Festival Color Socks
Started: 21 October 2023
Finished: 14 November 2023
Pattern: Plain Old Socks (my pattern)
Yarn: Regia 4 ply Ffestival Color sock yarn in colorway #02886, “Full Moon Summit Fest”
Needle: US 1.5 / 2.5 mm
Notes: I started these while on vacation in the Netherlands and finished them up about two weeks after coming home. Basic sock, no modifications. Love how the colors pooled up.
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.
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!
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!
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.
This postcard, addressed to Grandma from Grandpa while they were dating, shows the hangar line at Randolph Field in Texas. The postmark on the back is 19 August 1941, and has a one cent George Washington stamp on the back. The return address shows grandpa stationed with the Recruit Detachment. The photo on the front of the card is titled “Hangar Line, Randolph Field, Texas” and shows a line of planes in front of hangars. If I were a betting woman, I’d say these are probably the North American OA-47 planes, and you can find more about the planes here. Grandpa wrote on the back, “I am sending this card so you can see some of the airplanes and hangars.” He wasn’t a pilot himself, but spent time there as a new recruit.
This is the last of the Maher Postcards! This final one, scheduled for the holiday, features “Easter Greetings” with a center image of two yellow chicks hatching out of white eggs, surrounded by pussy willow branches and some sort of pink and white floral garland. The corners are a little torn, and the image is heavily embossed as can be seen on the back side.
The back features a green George Washington one cent stamp with a postmark date of 7 April 1911, sent from Patton, Pennsylvania. The addressee is Master James Maher at 113 Aldrick St, Buffalo, NY, who would’ve been about 6 years old at the time. The message reads, “Hello James, How are you? Anyway I would love to see you and baby brother. We get very lone[some?] for you all. What is the …” and the rest is illegible or missing from the tear on the postcard, but I suspect it asks, “What is the Bunnie going to bring you?” It’s signed upside down at the top, “Love, Your Aunt Sara,” where Sara was likely the sister to James’ father, Bernard. Nice way to wrap up this series with a pretty little card!
These were collected by my paternal grandmother in school, and most of them are dated 1949. I’m going to post these in two parts because there are quite a few, but I thought it would be fun to bring them to the light of day again in case someone is searching for their ancestor and happens upon these. These small tokens with personal messages sometimes can give you more insight into their handwriting and personality, and they’re just plain fun.
Background – apparently in high school, kids got these name cards to hand out to their fellow students. I’ve seen them in modern graduation announcements as well, and some have messages written on the back, while some don’t. At least at this school, the Coalport-Irvona High School, the kids signed the back with a little message, kind of in the style of signing a yearbook. Here are the first six with transcriptions. If you want a link to the tag with them all, click here.
Ida Colleen Dixon: “Clarice, I’ll remember you as being a little bit of a shorty in our class. You’re short and cute! Remember me!!! Ida.”
Joann K. Dixon: Clarice, Wishing luck to a academic girl who knows her stuff. Joann”
Edward F. Traveny: “Clarice, To a swell classmate. Luck and success in your future years. Killr[??]”
Germaine K. Flynn: “Clarice! You are one swell kid, and I’m sorry I ruined your book report. You’re sweet. Love, Gerry”
Philip I. Plottel: “Dear Clarice, How have you ever been able to ‘stand’ me for twelve years!? Luck and success to a swell girl. Always, Phil”
Barbara Ann Hegarty: “Dear Clarice, Three little girls, In a male class, But gee what fun, and Brady to sass! Love, ‘Babs'”
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!