Miss Cindy always loved the old postcards I share this time of the year. Several of you have mentioned you like them too.
Many of the ones I use come from public domain images. There are several online sites that have beautiful postcards and other interesting items. The New York Public Library Digital Collections has a ton of interesting old things to browse through including beautiful old postcards.
Some of the postcards I share come from Miss Cindy’s grandmother Dollie. She had a huge scrapbook that she put postcards, greeting cards, and other things in. I was thrilled when Miss Cindy gave it to me after The Deer Hunter and I married.
Miss Cindy recognized many of the names in the scrapbook. There are even cards she sent to her grandparents when she was a child.
But since a lot of the pieces date back to before Miss Cindy was even born there are many she didn’t recognize.
The postcard at the top of this post is one of my favorites from Dollie’s collection. It was sent to her in December of 1911. I love the bright colors and the girl because she sorta reminds me of myself, Granny, and the girls.
Elsie West sent the card to Dollie. She wrote a Christmas greeting, but she wrote it in pencil and over the years it’s faded till I can barely read it. I love thinking about Elsie living in the mountains of Haywood County all those years ago, about how she wanted to share Christmas cheer with her friend Dollie.
I doubt Elsie ever thought the card would still be bringing joy a 100 years after she sent it, but it is.
Last night’s video: Chocolate, Blueberry, & Apple Hand Pies for Breakfast – Easy and Tasty!
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Thanks for sharing the old card images, I have always loved vintage post cards and greeting cards, they harken back to an age where time seems to have slowed down, and folks took time to write something down that can be read and enjoyed many years later. The cards themselves tell a story, the images, the stamps, the postmarks all have meaning. Love it!!
That’s so neat! It’s fun to think about the sender and recipient of the postcard and what life was like then. I guess if you didn’t live pretty close by, postcards or letters were probably the only way to send a Christmas greeting. I love the name Elsie…such a pretty name.
Oops! In my earlier post, Tipper, I mistakenly gave Granny the credit for the beautiful card. Senior moment, what can I say?! 🙂 When I went back and re-read your post and comments others had made, which I often do, I saw that they were from Miss Cindy. The care and love she took to preserve those cards is a wonderful reflection of the beautiful person she was, inside and out.
Such a treasure. Thanks for sharing.
Tipper, I have some old writings in pencil from letters of relatives way back. What I did was scan them and then darken the image and they’re very legible. You might try that before they fade even more.
I love old things too! It’s such a pretty postcard! I’m glad that you know a bit of its background. 🙂 What a treasure Miss Cindy gave you!
I was curious if I could find the show about Heavy Duty. I found it by googling Heavy Duty Post Cards From Nebraska tv show. It is include in the show about Mel’s service station. It is a real good feel good story.
We have an old scrapbook that belonged to my husband’s maternal grandmother and it’s full of greeting cards, beautiful postcards, photos and notes. I wish I had known about it while she was still with us so she could share her memories but it only came into our possession when my husband’s mother died. I love looking through it and imagining the hands that wrote the messages and addresses back when that was the only way to stay in touch.
So precious!❤️Thank you so much for sharing ! As many have said , your blog & this comment section have become a treasured part of my morning & a lovely start to my day !❤️ And then , when I need some more goodness , I have You tube ! Thank you ! Love to you all !
Hello Miss Tipper,
Thanks for sharing this post about the old post cards. I have some old ones that my Nana (my dad’s mom) sent & some she received from her mom & siblings from years ago, back when post cards was the primary & only means of communication for those that lived far apart from each other. I enjoy reading through them and think of what the world was like back during that time & what was going on in their lives. I feel like post cards are more personal & filled with love because of the intentional effort that was put into each of them.
The postcard is beautiful. We love em too. My dad use to collect them . In his young yrs he and his brother would go from state to state and gave all kinds of postcards.
I also have enjoyed seeing the old Christmas postcards and had wondered where you had found them. That was a wonderful gift from Miss Cindy, and she knew you would treasure them along with the girls now. Thank you for sharing them. They are quite beautiful!!
I love old postcards! I have my great grandmother’s old trunk & I found over a dozen old postcards that are well over 100 yrs old in the trunk. I found a love letter from my grandpa to my grandmother dated early 1900’s. Amazing how formal & respectful the letter was written. I also have my great grandmother’s purse & her hair combs & pins. I love history & especially when it comes to my own family. I have never been a materialistic person & love small items that relate to my family’s history or others. Love old homes & the smells of old homes. The Caldwell House in Cataloochee Valley smells just like cooked ham to me. I have my uncle’s World War II tin cup & noticed he was left handed because of the wearing off of one side. I have many of my Dad’s World War II items. If I could spend every day of my senior years here digging through history, I would die a happy woman. Praying for a Happy New Year for your family & each of your subscribers. 2024 has got to be better than the last 4 yrs!
I know that I treasure the few old family postcards passed down from my family. I especially like the ones that were simply addressed by name, city, and state. They arrived, because there were fewer people then. Later, a route number was added, but no box number. Wild! Seeing my grandfather’s handwriting to my grandmother when my Dad was a baby, and my grandfather had gone “out west” to Utah to see if he wanted to move the family there was especially nice. (He decided it was too cold to survive and returned to Tennessee).
Thank you for sharing this Tipper… I have always been a fan of Christmas cards. Sending and receiving. Since I lived in California and my Dads Mom lived in Oklahoma, we had a wonderful pen pal relationship. I have all those many letters and look back at them with delight. So full of family history. My husbands fathers family saved greeting cards, Christmas cards also.. love seeing the designs and the sentiment in each card and letter. Seems we all love learning any little bit of historical information, on our families long ago. Thank you, another wonderful reminder. ❤️
The first thing I thought seeing this postcard what how much it looked like a young Granny! It truly does!
Love the old cards. Sadly the tradition seems to be disappearing.
What a beautiful card! I share Granny’s love of old vintage postcards, valentines, birthday cards, etc. There’s just a sweetness about them that speaks love more than you find in cards today. I look for them every time I go to an antique store but never have any luck finding them. I have very few as they are scare as hen’s teeth, but I treasure the few I have. My sister knows how much I love vintage things, so this past Christmas she taped old vintage cards to my packages. What a unique idea! I was just as happy to get the cards as I was the gifts. How lucky/blessed you are to have a collection passed down from Granny and her parents and grandparents.
What a treasure you have to enjoy and pass along to your girls.
I browsed the digital collection, chose the cigarette card division just to see how they advertised, and came across the Deer Stalker cards. Matt may want to look at those!
Blessings and prayers to all.
I also love old postcards and old cards. I guess you might say I love all old things. My daddy was a saver and I found in his things a Christmas card they received the first year of their marriage sent to them by Grandma and Grandpa (my mom’s parents). I treasure it.
Tipper when I first looked at the old Christmas Card, I thought my goodness that little girl looks like Tipper. Then when I started to read your post, I see you had the same thought:) Those old cards were beautifully illustrated with the children’s faces looking almost angelic. Even the old Christmas scenes looked so delicate, much different that today’s cards.
I enjoyed your video on baked fried pies. I guess we all have our favorites from our childhood and though apples seem to be the most used in the area I live in because the Amish always have dried apples available BUT they are not my favorite. To me you just can’t beat the taste of Mother’s fried peach pies. She dried the peaches, and now I use my dehydrator to do that and then fry them in the old cast iron pan. Baking them is probably healthier.
Somewhere in my stacks are a few old Thanksgiving postcards featuring…you guessed it…turkey art. If I remember correctly, one had a Pilgrim boy and a turkey, eyeing each other.
I wonder if there is a commonality of inks, colors, designs, etc between the postcards and seed catalogues or seed packets of the same dates? One thing I notice is the lack of glitter, foil, etc; not ‘glitzy’ or ‘blingey’ or reflective as is common now. They remind me somewhat of the colors in the grade school reading books of the 1950’s or so of the “See Spot run.” variety. I don’t know what it is about them but they appeal to me. And I daresay kids these days will find themselves nostalgic for things they remember from childhood but for most of them the “early onset” of looking back syndrome won’t occur until after 40. In other words about the time their parents and grandparents start looking a lot smarter. ☺
my mother saved post cards. greeting cards, and birth cards, funeral cards you don’t see the birth cards any more and such a shame. I am learning genealogy and they have helped so much. I am so grateful she saved them…
What a cute postcard. That little girl is adorable! I love all old things, but especially clothing and shoes, jewelry, and cards and letters. My interest started about age 16 when my Dad gave me my Great Grandma’s engagement ring. It is black onyx with a small diamond set in beautiful gold filigree. I cherish it. I will pass it down to my niece, Alexis, as she is the only girl grandchild. The ring is supposed to be passed down to the first born female of each generation, in order to keep it in the family.
2023 is nearly over, and I send my prayers to you and your family, Tipper, for a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2024!
Good morning, Tipper! I think today’s greeting is one of my favorites! Maybe because I love the subject, lol. I think the old post cards are so warm and charming. No one sends post cards any more and that’s sad. I believe I could sit for hours looking at 1800’s post cards! So today you have yet another bit of information coming our way. I’ll be sure and check out the New York Public Library and see their collection. I doubt if you fully realize just how much joy you bring into the lives of your readers. Some of us have very simple lives, often not leaving the house for quite a few days, so what you share is our entertainment, and our class room, lol! I continue to pray for Granny and hoping her scans come back good. God’s blessings on you, your family, and your followers!
Dollie was Sharpe to hang on to those old post cards. My great great great grandmother Katie was Sharp but I have no Christmas cards of hers.
If I am not way off track Elsie West was Dollie’s first cousin. Dollie’s mother Mary Madeline West Sharpe was Elsie’s father George L West’s sister. So Dollie and Elsie were more than just friends.
Papaw-thank you! You always find the connections and I’m glad 🙂
The old post cards are indeed quite lovely and I’d have to agree the gorgeous doll on the postcard DOES INDEED FAVOR YOU, Granny and your PURTY babies!!! Everything and I do mean everything used to be done with gusto, flare and the very soul poured into one’s work visible for all to see and witness. (I myself can’t hardly stand old papers, cards and stuff laying about so in the trash she goes!) I’m not a big card person. Now you are faced with buying plastic junk that breaks after you open it or the junk is just plain hideous and tasteless like most food when eating out. I’d rather set my money on fire than throw it away… I often think when loading up stuff to drag in or out what’s treasure to me will all be someone’s headache to trash when I’m dead… the older I get possessions seem burdensome and worrisome and mean so much less than they ever did.
That was such a wonderful thing to do. A scrapbook of postcards. I have one old thing from the 40s. My husband’s grandmother kept her ration book from WW2. I’ll keep that as a reminder of the sacrifices our families made during the war.
We got snow yesterday evening Tipper! Yay (jumping up and down.) Drove home in it (5:30-6:30 pm) blowing straight into the windshield, it was beautiful (and my Christian radio station was still playing Christmas music to boot!) This morning it looks like at least a solid inch, and the wet kind. Yesterday when it started, I took my 2 yr old grandson out on my hip and scraped up 3 little balls from what lay on the grill cover and made him his first snowman of the year (a Toto as he calls it.) Oh how I hope you got some too!!!
I have had a postcard “ministry” for several years. I regularly send postcards to shut-ins, or folks who might need a cheery note. Postcard donations come from all over. My favorites are the old ones. Judging from the feedback, the old cards are also recipients’ favorites.
If you have some old postcards just stuck in the closet or junk drawer, send them! You might make someone’s day!
Leon-that is so wonderful! Thank you for your kindness and generosity! I know all the folks who receive the postcards truly appreciate it.
Leon, I remember watching a tv show “Post Cards From Nebraska”. One show was about a long haul truck driver “Heavy Duty” sending post cards to nursing homes from wherever he might be. He had a composition book full of nursing home names and addresses. He didn’t want the residents in the nursing home to know his name or what he looked like. He did let the show’s producers make a picture of him from the neck down and of his truck but of nothing that would identify his truck.
The Christmas Postcard is beautiful. Postcards were very much in use when I was growing up. There are some things that technology has not rendered a positive change in personal communication with one another. The pendulum has swung too far out from center and we have went with it. Used to mailboxes were full of Christmas cards. This year maybe five. Just my opinion.
P.S. I also recognize the cost of stamps and other commodities have skyrocketed.
I have Valentines and Christmas cards that were my mother’s and father’s as children. They are anywhere from 1917 to the 1920’s.
I love finding old postcards and mail. Love those little tidbits of personal domestic history. Our second daughter is named Elsie. I’ve always loved the old fashioned dignity and sweetness of that name.
Good morning and God bless!!! Sounds like my neighbors north of Canton may have snow today. Enjoy and have a Fantabulous Friday!!!
My mother was the baby of her family. One of her brothers mailed her a few post cards when he was in WWII. She always treasured them.
I have enjoyed the old pictures you have used during the holidays. I am a saver of cards from those I love. I never thought of scrapbooking them—nice idea. I always save Christmas cards, cut them up, and use for my gift tags next year. I get lots of comments on my DIY tags.
So beautiful! I wondered where you got all those wonderful pictures. That’s extra special to have them in a collection. Thank you for sharing, that brightened my day!
I love vintage items like this too and bring them home to love when I find things. I love when your girls take us along on their treasure hunts!
The saddest thing for me is old quilts. I always wonder what caused someone to give them up. I have many passed down in our family that are priceless to me, but have only bought a couple because of the prices they bring. I guess it’s a good thing because I’d bring all the strays home to love if they weren’t so pricey. I think of the hands that took time to do all those little stitches and wonder what they were thinking of the whole time.
Anyway, thank you for always bringing a smile to our lives!
Have a wonderful day and God bless all y’all!!
The postcard is beautiful. I love how Miss Cindy’s mother kept them in a scrapbook so they could be protected. I wonder if Dollie ever thought her card collection would be pasted down to multiple generations. What a treasure Miss Cindy trusted you with Tipper. She knew you would cherish then as much as she did. When the time comes, one of your girls will continue to cherish them too.
Most of my cards 1870 give or take 20, until1950s. Stamps lost the glue, yes, most written in pencil. Guess that’s why I use an ink pen.
i have some old Post cards , I will share them with you sometime Tipper, God bless you and Granny, I will send you an email with pictures