Garden Signs

These two vintage postcards both have pictures of garden signs in Florida with the same quotation by Dorothy Frances Gurney (1858-1932), an English poet and hymn writer. The first sign was at Busch Gardens, Tampa. The second sign was at Sarasota Jungle Gardens.

The quotation is from a longer poem:

THE Lord God planted a garden
In the first white days of the world,
And He set there an angel warden
In a garment of light enfurled.

So near to the peace of Heaven,
That the hawk might nest with the wren,
For there in the cool of the even
God walked with the first of men.

And I dream that these garden closes
With their shade and their sun-flecked sod
And their lilies and bowers of roses,
Were laid by the hand of God.

The kiss of the sun for pardon,
The song of the birds for mirth, –
One is nearer God's heart in a garden
Than anywhere else on earth.

I'm participating in Signs, Signs

Mary Cassatt Postage Stamp

This maximum card features a picture of the American artist Mary Cassatt at work on a painting along with the 23¢ stamp honoring her. This stamp was issued on November 4, 1988, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as part of the Great American Series of definitive stamps. The 23¢ denomination met the second ounce letter rate for international surface mail.

Mary Cassatt studied art at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts but spent much of her life in France. She became friends with the painter Edgar Degas, who persuaded her to exhibit her paintings with the Impressionists. Many consider artist Mary Cassatt to be the greatest woman painter. She is especially known for domestic scenes with particular emphasis on the relationships between mothers and children.

The Cassatt painting on the left side of the maximum card picture is Mrs. Gardner Cassatt in Black from the Baltimore Museum of Art.

I am participating in Sunday Stamps at Viridian's Postcard Blog

Portrait Of A Young Girl With Chickens, Cats, & Dogs

This real photo postcard was sent from Manilla,Iowa on July 25, 1911 to the girl's brother in West Side, Iowa. I am not sure where the cats are. I can see a couple of things that may be cats, but it is hard to tell. The little flowers look too much like cats' eyes, and even one of dogs is hard to see against the ground. It wasn't until I read the message that I realized that there were supposed to be cats somewhere in the photo.

Dear Brother, I thought I would send you one of my ugly pictures. Well how are you getting along. I am fine and dandy. Hope the same from you. Say Albert when are you coming down to see me and I hope I will hear from you soon. From your sister Elnora(?) Hill and (?) This is the whole family Albert dogs cats chickens and me.

Visit Sepia Saturday for More Vintage Photos

Rustic Safety Sign, Itasca State Park, Minnesota

This rustic outdoor plaque was located at Itasca State Park. It's slogan "In life as in baseball it is the number of times you reach home safely that counts" was a reminder to tourists visiting the park to drive carefully so that they might "return to enjoy the beauties of nature being preserved for them in this and other Minnesota State Parks."

I couldn't find an earlier source for this slogan than the postcards I have, this one from 1953 and a linen one from 1948. I also couldn't find more recent photos of this sign.

I was prompted to post this card today because Memorial Day weekend is approaching, and traffic warnings are always in the news around holiday weekends. For those interested in statistics, here are some from the National Safety Council:

• Our estimate of traffic fatalities for this 3.25-day holiday period is 406 deaths.
• The estimated fatality total for 2011 is about 15% less than the average actual number of fatalities (475) that occurred during the previous six Memorial Day holiday periods for which data are available.
• The average number of traffic fatalities during the six most recent Memorial Day holiday periods was 12.2% higher than similar non-holiday periods (475 vs. 424 deaths).
  

I'm participating in Signs, Signs

Local Loan Co., Andrus Building, Minneapolis, Minnesota

This postcard shows the office of Local Loan Co. circa 1940. This office was located in the Andrus Building (shown in the inset picture) in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota.

I don't know what happened to Local Loan Co., but the Andrus Building is still standing on Nicollet Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Streets. The building was built in 1898 and has been remodelled more than once. It is now known as Renaissance Square. Here is some information from the Emporis website:

The original two story storefront was replaced by a new, modernist one at some point between 1947 and 1965, which was in turn replaced by a postmodernist one during the 1983 renovation. General renovations commenced late summer 2008, including the creating of a parking area in the basement, accessible by a new ramp to be entered on 5th Street. The original cornice was removed and the ninth floor arched windows were squared off by 1931.

Swedish Handicrafts on 1976 Europa Stamps

This postcard shows Sweden's 1976 Europa stamps. The theme of the 1976 Europa stamps was handicraft. The 1976 Europa issues included stamps of 27 countries. The Swedish stamps show a Lapp spoon made of elkhorn and a Marieberg tile stove.

Europa stamps were first issued in 1956 with a common design by six countries. They are issued by many European countries and are symbolic of of Europe’s desire for cooperation. A common theme was used for the 1957 stamps. A common design was used from 1958 until 1973. A common theme has been used since 1974 (except for 1984 and 2000).

From 1959 until 1992 the Europa stamp issues were managed by European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT). The CEPT logo is on the 1976 Swedish stamps just above the word EUROPA. In 1993 PostEurop took over the management of the Europa issues when the CEPT decided to focus more on telecommunications.

I am participating in Sunday Stamps at Viridian's Postcard Blog

WWII Canteen, North Platte, Nebraska

The North Platte, Nebraska Canteen was located in the Union Pacific Railroad Station. It began December 25, 1941 just a couple weeks after Pearl Harbor, and continued until April 1, 1946. During this time more than six million service men and women were provided with food, cigarettes, magazines, and a boost in morale when their troop train stopped at North Platte. North Platte was a designated servicing point for Union Pacific steam locomotives hauling passenger trains. A service stop usually took about ten minutes, allowing time for a hurried visit to the canteen.

The North Platte canteen was staffed by townspeople and volunteers from neighboring towns. A total of 55,000 volunteers from almost 125 communities in western Nebraska, northeastern Colorado, and northwestern Kansas participated at one time or another. They served a daily average of 3,000 to 5,000 military personnel.

Visit Sepia Saturday for More Vintage Photos