Just when I thought I’d seen all the Aquarena Springs postcards… I find more! This one shows the 1830 home of Dr. Eli T. Merriman, the historic structure being located in the Texana Village area of the amusement park.
I did considerable searching to discover who H.B. Johnson was, but I failed to find anything definitive. I came across references to a 1919 legal case, but that was less than enlightening. (I don’t read legalese) I also found info that suggested that he could have been in politics… anyone know?
Mailed on May 31st of 1956, this linen postcard offers a view of the beach at Panama City, Florida, “The world’s most beautiful bathing beach”. Judging from the correspondence on the back that slogan may be right on target:
Hi -
We left last Fri. & arrived here Sat. at 1:00 P.M. for a months’ vacation. Imagiine 21 miles of white sandy beach. The children love it here & it is an ideal spot for them. We are all getting sun-tanned.
Hope you are all well. Love, Chris and John
I don’t know how many communities have, or had, their own circus, but Gainesville, Texas had one. The circus was conceived in 1930 by the Gainesville Little Theatre as a fund-raising venture, one that grew into a popular travelling road show. The circus was comprised exclusively of amateurs, all Gainesville residents, and was active until the mid-50s.
Swift & Company, a business that was key to the growth of Fort Worth, Texas. Mailed to Gainesville, Texas on December 27th of 1908, the postcard has this message on the back:
Dearest Phibe. Many thanks for the dear little tie you sent me. I was so surprised & I certainly do appreciate it. I got so many nice things & what did Santa bring you? My sweetheart brought me the loveliest[?] umbrella. Love you. Write me soon. Your loving friend, [name illegible]
You just can’t beat a good Sunday School reminder postcard. This one has printed on the back, “No. 574 Abingdon Litho in U.S.A.”
Another view of the Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, this one in the form of an unmailed real-photo postcard.
The Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth is the subject of this postcard from the 1920s. Today known as the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, the school was founded in 1908 with B.H. Carrol as president.
I’ve been looking for one of these postcards (one that I could afford) for years, and finally got my hands on one. Mailed in 1914, the divided back postcard shows the facilities of the Texas Brewing Company, a Fort Worth brewery that was at 9th and Jones St. The company operated from 1890 to 1918.
The Riverside Inn was originally called Blood’s Hotel, and was opened by Orlando Blood on July 4, 1860. Located in the Adirondack Mtn. village of Saranac Lake, the inn would prove a popular residence for draft dodgers and those who had paid another to take their place on the battlefields of the civil war. The historic inn, visited more than once by Mark Twain, was torn down in the 1930s.
The postcard was copyrighted by Detroit Publishing in 1909 and can be compared to the original photograph on which it was based, shown below. Comparison of the two images show a few subtle differences, particularly the removal of the phone and power lines to clean up the scene on the postcard.
