Random Acts of Living


Saturday, February 9, 2008

Vintage Postcards from 1908 - 1940s page 3

This set is from 1910 - 1911


Edit: From Judith Rempel http://www.mennonitehistory.org/projects/postcards/index.html

Here’s what Irene Klassen/Jake Balzer could ferret out:

2008.014 – Greetings from Vona

Liebe Mutter. Ich habe zwei hundert pfund cabbage he___ (maybe heure, maybe heute) fuer (maybe Br., maybe Hel.) Buller. Dein sohn, Cornelius

Dear Mother. I have (purchased?) 200 hundred pounds of cabbage (today?) for Buller. Your son, Cornelius.


Edit: From Judith Rempel http://www.mennonitehistory.org/projects/postcards/index.html

Here’s what Irene Klassen/Jake Balzer could ferret out:

2008.015 – I looked around for something …

Liebe Mutter. Ich bin gesund und wunscht das selbe dir incubator is schon hier im Kellar. Ordga (?) von dein Sohn, Cornelius.

Dear Mother. I am well and wish the same for you. (The) incubator is already here in the cellar. Organized(?) by your son, Cornelius.

The postcard below pictures the bridge across Minnehaha Creek, Minnesota. Do you think this view is what's now called Old Soldiers Home Bridge now? In looking for a current picture of this bridge I found this website full of old Minnesota postcards. Look at MN214, looks like the same bridge. That postcard is postmarked 1913 and the bridge was new. I realize that the postcard could have been several years old when used, but it makes me wonder if my postcard could be later than I thought, the postmark really can't be read that well.

I'm also really curious as to the message on this postcard. I'm not sure I'm reading it right. I read something about a little white casket and a baby. Someone in bed hollering but I can't quite make it all out. Can you make any sense of it?
Edit: From Judith Rempel http://www.mennonitehistory.org/projects/postcards/index.html

Here’s what Irene Klassen/Jake Balzer could ferret out:

2008.016 - Bridge

English:

My dear sisters, Miss Klassen and Miss Mary and Minnie (?) Wall. Arrived home safe found in a little white casket the little baby. Louis was in bed all at once he hollered Aunty come up stair Pliese (please) through (throw?) the reguratune (negative? vegetation?). hope you have a good time sudernight and Monday night
once we all … [I think the card is cut off] about it will you. Ernestina.
Jill Terry (see comments) and I speculate that the word "reguratune" above might possibly be register, as in the vents between floors to aide in air flow.



More to Come!

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

You've correctly identified the modern perspective of the bridge across the Minnehaha Creek. It's much less picturesque, isn't it.

KSHIPPYCHIC said...

Very neat to look at. How do you come across such cool stuff like this?

Moonshadow said...

shek - Thank you! Do you think the postcard might have been a little embellished, it was colorized for sure. Looks like the old picture certainly had a better angle.

kshc - The stuff usually finds me for I am "the Keeper of the Stuff"! Not sure when it really began that all old family things started drifting my way. Then I started doing the family history research and even more stuff found me.

jill terry said...

Moonshadow, the card reads as follows;

My Dear Sisters,
Miss Klaussen and Miss Mary and Mister Wall arrived home safe. Found on a little white casket the little baby. Louis was in bed all at once he hollered Aunty come up stairs please through the ______.
Hope you have a good time suder night and Monday night. Write me all about it will you.
Ernestina

Just that one word I can't figure out and is driving me crazy!!!!

Moonshadow said...

Jill - I think you pretty well have nailed it. The missing word I think begins with "r". That is the way my dad writes his "r"s and it looks that same as in Mary. But what the rest of the word is, is beyond me also. I wonder what it was all about? Who the little baby was? Very curious indeed.

jill terry said...

I saved and enlarged the image in photoshop and it looks like
r-e-g-i-s-r-a-t-i-o-r-e. Perhaps she meant through the register, like the ones in the floors of old houses.

I really enjoyed looking at these. I've some old pics of my own I think I'll go through and scan and save.

On another note; my husband just had total hip replacement surgery in August, so I can totally relate to being the caretaker, though perhaps on a smaller scale. It's stressful and exhausting and my heart goes out to you. Just don't forget to make time for yourself!

Moonshadow said...

Jill - that would certainly make sense. Now I wonder even more what it was all about. Who was the little dead baby and why the mention of Louis hollering down from bed.

I'd been meaning to get these postcards scanned for some time, I'm glad I've got this venue to spur me on. It's been a lot of fun sharing and making connection with others in the process.

I hope your husband heals well from his hip replacement. My brother just had one also and isn't healing as fast as he'd like, but he's impatient like that.