#4: "Fruit?" "No. Alcohol, please." (Postcard Blogathon 2013)

Caption (on reverse): Meal service on the Convair 880M Jet Courier
Publisher: Japan Air Lines
Year: Not listed.
Used: No.

Comments: So, there's a lovely basket of fruit on top of the flight attendant's cart, but this well-manicured woman is going right for the hard liquor. So sad. ... Do you think this photo was staged by Japan Air Lines? Or did their photographer just take a bunch of shots during the flight, and this was the best postcard image he or she came up with? ... The Convair 880 was produced from 1959 to 1962 for a variety of airlines. Less than 10 of this model remain in the world today, and the only one that has been preserved is Elvis Presley's Lisa Marie (named for his daughter), at Graceland in Memphis. ... CardCow.com features another Japan Air Lines postcard, which shows the exterior of the CV-880M. ... Finally, I think this postcard would have been much more interesting if the flight attendant had been serving the gentleman in the back, instead of the woman. I want to know his story, and what he got.



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Papergreat's Chris Otto is spending June 5, 2013, blogging as many vintage postcards as possible. It's "The Fast and Furious" (and hopefully also "The Fun") for ephemera lovers and deltiologists. Read all of the posts starting here. (P.S.: Put put whatever you had for breakfast today in the comments section below.)

#3: The Dutch Kids are happy (Postcard Blogathon 2013)

Title: "Would you like so happy as ve are to be."
Publisher/Series: This postcard is part of the Dutch Kids Series. The publisher's logo features the initials TB inside a pair of concentric circles.
Year: Not listed.
Used: No.

Comments: This cool vintage postcard pretty much speaks for itself. We'll meet these two kids again later today, though, after they've had a "falling out." ... If you're interested in gaining more insight about Dutch Kids postcards from serious collectors, check out this forum on PostcardCollector.org.



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Papergreat's Chris Otto is spending June 5, 2013, blogging as many vintage postcards as possible. It's "The Fast and Furious" (and hopefully also "The Fun") for ephemera lovers and deltiologists. Read all of zee posts starting here.

#2: Moonlit castle in Massachusetts (Postcard Blogathon 2013)

Title: "Winnikeni Castle by Moonlight," Haverhill, Mass.
Publisher: The Metropolitan News Co., Boston, Mass., and Germany
Year: Not listed. Pre-1907, though, because it's not a divided-back postcard.
Used: Sort of. The back is addressed to Mrs. Steppie at 37 Herschel Street in Manton, Rhode Island. A green 1¢ Benjamin Franklin stamp has been affixed, but there is no postmark, so it was probably never mailed. Also, along the left-hand side on front of the card is some cursive writing that appears to state "From H. Giles."

Comments: I love illustrations and images of moonlit scenes. And so did postcard publishers. Early postcards featuring buildings flooded with interior light (pre-Kinkadean) standing in the midst of gloom on moonlit nights are quite common. ... It appears that this postcard maker spelled the name of the castle incorrectly. The front of the card states "Winnikeni Castle." But according to the official website, it's "Winnekenni Castle." Here's an excerpt about the castle's history from the website:

"In 1861, Dr. James R. Nichols, a brilliant chemist and agriculturist, bought the Darling Farm, which sat on a hill overlooking Kenoza Lake to use for his experiments with chemical fertilizers. In 1872 he visited England and was inspired by their long-standing stone structures. He returned with an idea to build a summer home from native boulders and rocks. He was quoted at the time as saying ... 'we desire to prove to farmers and others in a practical way the value of boulder rocks (so common on almost every New England Farm) as building materials.' Construction began in 1873 and was completed two years later in 1875. He called the building Winnekenni Castle and the surrounding farm Winnekenni, an Algonquin Indian word for 'Very Beautiful!'"

Check out the website for more details about the castle's construction. Currently, Winnekenni Castle can be be rented out for a variety of events. And, according to the website, "in October, the property is transformed into a Halloween attraction that will scare your pants off." (IN! Let's go, Joan!)

Other posts about castles

• For Sarah, ephemera about a castle
• Two groovy images of gloomy castles
• Two artistic interpretations of Neuschwanstein Castle

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Papergreat's Chris Otto is spending June 5, 2013, blogging as many vintage postcards as possible. It's "The Fast and Furious" (and hopefully also "The Fun") for ephemera lovers and deltiologists. Read all of the posts starting here.

#1: Every journey starts with a step (Postcard Blogathon 2013)

Caption: "BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY. This beautiful picture taken at Doughton Park is one of the many scenic spots along the parkway, a scenic mountain top motorway of almost 500 miles connecting Shenandoah National Park in Virginia with the Great Smokies in North Carolina and Tennessee. Color by Eva Luoma."
Publisher: Genuine Natural Color Made by Dexter Press, Inc., West Nyack, N.Y.
Used: No.

And so it begins!

I wrote earlier this year: "I could research and write about postcards all day long." And so it's time to see if I can live up to that boast. I'll be writing and posting new entries about postcards from my collection throughout the day. I'm not sure how many I'll manage to do. 25? 35? 60? We'll just have to see how it goes.

I'm hoping to keep things speedy and fun, and to mix in as many interesting vintage postcards as possible. I'll be hitting on a lot of different varieties, including humorous cards, buildings, vintage cards from here in York, and fantastic scenes. I little something for everyone, I hope.

(And if this gorgeous postcard of the Great Outdoors inspires you to get up from your computer or tablet and spend the day out in the fresh air, that's great! These posts aren't going anywhere. Check back tonight or on a rainy day.)



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Papergreat's Chris Otto is spending June 5, 2013, blogging as many vintage postcards as possible. It's "The Fast and Furious" (and hopefully also "The Fun") for ephemera lovers and deltiologists. Read all of the posts starting here.

Recalling the Civil War with 3 miles of electrical wiring and 650 lights

No, I'm not talking about the Electric Map that once told the story of the Battle of Gettysburg and is now being rehabilitated in Hanover, Pennsylvania.

I'm talking about the electronic display telling the story of the Civil War's Battle of Chattanooga. It was built in 1957 and was once housed at a place called Confederama at the foot of Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

This undated brochure touts the oddly castle-like wonder that was Confederama, including its air-conditioned, walking-free environment. The reverse side of the brochure states:

"Mighty armies battled at Chickamauga and Chattanooga in 1863 in action that 'sealed the fate of the Confederacy.' See history come alive, re-created for your enjoyment.

"The sounds of battle and the strains of 'Dixie' and 'The Battle Hymn of the Republic' ring out over the three-dimensional, 480-square-foot reproduction of historic terrain — the world's largest battlefield display of its kind.¹

"More than 5,000 soldiers (made especially for Confederama in South Africa)² show where armies moved as guns flash in battle and cannon puff real smoke, accompanied by a shot-by-shot explanation of these historic conflicts."

"An intricate, electronic automation system activates more than 3 miles of electrical wiring and 650 flashing lights to make vital history real and exciting for the whole family. Our convenient location, dynamic exhibit, attractive souvenir and gift shop will, together with our helpful personnel, offer you a thoroughly enjoyable experience."

Alas, there is no longer a tourist attraction called Confederama and the electronic battlefield display is no longer at its original location.

But the electronic display still exists. It has new owners and has been moved a little further up the mountain, where it is now housed at The Battles for Chattanooga Electric Map & Museum. Here is some more about that transition from About North Georgia:

"By the early 1990's the museum had fallen into disrepair and the original owner died. Civil War enthusiasts realized what a loss it would be if the museum closed and backed efforts to save the famous landmark. A local business owner purchased the museum and all the contents. A grand refurbishing was begun. Each of the figures on the huge battlefield was removed and cleaned. Some were repainted. Wiring that in some cases was nearly 40 years old was replaced. A new, digital soundtrack was recorded."

Additional links

• Official website: The Battles for Chattanooga Electric Map & Museum
• Bad Postcards: Confederama
• PopCult: The Last Remains of "Confederama" by Coury Turczyn
• About North Georgia: Battles for Chattanooga Museum

Footnotes
1. By comparison, the Electric Map at Gettysburg was/is 891 square feet.
2. Oh, there's some uncomfortable irony there.

Postcard featuring my dream house

Cozy stone house? Check.
Built into the surrounding environment? Check.
Sod roof? Check.
Goat on sod roof? CHECK!!

This Plastichrome postcard by Colourpicture¹ features a photograph by Hugh MacRae Morton. The caption states:

"INVERSHIEL, a Sixteenth century Scottish Highland village at Linville, North Carolina, showing 'Bill Goat' mowing the sod roof of Croft house."

First off, if you have any doubts about that being a goat on the roof of the house, here's a link to another Morton photograph in the University of North Carolina archives that was taken in the same sequence as the one featured on this postcard. If you zoom in on that high-resolution photo, you can clearly see the bearded white goat.

The photographs were taken in July 1967, and this additional caption information is provided at the UNC website:

"'Mrs. Agnes MacRae Morton and son Julian in doorway of Croft House. Pet goat (Bill) trims green-grassed roof. Note native stone walls, chimney pots, leaded windows.' Croft House is located at Invershiel, a reproduction of a 16th century Scottish Village in Linville, NC developed by Julian Morton (Hugh Morton's brother)."

Hugh MacRae Morton (1921-2006) was a conservationist (he developed Grandfather Mountain² in North Carolina) and professional photographer who donated his life's work to the North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives.

You can read more about the Croft House at Invershiel at "Scottish Heritage at Linville" by Celeste Ray on the A View to Hugh blog and "Invershiel ... An Old New World" by Betty R. Raveson (a 1967 magazine article in Palm Beach Life).

The Invershiel community, never completed, is now known as Tynecastle, and Randy Johnson wrote about it for WNC Magazine. It is unlikely that Croft House is still around in its original state. According to Johnson's article:

"In the ’60s, there were misfires in achieving the 'unbelievable livability' promised. The original cottages have seen their grass roofs, which were not entirely practical, replaced by tile when roots began growing through the tar paper. Gone forever is the chance to see a goat grazing atop the sod roof of Agnes’ house, which Hugh captured in a photograph.

Despite such issues, the basic formula of two-foot-thick stone walls, insulated and backed by custom wood paneling, has stood the test of time—with ongoing maintenance, of course. 'There’s no way around it,' says Bret [Schwebke], 'leaded glass windows need care, and the joints between the stone in these structures need to be kept up. Just the rock itself requires waterproofing every two years.'"

Footnotes
1. Two other Plastichrome postcards were featured recently: (1) Fruit shopping at the famous Farmers Market in Los Angeles and (2) Silly postcard of a potato in a toy tractor
2. In 1952, Morton built the Mile High Swinging Bridge on Grandfather Mountain. It's safe to say that my wife will never cross that bridge. Or perhaps even look at photographs of it.

Breaking news: Postcard Blogathon set for this Wednesday

Earlier this year, I hinted at having a Postcard Blogathon this summer. Instead of going to great pains to carve out a date on the calendar and make a big fuss about it, I'm just going to do it and see how it fares.

So, this Wednesday, starting sometime between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, I'm going to plow forward and try to blog about as many postcards as possible in one day.

The emphasis will be on speed, volume and fun. Expect a lot of rapid-fire posts with interesting cards, messages and stamps. But not a ton of in-depth research or footnotes.

So plan to drop by often on Wednesday. There should be lots of new (old) stuff every hour of the day.

And spread the word!

Looking for something to do in June? This book can help. I think.

Now that I have your attention (or possibly frightened you away forever), I can tell you that "What Shall I Do This Month" by Margaret Hutchings¹ was published in 1965 by Taplinger Publishing Co. It's a month-by-month list of inexpensive project ideas for children.

In her chapter about June, Hutchings offers four craft suggestions and begins with this one:

"Patterns and pictures made of flowers do not sound very exciting but I am sure you would enjoy making them."

Way to enthusiastically pitch the idea to dubious readers!

In addition to that art project, the author suggests the following activities for June:

• Press Butterflies From Paint
• Make Some Pot Pourri
• Turn Picnic Litter Into A Frog²

Maybe she was being a bit sneaky and was actually offering craft ideas that were so godawful boring that kids would flee to the outdoors and get some fresh air. Which is never a bad idea.

As for the Egg Thing that's featured on the cover and will haunt you dreams alongside Sid Haig, it's one of the featured projects for April. Hutchings writes:

"Do you have Boiled Eggs for for breakfast on Easter Sunday? If so, try drawing faces on them before they are cooked.

Ask Mummy if you may practise on some eggs that she is going to use for cooking, so that you are quite used to doing them when Easter comes.

Of course, I don't know who will be at your house for breakfast for Easter³ but I have given you an idea for Grandpa, a big sister and a baby brother. Don't try to make the eggs look exactly like the people who are to eat them⁴ but draw the things which you notice most of all. For example Grandpa's spectacles and bald head..."

Finally, Hutchings caps the book with a December project that seems right up the alley of fledgling psychopaths.



Footnotes
1. Hutchings was also the author of:

• "Modeling in Hessian"
• "Big Book of Stuffed Toy and Doll Making"
• "Teddy Bears and How to Make Them"
• "Toys From the Tales of Beatrix Potter"
• "Making and Using Finger Puppets"
• "Making Old Testament Toys"
• "Making New Testament Toys"
• "Sculpting in Burlap"

2. You just need to scrounge up trouser buttons, an empty match box, wooden ice cream spoons and felt. You know, your standard picnic litter.
3. Because that would be creepy.
4. That would also be creepy.