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Genealogy

Airplane Postcards

 

A couple more airplane postcards that grandpa brought home for grandma.  These all have the usual postcard markings on the back but weren’t written on.  In order, left to right and top to bottom are the Boeing B17E Flying Fortress, P-38 Interceptor, the Ryan PT-22, and the Douglas A20A Army Attack Bomber which is noted as, “The Fastest Bomber in the World.”  These were likely all collected around 1941-1945 or so, though likely closer to the 1941 date since that’s when grandpa was stationed in Texas with the US Army Air Force.  He may have brought these home to show grandma the planes he was seeing everyday while on base, even though he wasn’t a pilot, I’m sure he spent time around the field and saw/heard these all the time.

Genealogy

The Westovers


In a prior post, a letter written to my grandma expressed sympathy over Jud Westover’s passing.  The name sounded familiar, and I have a memory of grandma mentioning the Westovers when we went through a box of photos once.  If I’m remembering right, she mentioned helping them out in their older years.  Well sure enough, I did find the photo I was thinking of!

Judson Westover and Esther Youngkin were married in about 1936.  Newspaper archives showed they applied for a marriage license on 13 March 1935 in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, with a 19 year age difference between the two with Esther being 48 at the time.  Their marriage license found on the Clearfield County website is dated 14 March 1935.  This was Jud’s 2nd marriage since his first wife, Annie Flickinger, passed away in 1924, and as far as I can find, it was Esther’s first marriage.  Esther shows up in the 1930 census, living alone with status “Single” written down for her marital status.  It appears she may have stayed home to help out with her mother after her father died.

Jud passed away on 10 Feb 1951 and Esther later on 17 August 1963.  Grandma was off at nursing school at that point, but someone either sent her the funeral notice or she was able to make it home for the services since she saved the funeral card.

It doesn’t appear that the two had children together, though Judson had two children with his first wife.  Saved photos and things like funeral notices remind me every time I do genealogical work that the people who shape our lives are both biological relatives and friends and neighbors.  The whole story isn’t just a list of vital statistics on birth, marriage, and death, but little snippets like this that show who we knew and where we went.

One more bonus I found before publication date!  A photo of Esther’s brother Loy, his wife Grace Troxell, and an unnamed grandchild.

Genealogy

P-40 – Foster Field, Texas

 

Yet another in the series of postcards collected by grandma.  This one is blank on the back except for the usual postcard markings on the back.  It’s possible grandpa brought this home himself to show her the planes he saw every day while he was stationed at Foster Field in Texas.  The bottom of the card notes this is the P-40, and the name Maggie is written on the plane.  The tail number is 9280, and there’s some sort of skull image just behind the cockpit (possibly the insignia of the squadron).  The cockpit is open, and the pilot is smiling right at us which is WILD, but makes for an incredible photo.

Genealogy

Michel Lefebvre – Letter #3

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I *think* this is the last of the three letters I have from this French soldier.  To recap, I randomly found a letter from a French soldier sent to grandma just after the end of WWII.  I’m not sure if they were penpals set up through school or a letter writing program, but they’ve been interesting to read through!  This letter is addressed to grandma, postmarked on 28 May 1951, sent from Cabrai, France.  Two 15 franc stamps are on the envelope.  The address of the sender on the back is 6 Rue de Noyelles in Cambrai which doesn’t seem to exist at this point, or the street numbers changed because it resolves to a cemetery on Google maps.


Michel numbered his pages here – this was one sheet of paper folded in half, so it’s handy to have the numbers to identify the order that he wrote!  A transcription follows, keeping any spelling and grammar errors as written.

Cambrai, May 28, 1951
Dear Clarice,
I have leaved my last hospital there is a fortnight so as to reach my home for three months.  I am better and take again a normal activity.
I used to work about practical instruments or study the aerials realization like radar or television aerials.
Last Sunday I have visited the International Textile Exhibition in Lille where twenty four nations were represented such as: England, Germany, U.S.A., France, Japan and so on.  I have remarked horizontal and circular looms.  It was very interesting by the demonstrations given by the clerks.  One hand this exhibition was really successful chiefly if we examine the amount of commercial profits and the orders asked, the other hand this manifestation has showed the realizations of different countries and make us in knowing them best.
Yesterday the Harlem Globe Trotters matched in Lille against a French basket team and on American university teams but unhappily tonight not go there.
I am about to go and see an aerial rallye in Bondues airfield near Lille where the Letempes [??] Patrol with its vampires and Belgian, Dutch, British squadrons will evolve.
I enter into partnership with your hopes about driving liscences and I wish you good luck.  When your building will be ended up you will be happy in living inside some delicious and quiet hours, this will be with a great pleasure I shall learn it.
It seems in your last letter, you lose heart yourself about war and international events!  Be not so pessimist or as we say in France, literally.  See not the life is black.  Many people see also the danger and also they are affrighted but fear begets wisdom and prudence.  Let us remember the horrors of precedent war.
What this word reach you in good health and good wishes granted.
Yours Sincerely,
Michel

It’s always interesting to get a glimpse of the letter this one is responding to.  I think every time I’ve found any kind of letters in a collection found when someone has passed away, it’s always just the one side of the conversation, but sometimes there are responses to questions or comments on the content of the prior letter written to the sender.  If I find more, I’ll definitely update this post with links to the rest, and the Michel Lefebvre tag will lead you to all of them.

Socks

Silent Night Socks

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Silent Night Socks
Started: 8 January 2024
Finished: 15 January 2024
Pattern: Plain Old Socks (my pattern)
Yarn: West Yorkshire Spinners Signature Sparkle in “Silent Night”
Needle: US 1.5 / 2.5 mm
Notes: My notes say I picked this up at Seeded when visiting the husband while he was on assignment in the UK.  I really do enjoy picking up yarn when I go away from home because I get to enjoy it when I purchase it, then knit it, and then wear the knit item later.  It’s like a memory that keeps giving.  Anyway, show me a glitter yarn and I’m going to buy it every time, so it’s no surprise this was one of my choices!

Genealogy

Fontaine Cantini, Marseille

 

I LOVE postcards with views that I can hunt down and see what they look like today.  This postcard was sent from grandpa to grandma while he was serving in France during World War II.  The back is dated 5 April 1945 and there’s no postmark since he either hand carried this home or sent it through the US Army Air Force mail service.  The back also has printing that marks this, “520. Marseille – Place Castellane et Fontaine Cantini.”  The printer is A. Tardy, “Photo-Editeur, 551 Rue des Minimes, Marseille France.  Below, you can see the same side of the fountain as found on Google Maps.

Genealogy

Michel Lefebvre – Letter #2

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Well, just when I thought the one letter from Michel Lefebvre in France was a one-off, I found two more, one of them is here.  The postmark on the envelope indicates it was sent from Bourges in Cher, France on 14 March 1951.  Two 15 franc stamps are on the front.

Here’s a transcription of the letter, to the best of my abilities.  Spelling and grammar errors left as they were written.

Dear Clarice,
I remark since your last letter there are many things changed while your patient Jud Westover is died and you have a new job.
Between this time, I leaved Percy Hospital near Paris where I have spent four months, for the Military Hospital of Bourges in the department (district) of Cher.  I am separated of Paris from two hundred kilometers but chiefly I had rather to rest in a special house or at home and I might be glad.  It’s raining since a week that I am arrived and after the people say: the weather will not change afore one or two months.
My illness is not worse, I am spending all day long between rests of two or three hours and small activities such as reading, walking limited by walls of the hospital, inside games and hobneys [?].  I have not any treatment, I like very well this and I feel better.  I do not know how many long I am about to stay here but I wait principally on my boxes a departure in a time so that [this?] possible.
I went in Borgest next Sunday, it is an old town with irregular paving stone streets, the cathedral dating in the Middle Age is in good state what is astonishing with the two international conflicts, you might see it from the card that I like is in the letter.  Borges has a great historic past, it was a royal town with Louis XI’s [crowd?] and Jacques Coeur the famous treasurer.  In spite of this there are more squares and gardens what turn over the aspect of the town.
I hope that your job is liked by you and I wait the pleasure to read you.
Your Sincerely,
Michel


Michel did enclose a postcard of the cathedral which was kept with the letter.  Apparently Clarice told him about Judd Westover, who I believe she cared for after high school and before her career as a nurse.  I remember going through a box of photos with her once and she pointed out the Westovers, and I *think* that photo exists in the collection on my hard drive somewhere.  If I find it, I’ll put together a post and update this post as well.

UPDATE: Information/photos found, and that post will be coming shortly, here – https://www.sheetar.com/2024/02/19/the-westovers/

Genealogy

Coalport Ambulance – c 1960

This photo was found in a box from grandma, no date, no place, nothing on the back.  The only identifying mark on this is the word “Coalport” on the old fashioned ambulance.  This looks roughly like it belongs to a set of photos from the 1960s or 1970s, or at least it was taken with the same format of camera (same photo size, similar quality, etc).  If someone is a car enthusiast, let me know and I can update the post with the right information on the make/model of the vehicle!  Even though I don’t have a lot of information to add here, this was just too neat not to post.