Saturday's postcard: Lucky black cat from Callander

Today's postcard comes from J.B. White Ltd., the same company that produced the previously featured "Cows and ruins go together nicely" postcard.

This one features a black cat¹ in the center and touts the attractions of Callander, a burgh in Scotland.

The four sites shown are (clockwise from upper right):

• River Teith and Ben Ledi from Callander Bridge
• Loch Lubnaig²
• The Old Sundial and Foot Bridge
• The Pass of Leny³

Footnotes
1. Folklore on black cats varies across cultures. The Scottish, in today's case, believe that a strange black cat's arrival to the home signifies prosperity. We sure hope that's true in our household, as we're the owners of three fully black cats and one mostly black cat. And they're certainly all "strange."
2. Lubnaig is a Gaelic word that means crooked.
3. Here's some information on a walking tour of the Pass of Leny. According to Wikipedia, other walks in the area include Bracklinn Falls, The Meadows, Callander Crags and the Wood Walks.

Halloween Countdown #5:"Unexcelled for comfort"

Tonight's chilling image comes from the June 1954 issue of The American Legion Magazine.

I have absolutely nothing I wish to add to this.

Halloween Countdown will return on Monday night!

Card for "Hero" blanket from Muncy Woolen Mills Co.

This stained and torn card is 6 inches wide by 4¼ inches deep and states:

Muncy Woolen Mills Co.
"HERO"
BLANKET.
10/4
Muncy Woolen Mills was located in Muncy, Pennsylvania, a small borough along the West Branch Susquehanna River in Lycoming County. Muncy is about 15 miles east of Williamsport and is just 10 miles east of Montoursville, where I spent some of my childhood.

Here's what I was able to discover online regarding Muncy Woolen Mills, roughly in chronological order:

• In William Henry Egle's 1895 book "Notes and queries: Historical, biographical, and genealogical, chiefly relating to Interior Pennsylvania, Volume 2," the following passage described the family that helped found Muncy Woolen Mills, although there is a frustrating lack of dates and specifics:
  

  Samuel Rogers, the second, who became one of the most enterprising business men on the West Branch ... [came] to reside at the forks of the Loyalsock at the time the woolen factory was in operation and afterward moved to Muncy. ... Soon after the loss of the woolen factory Samuel Rodgers [sic], with his brother Jonathan, bought a mill property at Muncy, consisting of saw, grist and plaster mills, and to which they added a woolen mill. This property, after being operated for about ten years, was destroyed by fire. The brothers then dissolved partnership and Samuel built another factory near Muncy, where he continued for about fifteen years, when he established the White Deer woolen mills and later the Briar Creek mills in Columbia County. His sons established an extensive woolen factory on Bear creek, near the southern line of this county, in 1854, and his grandsons are now connected with the Muncy woolen mills. His death occurred in 1857.

• In "History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania," published in 1892 by John Franklin Meginness, the company's founding is described:
  

  The manufacturing industries of Muncy have increased greatly during the past decade. The Muncy Woolen Mills Company, founding in 1882, after a prosperous career of ten years, was chartered February 12, 1892, with a capital of $100,000. The directors are George H. Rogers, James Coulter, Samuel Rogers, and Samuel Coulter, Muncy; Uriah Megahan and J. Clinton Hill, Williamsport. The mills of the company are situated on Market street near the basin, and the buildings are brick. The consumption of wool annually reaches 150,000 pounds. During the year 1891 the company manufactured and sold 30,000 blankets. From fifty to sixty hands are employed.

• The Muncy Historical Society's website, in a brief history of the borough, indicates that the West Branch Canal, a crucial early commerce hub, ended at the Muncy Woolen Mills.
• In "The Official Directory of the World's Columbian Exposition, May 1st to October 30th, 1893,"¹ published by W. B. Conkey Company, Muncy Woolen Mills is listed as an official exhibitor of woolen goods, blankets, robes, rugs and shawls at the Chicago event.
• In "Boyd's Directory of Williamsport," published in 1898, James Coulter is listed as the president of Muncy Woolen Mills.
• Muncy Woolen Mills advertised in several issues of American Wool and Cotton Reporter in 1899. The company described itself as "Manufacturers of White and Colored all Wool Bed" and "Blankets." In the August 31, 1899, issue, the company listed several items for sale, including a D&F Double Cylinder Twister; a D&F 90-inch up and down Gig; and a 50-spladle Lindsey & Hyde Yarn Reel with the latest patterns.
• The (Muncy) Luminary stated in its news report on March 6, 1902, that: "Yesterday afternoon about 2:30 o'clock the roof of the dye house at the plant of the Muncy Woolen Mills company on Market street, collapsed, and two men, Samuel Rogers and Thomas Opp were injured, one quite badly."
• The (Muncy) Luminary stated in its news report on October 30, 1902, that: "The Muncy Woolen Mills Company, manufacturers of blankets, and Sprout, Waldron & Co., manufacturers of flowering mill machinery, are so crowed [sic] with orders that they are running 13 hours a day."
• The January 21, 1911, edition of the Gazette and Bulletin has an advertisement for a sale on Muncy Woolen Mills blankets at L. L. Stearns & Sons Department Store in Williamsport.² "One Hundred Per Cent All Wool Blankets," typically $5 to $6.50, were on sale for $4 to $5. Victoria California, Maid o' the Mist, and Sanitary Natural Grey wool blankets were also for sale, all for $5 or less.³ There is no mention of a "Hero" blanket. It's pure speculation on my part, but perhaps that came out during World War I?
  
• Muncy Woolen Mills is listed as a supplier of blankets in the May 1921 Chilton Hotel Supply Index.
• Here's an interesting snippet from the 1925 book "Sales Management, Volume 9": "Two hundred new accounts were secured by the Muncy Woolen Mills Company of Muncy, Pennsylvania, through a recent direct mail campaign carried out on a list of 1,000 dealers."
• In "History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania," published in 1929 by Colonel Thomas W. Lloyd, secretary of the Lycoming Historical Society, the following is written: "The Muncy Woolen Mills, employing about fifty persons, has a reputation which is only bounded by the two coasts. Until very recently it had been in the hands of two members of the same families for more than seventy years. The company devotes itself entirely to the manufacture of all-wool blankets and its reputation for good workmanship and the high quality of its output extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific and even to Europe. It is in almost continuous operation."
• The (Muncy) Luminary stated in its news report on September 26, 1935, that: "The reopening of the Muncy Woolen Mills by a new company seems more certain each day as representatives of the new company continue to conduct extensive experiments with the machinery at the mill."
• After Muncy was flooded in March 1936, the Gazette and Bulletin reported on March 27 that the "clothing headquarters" was being moved from the school to the Muncy Woolen Mills.

Footnotes
1. The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492.
2. The Stearns ad copy states: "Business makes business. Because we are such large distributors of the fine Blankets made by the MUNCY WOOLEN MILLS and buy so highly in all their various makes, they are glad to give us first choice of desirable special lots, which means Blankets of quality at close to wholesale prices. So, when such savings as are here illustrated can be made on the best of Blankets it behooves all housekeepers, proprietors of hotels, and boarding houses to take advantage of these offerings, thereby practicing the wisest kind of economy."
3. Keep in mind: A blanket that cost $5 in 1911 would cost about $115 today, according to The Inflation Calculator. Wool blankets were not purchases to be taken lightly.

Halloween Countdown #4:Harley-Davidson horrors

Harley-Davidson is very big and important here in York, Pennsylvania. But I had to have a few chuckles at its expense when I came across a copy of its 1979 Fall Motorcycle Fashions and Accessories catalog.

Late 1970s fashion and Harley-Davidson culture did not mix very well.

Here are a couple more examples from the catalog:

Great links: Old postcards of York, Pennsylvania

On my wife's blog today, via reader Bob Steindl, there are some fabulous old postcards of York, Pennsylvania.

Pictured above is the Valencia Ballroom, circa 1929.

For the rest, go check out Only in York County!

Bettina's Hallowe'en recipes

If you're still wincing from last night's Halloween Countdown post featuring Ring-Around-The-Tuna¹, I will try to make it up to you this morning with some interesting old Halloween-themed recipes from "A Thousand Ways to Please a Husband."²

Chapter LXXVII of the book is titled "Hallowe'en Revels." Here's a partial description of the Halloween party that takes place:

"The supper, decorative as well as delicious, was all upon the table. Little individual pumpkin pies on paper doilies stood beside each place. The salad caused much delight among the guests, who at the invitation of witches, had now removed their masks. A large red apple with a face cut on the outside, had been hollowed out, and the salad was within. On the top of the apple was a round wafer with a marshmallow to represent a hat. The hat was further decorated with a 'stick-up' of sticky candy on one side. The apple stood on a leaf of lettuce, with a yellow salad dressing necktie. The favor boxes, which were under the witches, were filled with candy corn, while the popcorn balls, placed on a platter, had features of chocolate fudge, and bonnets of frilled paper."

The book lays out the following menu for the Halloween party:

• Oyster Patties
• Bettina's Surprise Salad
• Hallowe'en Sandwiches
• Pickles
• Pumpkin Pie
• Cider
• Doughnuts
• Jumbles
• Popcorn Balls

The Hallowe'en Sandwiches sound a bit odd. They are described as: "When the bread is a day old, cut in slices one-third inch thick. Match in pairs. Cream the butter and spread one side. Place the other side on top. Press firmly. With a thimble cut out circles on one piece of the bread, cut nose and mouth with a knife. The butter showing through gives the resemblance to features."

Here are the recipes for Oyster Patties and Jumbles:

Oyster Patties (Six portions)
3 T-butter
4 T-flour
1 C-milk
½ t-salt
⅛ t-paprika
½ pint of oysters
Clean the oysters by removing any shells, and drain off the liquor. Melt the butter, add the flour and salt, and mix thoroughly. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly. Cook until very thick. Place the oysters in a pan and heat one minute. This "plumps" them. Do not cook too long. Add the oysters to the white sauce, and serve immediately in patty shells which have been freshened in a hot oven.

Jumbles (Twenty-four jumbles)
½ C-butter
1 C-sugar
1 egg
½ t-soda
½ C-sour milk
¼ t-salt
About 2 C-flour
Grape jelly
Cream the butter, add the sugar, and gradually add the egg, the soda mixed with the sour milk, the salt, and the flour to make a soft dough. (One which will roll easily.) Cut into shape with a round cooky cutter. On the centers of one-half the pieces, place a spoonful of grape jelly. Make features on the rest, using a thimble³ to cut out the eyes. Press the two together, and bake 12 minutes in a moderate oven.

Footnotes
1. As an addendum to Ring-Around-The-Tuna, I must add that I am by no means the first blogger to rant about what a nightmarish recipe that is. Among those who have previously pointed out how disgusting it is are Chef Andy and Will You Look At That.
2. The "A Thousand Ways to Please a Husband" post, by the way, received thousands of page views earlier this week when it was a featured post on StumbleUpon. Epic win for Louise Bennett Weaver and Helen Cowles Le Cron!
3. I never knew thimbles were used so often in the kitchen!

Halloween Countdown #3:Things you shouldn't put in Jell-O

The late-night series on the most horrifying ephemera I can find continues today with a terrifying recipe from an undated General Foods staplebound recipe book titled "Joys of Jell-O."

Now, I'll admit that Jell-O has its purposes. It's a fairly safe food when you're sick or just had your tonsils out.

I have no problem eating it, in its plain form, as a standalone snack or dessert.

But let me be quite clear: YOU DO NOT PUT OTHER FOODS INTO THE JELL-O!

Not even fruit cocktail.

And you SURE AS HELL do not put onions, cucumbers, celery, olives and flaked tuna into a mold of lime Jell-O. Yet that's precisely what the recipe for Ring-Around-The-Tuna - which is pictured with today's entry - calls for in "Joys in Jell-O."

Other recipes in the book call for putting dried figs, carrots, cabbage, spinach, cauliflower, pepper, radishes, tomato sauce, chicken, beets, shrimp¹, crab meat, potatoes and bleu cheese into Jell-O molds.

What was wrong with people?

Footnote
1. If it were up to me, putting perfectly good shrimp into a Jell-O mold would be a federal offense.

Mystery photo of well-dressed boys

Here's a single black-and-white snapshot I came across that has no dates or documentation whatsoever.

My best guess is that the photo was taken in Amsterdam sometime in the middle of the 20th century.

Here's a closeup of the four boys:

Why Amsterdam? For me, the obvious tip-offs are the canal in front of the boys and the clogs. Notice that at least one of the boys is wearing clogs. Also, notice the clogs sitting by the one doorway:

Anyone have any thoughts and/or insights to add?