Hi-Lo Club -- La Salle Hotel -- Battle Creek, Michigan

BATTLE CREEK'S

Only Ultra Modern Night Club

featuring the finest of bands and entertainment, located in the La Salle Hotel

postmarked 1939

 
Smorgasbord Sundays (SS) 
BARS & RESTAURANTS

PPIE: Get Your Congressman to Vote

In 1910, San Francisco competed with New Orleans for the chance to host the 1915 exposition celebrating the completion of the Panama Canal. The San Francisco organization promoting the exposition included a “Postcard Committee” that organized a “postcard week.” Tens of thousands of these official postcards were given to local residents to mail to friends around the country.

On the left side of the postcard, the imagery includes an allegorical female figure with a bear crouching at her feet, California’s state flag, and examples of California’s agricultural bounty. On the right side, there is a  workman with his tools and  a U.S. flag. In the background, a ship is passing through the Golden Gate, the channel between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. (source)

postmarked 1910, mailed from California to Minnesota

CELEBRATE THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF
THE 1915 PANAMA-PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION
in San Francisco
&
 THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1939-40 WORLD'S FAIRS
In New York and San Francisco
Look for more World's Fair Postcards on the Postcardy Blog on Fridays.
To view past World's Fair posts, click here or on the exposition label.

Old-Fashioned Kitchens

My first postcard contrasts the old-fashioned Colonial era kitchen to the new style available in the early twentieth century. It's statement that "Woman today can be good cooks without spending as much time and energy in the kitchen as their grandmothers did" is still true a century later.

The next postcard shows the early twentieth century "modern" style kitchen with up-to-date conveniences and "a place for everything"

A free-standing kitchen cabinet was the latest in conveniences in 1911, but was hopelessly outdated by the 1950s.The next postcard is from 1954. By then, cabinets were built in. Iceboxes had been replaced by electric refrigerators, and wood-burning stoves had been replaced by gas and electric ranges. That's a lot of change in only about 40 years. The 1950s kitchen still looks fairly modern to me, but many people now would consider it very old-fashioned.

Today's new kitchens are different in style, but in many ways seem less "modern" than the 1960s kitchen shown in the video below. I wonder if and when computerized and interactive appliances will really become popular. I certainly don't want my refrigerator to order my groceries!

Visit Sepia Saturday

To View More Vintage Images

The Erie Limited Near Port Jervis, N. Y.

One charming vista after another greets the eye of the traveler on the Erie between New York and Chicago over the scenic route of the East.

This postcard was used for Season's Greetings and has a 1943 Christmas seal on the back.

CLICK HERE or on

the transportation label

For More Transportation Posts

Map: Idyllic Spreewald

received via Postcrossing in 2015

The Spreewald  is situated about 100 km south-east of Berlin. It was designated a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1991. It is known for its traditional irrigation system which consists of more than 200 small canals (called "Fließe"; total length: 1,300 km ) within the 484-square-kilometre (187 sq mi) area. The landscape was shaped during the ice-age. Alder forests on wetlands and pine forests on sandy dry areas are characteristic for the region. Grasslands and fields can be found as well. (source: Wikipedia)

Ricketts Restaurant -- Chicago

RICKETTS

"that popular restaurant"

103 East Chicago Avenue

Near Michigan Blvd. 

Recommended by Duncan Hines

Food Authorities

 
Smorgasbord Sundays (SS) 
BARS & RESTAURANTS

New York World's Fair: Standard Brands Building

The flags shown on the face of this card represent only a few of the 118 countries where Standard Brands quality products are sold.

CELEBRATE THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1939-40 WORLD'S FAIRS
In New York and San Francisco
Look for more World's Fair Postcards on the Postcardy Blog on Fridays.
To view past World's Fair posts, click here or on the exposition label.

Dance Marathon

I identified this photo postcard as a dance marathon on the basis of the sign in the upper left corner "THEY HAVE BEEN GOING 479 HOURS." That's nearly 20 days!

HistoryLink.org has an excellent article Dance Marathons of the 1920s and 1930s.

Dance Marathons (also called Walkathons), an American phenomenon of the 1920s and 1930s, were human endurance contests in which couples danced almost non-stop for hundreds of hours (as long as a month or two), competing for prize money. Dance marathons originated as part of an early-1920s, giddy, jazz-age fad for human endurance competitions such as flagpole sitting and six-day bicycle races. Dance marathons persisted throughout the 1930s as partially staged performance events, mirroring the marathon of desperation Americans endured during the Great Depression. In these dance endurance contests, a mix of local hopefuls and seasoned professional marathoners danced, walked, shuffled, sprinted, and sometimes cracked under the pressure and exhaustion of round-the-clock motion.

The blog Blondie Cuts a Rug has another informative article with the same title, and many photos from dance marathons.

I don't know when or where the dance marathon on my postcard occurred. The names Rustic Inn, Eddie, and Cloris could be clues. A couple of Eddies are listed on the Dance Marathons page of Dance history Archives, but Eddie is a common name. Rustic Inn is also a fairly common name that is still in use at a variety of places.  I found the postcard in Minnesota, so Minnesota is a possibility. I checked a page about Minnesota marathon dances. There are some interesting photos there, but nothing like this.

Visit Sepia Saturday

To View More Vintage Images

Late Show with David Letterman

© 1998 CBS INC.

LATE SHOW

with David Letterman

 

The Cure for Olympic Fever

Weeknights on CBS

Tonight May 20, 2015 is the last Late Show with David Letterman. I must admit that I haven't watched the show much, but I will still miss it. I will try to stay awake for the whole last show. I probably shouldn't watch it in bed. Watching TV in bed almost always makes me fall asleep . . . zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

GoCard nationwide postcard advertising

Dining Car on the Pere Marquettes Streamliner

The PERE MARQUETTES, operating between Detroit, Lansing and Grand Rapids, are the first postwar streamliners to present novel dining cars with tables set diagonally into alcoves along the wall. Waitresses and elimination of tipping are among other distinctive Pere Marquette dining features.

CLICK HERE or on

the transportation label

For More Transportation Posts

Map: Florida

Mike Lyman's Grill

One of the Famous

MIKE LYMAN'S GRILLS

SIXTH STREET at OLIVE

--------------------------------------------------------

In the Heart of Downtown Los Angeles

--------------------------------------------------------

"The most beautiful restaurant in America", aptly describes Mike Lyman's newest addition to his renowned chain of dining establishments. Finest food at sensible prices.

 
Smorgasbord Sundays (SS) 
BARS & RESTAURANTS

New York World's Fair: Elsie, The Cow

ELSIE,The Borden Cow, in her air conditioned boudoir, surrounded by family keepsakes, pictures of her illustrious ancestors, and all the extra special comforts of her dairy home.

CELEBRATE THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1939-40 WORLD'S FAIRS
In New York and San Francisco
Look for more World's Fair Postcards on the Postcardy Blog on Fridays.
To view past World's Fair posts, click here or on the exposition label.

Cross Crossings Cautiously

Above is a postcard version of the 1924 poster used in the Careful Crossing Campaign by the American Railway Association. This campaign is described in an July, 1922 article Careful Crossing Campaign Gets Nation's Support by the National Safety Council. Here is an excerpt from that article:

Over a million and a quarter of the Cross Crossings Cautiously Bulletin have been distributed and conspicuously placed throughout this country and Canada. A replica of the poster in the form of a "sticker" to be used on outgoing United States mail has been purchased by the railroads to the extent of over 6,000,000. About 60 percent of all the moving picture houses in the country are daily using as a colored slide a copy of the poster. Most of the radio broadcasting stations have carried the message to their numerous receivers.

 Here is the 1922 poster image that accompanied that article:

Below is a stamp/sticker with the 1923 Cross Crossings Cautiously design, which was also reproduced on a postcard. I don't have that postcard, but I saw an example on eBay with a message printed on the back. The message urges joining the CAREFUL CROSSING CLUB by mailing five of the postcards to auto driving friends to help reduce deaths and injuries at railroad crossings.

source

The video below is worth watching if you have time. As the YouTube description says:

This engaging Kodachrome drama (formatted for television broadcast) from the Union Pacific ostensibly deals with safety at railroad grade crossings, but it's also about much more: youth's feeling of invulnerability; the highway patrolman as an authority figure; the look of the rural and urban West in the late 1950s; the urge to speed through a sparsely populated agricultural landscape; and the train's role as farmer's servant and potential killer.

Visit Sepia Saturday

For More Vintage Images

Union Bus Depot & Warren Cafe -- Manhattan, Kansas

CLICK HERE or on

the transportation label

For More Transportation Posts

Map: Alabama

KEY TO VIEWS

1. Lake and Swans in Avondale Park, Birmingham
2. Entrance to Fort McClellan, Anniston
3. Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library, Tuscaloosa
4. Vulcan, The Iron Man, Birmingham
5. Alabama State Capitol, Montgomery
6. Bunker Tower, Mt. Cheaha State Park
7. Noccalula Falls, On Lookout Mountain
8. Pulpit Rock, Cheaha State Park
9. Noccalula Falls, Gadsen
10. River Terrace, Bellingrath Gardens, Mobile
11. Bankhead Tunnel Under Mobile River, Mobile

postmarked 1946 

Gimbel's Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge -- Chicago

Gimbel's

RESTAURANT

and

COCKTAIL LOUNGE

COMPLETE LUNCHEON AND DINNER

OFFER THE GREATEST FINE FOOD VALUE

IN CHICAGO

28-30 RANDOLPH STREET WEST

 
Smorgasbord Sundays (SS) 
BARS & RESTAURANTS

New York World's Fair: Windy Day Comic

CELEBRATE THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1939-40 WORLD'S FAIRS
In New York and San Francisco
Look for more World's Fair Postcards on the Postcardy Blog on Fridays.
To view past World's Fair posts, click here or on the exposition label.

Greetings for National Postcard Week -- May 3–9, 2015

This week is National Postcard Week. Although I am not making and mailing actual NPCW postcards, I thought it would be fun to modify the greetings on an old French New Year postcard that shows a female mail carrier delivering postcards.

the original French New Year postcard
Heureuse Année = Happy New Year

Visit Sepia Saturday
To See More Vintage Images

Completion of First Trans-continental Railroad

MURAL PAINTING IN UNION STATION

This is one of the epoch making scenes in the history of this Nation, the binding together of the West with the East by the driving of the last spike of the first trans-continental railroad, the Union Pacific. The figures are all life size and as far as possible, historically correct. The momentous event occurred on May 10, 1869.

CLICK HERE or on

the transportation label

For More Transportation Posts

Map: Hotel Lakeland, Willmar, Minnesota

HOTEL LAKELAND

WILLMAR, MINNESOTA

WESTERN MINNESOTA'S FINEST HOTEL

Coffee Shop and Dining Room

On U. S. Highway 12 and One-Quarter Mile West of Highway 71

Service with Charm!

The Sheraton-Biltmore Hotel

The Hallmark of Hospitality

PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND

*   Bacchante Cocktail Lounge   *

Your favorite drink served in an 

atmosphere of distinctive charm.

 
Smorgasbord Sundays (SS) 
BARS & RESTAURANTS

NYWF: Zoological Society Exhibit

The exhibit building of the New York Zoological Society features a huge reproduction of the bathysphere, the steel-walled globe of tremendous pressure resistance, in which Dr. William Beebe has descended miles deep in the ocean to study its remarkable animal and vegetable life. "Pandora," the giant panda from China, only two of which are known to be in captivity, is shown. Also there are displays of live fishes and birds to show how lavish Nature is in coloring her creatures. Dioramas portray the site of New York as it was 25,000,000 years ago. The exhibit building was designed by Harold Sterner.

CELEBRATE THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1939-40 WORLD'S FAIRS
In New York and San Francisco
Look for more World's Fair Postcards on the Postcardy Blog on Fridays.
To view past World's Fair posts, click here or on the exposition label.