#PFTL: Happy Halloween from Cleveland!
This week, we'd like to take a look at the holiday cards Clevelanders were sending in the early 1900's. These cards are a little harder to come by in the FreshWater Archives (old Hallowe'en cards are highly sought after), but we'll share what we have (so far)!
Many of these cards are embossed, and we did our best to not crush those in the scanning process. Those also did not get the clean-up treatment that these normally get, as the dingier appearance actually helps to bring out the curves of the embossing... they must have been a beast to write on!
NOTE: The FreshWater Cleveland PostCard Archives Team does its best to transcribe the very old (often more than 100 years) script writing, that can often be faded, written in pencil, tiny, etc., and, at times, in other languages. When we cannot determine a word, it is replaced with "[???]." When we make a guess, the word itself will be followed with "[?]."
Hallowe'en PrecautionsPostmark: Cleveland, Ohio OCT 30, 1917 6PMCard Front: A witch and her cat trapped inside their cabin with a large jack-o-lantern with the heading, "Hallowe'en Precautions," and caption:
If you take ten seeds from a Pumpkin shell,Likely, this sounds better when read with a mid-Atlantic accent.
And go to the woods where the witches dwell,
Plant them in front of the door in a cross,
You will be rid of them without remorse.
Card Back: "[???] you will have some fun on Halloween night. We are all well. Let us hear from you. Your sister, Anna."
All Hallowe'en GreetingsPostmark: Cleveland, Ohio OCT 31, 1910Card Front: A man tripping over a sow in a garden as his friends look on with the heading, "All Hallowe'en Greetings," and poem:
Our future in the present we shall sow;Card Back: "I will write more as I can [???] [???]. Had alot (sic) of lovely weather till(sic) last week & day is fine. Hope you a felling(sic) better. Belle"
And over anxious, sometimes seek to know
Events before they happen - and we fall,
And thus provide a hearty laugh to all
On Hallowe'en.
Hallowe'en GreetingsPostmark: Cleveland, Ohio OCT 29, 1914 5:30PMCard Front: The heading, "Hallowe'en Greetings," and an image of a well dressed couple sitting on a jack-o-lantern.
Card Back: "Oct 29. Hello Lester, Just ready for breakfast. This is an awful gloomy day. Be good.[???]"
Olmsted Falls - Ye Grand Masque BallPostmark: Cleveland, Ohio OCT 28, 1917 5PMCard Front: Very tiny in the corner is a handwritten, ""Hello Joe"" (we're quoting their quotes in quotes... #4QuotesMakesAGallon) and the silhouette of a witch on a broom. As this was an invitation, there quite a bit of copy, but also, "ye."
Ye Laddie and Ye Lassie
are requested to appear at Eight by ye clock
in the evening of
Ye Thirty-first of October, A.D. 1917
at ye Town House of
Ye Village of Olmsted Falls,
to partake of ye Festivities and Mirth at
Ye Grand Masque Ball
Each of ye to be Dressed in Costume befitting of the Event and have ye
Faces Covered.
A Prize will be given ye Most Fancy and Most Comic
Dressed Persons
Music will be furnished by ye Olmsted Orchestra
Ye Tickets will be 75 cents Ye Extra Lady will be 35 cents
Card Back: The address info on this one is interesting because of the date. It was originally addressed to West View, Ohio, but that's crossed out and has been re-addressed to a now "Corp. Joe. Brandt" at Camp Sheridan. It shows the sender was unaware that the recipient had gone off (at least to train) for WW1.
A Jolly Hallowe'enPostmark: Cleveland, Ohio OCT 30, 1908 1AMCard Front: The caption, "A Jolly Hallowe'en", under an image of a couple in Victorian ball clothing playing a game with an apple on a string, cats, bats, candles and jack-o-lanterns! We weren't able to locate details about the actual game, but, likely a variant of bobbing for apples, except you don't get your whig wet, and someone has to stand on a tuffet.
Card Back: No message, just "From CET"