in 1917. I wonder if it was her husband who sent her this card.

For another real photo postcard with a similar "scare away the rats" joke, see Use This to Keep the Mice and Rats Away (below).

I Am Pushing on the Lines

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Thu, 26 Mar 2015 19:29:14 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Original caption: "I am pushing on the lines. Will show you a full line of samples about...."

With written additions: "I am pushing on the lines. Will see you about next Saturday if plans pan out O.K. Shall I bring a trunk? Store's not open Sat., so if you come home, come to end of line, [or?] phone from square."

A salesman normally would have used a postcard like this to notify potential customers when he'd arrive at their location to show them samples of his merchandise, but instead the sender of this card has altered the message to arrange a time to meet a friend or relative.