November 5, 2024
Author: Ray Hahn
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Henri Selmer
Founder of H. Selmer-Paris1 Comment
Henri Selmer graduated from the Conservatoire de Paris, in 1885. After a successful but brief career in the Orchestre de Paris as a clarinet performer he deserted playing to do full-time research meant to improve his instrument. He began by making reeds and mouthpieces. At the same time, Henri’s brother Alexandre left for the US…
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October 18, 1925
The last day of the S.S. Comanche
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In the last two decades of the 19th century and well into the 1930s, the best route to Florida was by sea on a ship operated by the Clyde Steamship Company. Clyde was a transportation line connecting New York City with several ports in Florida, but primarily Jacksonville. William “Bill” Clyde founded the company in…
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Two Faces of the American Camp Meeting
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The American camp meetings of the 1890s through the 1950s were good fits into the hard-scrabble life of that era. Many areas lacked traditional churches and there were few other diversions. John Davis was one such evangelist; he called his meetings, campaigns! For those who wanted spiritual experiences, it was Davis who provided them using…
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The Olde Pink House
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I want to invite each and every one of you to meet us on Reynolds Square, in Savannah, Georgia after the Covid-19 crisis. Right across Abercorn Street – on the northwest corner is a 18th century colonial home, once known as the Habersham House. Let’s say eight o’clock under the portico. It has been a few…
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The Old Redhead
the Indomitable Arthur Godfrey4 Comments
In the television program M*A*S*H (season 8 – episode 4, aired October 8, 1979) entitled Goodbye, Radar, the camp’s generator fails while Col. Sherman Potter and his surgical crew are busy in the operating room. In the background Arthur Godfrey can be heard singing along to a tune he is playing on his ukulele. As the lights…
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The Girl and the Moon
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The title of this musical comedy, The Girl and the Moon comes from an ancient Siberian fairy tale that recounts the story of how a very lonely moon came to earth one day and tried to spirit-away into the sky, a young girl as a celestial companion. The attempt is a complete failure, and the moon finds…
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Inclined Railroads
and Funicular Railways3 Comments
By Louis Harrington as told to Nancy Harrington This story is for John. It’s about my postcard collection of inclined railroads and funicular railways. Compared to many of you who may have collections of thousands or maybe tens of thousands, my collection is quite small. I have just added card number 103 and 104. My…
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Orville Ewing and Friends*
5 Comments
Stories telling of the man who ashcans his job, his family, and all others, except for a wagon and a mule to pull it, hold an allure for those with severe cases of wanderlust. Here are tales of three such men. Lots of adventure; very little guilt.
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2021 Know-it-All Quiz #1
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The Postcard History Quiz returns with the Faces of World War I. The Deadline for Quiz One is Friday, January 22, 2021. Good luck!
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Marcella Sembrich
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Learning the history of a special interest is not always easy, especially when you need to read old books and dusty newspapers, but when you learn from a Christmas present, it is a true pleasure. Here’s a story of a real special lady.
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Homage to the Poet – Robert W. Service
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Dear Readers, Today I ask you to stop, take a deep-breath, and remember. Are your youthful memories precious? Are they worth a few minutes of silent reading? Enjoy the silence as you re-read one of your favorite school assignments.
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A Fifth Sunday Special – a look at some odd cards
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Postcard History also comes in small doses. Here are three, Tell us if you learned something.
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The Story of the Lorelei
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The major rivers of the world have profound effects on the lands they flow through. Any 5th grader can name some of them, but the Rhine River that raises in Switzerland and flows to the North Sea has influenced western civilization more than most. This bit of postcard history shows how.
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Nee!
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Changing a name can be a complicated task, but many names are changed every day. Through the years some name changes have been necessary and amusing. Some are for good, some not. Postcards are the perfect medium to illustrate name changes.
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The “Ides” of March
3 Comments
In the Book of Ecclesiastes, it is recorded, “There is no new thing under the sun.” This scripture illustrates the boredom and monotony of daily life, and it certainly applies to the predictability of tomorrow in this Corona virus lockdown. As we watch the Ides of March tick-by, knowing what the Ides are, may amuse.
