If this photo seems a little familiar, there’s a somewhat similar photo posted back here from a few years ago. This one was from a new box of photos that my in-laws came across and sent off with me to be scanned. It’s hard to tell if it’s the same shop, but it appears roughly about the same time (mid 1930s-early 1940s), with a man similarly pointing at a piece of machinery. Doede (2nd from left) was a blacksmith and metal worker, so this is probably something he created. It looks to be some kind of industrial furnace with stove openings on the front and what looks like either a pressure or temperature gauge on the top. This was definitely in the Netherlands, and you can see the man on the far left has traditional wooden shoes on. On the back is written, “Douglas at work,” probably by his wife, though years later. They all look rather serious and the two on the left have soot and dirt on their faces, probably from a hard day’s work.
Category: Genealogy
Name Cards – Part 3
Bonus round! I found a couple more name cards, so here’s (hopefully) the final post of these. Photos have been added where found!
John H. Vigene: “Clarice, To a small but cute girl, all the luck and success possible. Who is the luckey guy?? John”
Claire Ellen Spicher: “Dear Clarice (sister), It has been quite alot of fun going to school with you. Even if we did have to walk most of the time (thanks to Mr Whitl[..?] and now Mr. Fitch). They lessened the walking, if we [???] started early enough. Love, Clarie Ellen”
Betty Mae Beers: “Remember all the fun we had in Oral English Class. I liked your stories. I wish you good luck & success always. Betty Mae”
Emeline Bartek: “Clarice, Remember the first day I met you, up in the office. I wish you all the luck and success in the world in your future years, especially with ‘Leon.’ Remember me. Emeline”
Arlene Faye Campbell: “Clarice, to a small girl. I wish we had went to school together longer. Luck & success always, if we ever get arrested for speedin, you bail us out ok? Taffy”
Kenneth W. Rydbom: “Clarice: I think I’ll remember you as ‘Little Spike.’ Your a real nice kid. Ken.”
Notre-Dame de la Garde
This was a postcard sent from grandpa to grandma, dated 2 February 1945. Grandpa was in the Army Air Force and was sent to France during WWII. The front of the card has been censored with the city name cut out, presumably because the Army didn’t want family back home knowing where exactly they were, but the back of the postcard states this was the Notre-Dame de la Garde in Marseille, France. In the bottom right corner on the front is “La Cigogne” which is also printed on the back, presumably the card printer, with an address that locates them at 18, Rue Glandeves. No stamp is on the back since mail was free for the armed services.
Two Generations
Sometimes you come across something that seems like a random snapshot, but is a pretty neat photo once you look closely! This photo shows my great grandmother holding a mirror with grandma and her sister shown in the mirror’s reflection. As far as a date, I’d say around 1945 or so given grandma’s age. Since this is basically a selfie, we get an idea of the camera she was using which is some sort of box camera, but it’s hard to tell which one exactly. I didn’t find a corresponding printed photograph, so it’s pretty fortunate that this negative was kept in the box of photos!
Main Street, Victoria, Texas
Another one from Grandpa’s time spent in Texas with the Army Air Force. The postmark on this is 15 April 1942, and he sent it to grandma before they were married. There’s no stamp since members of the military can send mail for free, simply by writing “Free” where a stamp would normally go. The front of the postcard shows the scene on Main Street in Victoria, Texas, and I managed to find the location by searching old newspapers for Huvar Cash Grocery on the right. They were located at 216 S Main Street, so from there, I found the Google Map posted below. The scene has changed quite a bit since 1942, but let’s appreciate the men in hats on the left, the cars, and all the signs on the buildings. The whole mass of buildings on the right of the postcard appear to have been demolished and turned into a parking lot, so it’s neat to see what was once there.
High School Name Cards – Part 2
The second post of two with these high school name cards collected by my grandmother. The first post is here, and if you want to see all posts with name cards, they’re here.
Evelyn M. Brink: “Dear Clarice, It’s just about time to say ‘good by’ but when you look at this card remember the fun we had in Chemistry class. Evelyn”
Connie Z Nelson: “Clarice, To a cute kid who never could quite hit it off with me. You have lots of ambition. I hope you get what you want. Connie”
Blanche D. Bratton: “Clarice: Luck & Success to a swell girl. Dickey”
Della M. Bloom: “Clarice, Luck & success to a very pretty girl. Alway remember the junior prom. It sure was alot of work. Wasn’t it? Della”
Madelyn S. Ponce: “Clarice, Lots of luck in everything you do. I’ll always remember the good times we had together. ‘Shrimp'”
Paulene V. McGarvey: “Clarice, What are you going to do after you are freed. What ever it is I hope you are a success at it. A friend, Paulene.”
UPDATE:
I did find some photos for some of these kids, so I’ve added those to the name cards as I’ve found them!
Unidentified Negatives
I’ve got quite a few negatives from grandma’s batch of scanning that are pretty great photos, but since they’re negatives, I’ve really got no way to identify the people in the photos without having a corresponding print that someone actually labelled. I thought I’d put a few up here in case someone happens to stumble through them and can identify the people. I can pretty well guess the date is around 1940-1950 or so, and in the Clearfield County, Pennsylvania area. Some of them I have suspects for, but others I have absolutely no idea. They’re just great photos and they should be liberated from my hard drive!
Four Friends
The face on the left immediately jumped out to me as my husband’s grandfather, Doede (Douglas) Jaarsma. Fortunately, someone labelled the back of this with all four names and the title, “Four Friends.” I don’t know if the names are in order, but after Doede, they are Jake Westerdijk, Henk Kremer, and Dirk Werkman. The back of the photo is stamped with the date 2 December 1939, and has the photographer’s information – Foto Steenmeijer, Heerestr. 421, Groningen. The year was before Doede married my husband’s grandmother, so he may have been working in Groningen even though he was born in Friesland. The year would put him at 28 years old, and it’s kind of neat that four friends paid to have a nice photo taken together – they must’ve been pretty great friends.