Punxsutawney Post Office

Posted by on May 11, 2015 in | Comments Off on Punxsutawney Post Office Although Punxsutawney, Jefferson County, is best known as the home of a renowned weather-forecasting groundhog, it is also a community of notable historic buildings, including the grand Classical Revival U.S. post office shown in this circa 1916 postcard. The Punxsutawney Post Office, with its imposing Ionic limestone columns, was the hub of the community’s mail services from its completion in...
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Camp Beaver

Posted by on May 8, 2015 in | Comments Off on Camp Beaver   “Hello Mary” wrote Frank Lloyd. “I’m in camp and have a fine time. You should be here.” Lloyd was at Camp Beaver, a 1914 National Guard encampment at Indiana, Indiana County. The camp was named in honor of James A. Beaver (1837-1914), decorated Civil War officer, judge of Pennsylvania’s Superior Court and governor of the Commonwealth, 1887-91. The entire National Guard of Pennsylvania was...
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Donald R. Brown and the Institute of American Deltiology

Posted by on May 8, 2015 in | Comments Off on Donald R. Brown and the Institute of American Deltiology Donald R. Brown may well be the Dr. Albert C. Barnes of the postcard world. An ardent deltiologist, he promotes postcards as resources for the scholarly study of society, culture and heritage. In 70-odd years of collecting postcards, he’s amassed an unrivaled private collection, housed in his Institute of American Deltiology (IAD), an incorporated nonprofit foundation, museum and research center...
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J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital

Posted by on May 8, 2015 in | Comments Off on J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital   “Son arrived this eve 730.” I. John Schipper, born in 1878 in Pekin, Illinois, wrote to a Mrs. F.L. Velde, also of Pekin, on July 5 in the early 1920s – the year is unreadable in the postmark. “Edith is doing fine,” he continued. “In this hospital Room marked X. Tell all my friends please.” Schipper, a resident of Six Mile Run, Huntingdon County, at the time, was manager of mines for the...
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Monument to Confederate Soldiers

Posted by on Dec 2, 2013 in | Comments Off on Monument to Confederate Soldiers In 1898 Congress passed the Private Mailing Card Act allowing the printing and publishing of postcards by private companies and launched a craze in the early years of the 20th century. Prior to this legislation only the U.S. Postal System was authorized to produce these cards. Billions of what are known as “real photo” postcards – depicting rural villages, picturesque panoramas, community...
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Postcards Can Be Valuable

Posted by on Nov 29, 2013 in | Comments Off on Postcards Can Be Valuable William E. Stewart of Arnold, Pennsylvania, may have one of the largest collection of postcards in America. And, in addition, he has a wealth of information on what the cards depict. The postcard originated in Austria in the 1860’s with a young professor. Dr. Emmanuel Herman. The first official postal card appeared on October 1, 1869. Soon Germany and Great Britain introduced similar...
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Soldier’s National Monument, Gettysburg

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Soldier’s National Monument, Gettysburg We just had the thrill of standing just where Lincoln stood when he dedicated this beautiful cemetery,” wrote “Net” to a Mrs. Grace Utter of Lake Beulah, Wis­consin, on July 19, 1938. Net penned her note on a post-card depicting the Soldiers’ National Monument, the centerpiece of the Soldiers National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Adams County. Published by Marken and Bielfeld,...
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Bedford Springs Hotel

Posted by on Nov 24, 2013 in | Comments Off on Bedford Springs Hotel This surely is a wonderful place to rest,” wrote an unidentified Laura to a Mrs. C. Brown Jr., of Charleroi, Washington County, on a postcard of the Bedford Springs Hotel postmarked June 28, 1928. “Wish Doc could stay forever,” she continued. “He feels a lot better.” Located one mile south of Bedford, Bedford County seat, Bedford Springs attracted attention as early...
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Geneva College, Beaver Falls, Pa.

Posted by on Nov 24, 2013 in | Comments Off on Geneva College, Beaver Falls, Pa. In the peaceful community of Beaver Falls in Beaver County, the 2000 census reported fewer than ten thousand people, two thousand less than when this postcard was mailed in 1910. The demise of the region’s steel industry and close prox­imity to Pittsburgh cannot diminish Beaver County’s scenic beauty and historic significance. Originally named Brighton, Beaver Falls was incorporated...
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High Street, Freeport, Pa.

Posted by on Nov 24, 2013 in | Comments Off on High Street, Freeport, Pa. To seasoned travelers, Freeport conjures visions of pure-white sandy beaches crystal-clear waters, and bright azure skies above the Grand Bahama Island in the Caribbean. To others, it’s the coastal village known as the birthplace of the State of Maine because leaders met at the com­munity’s Jameson Tavern to plan the separation from Massachusetts in 1820. But nearly a century ago to...
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