California's Golden Oranges And Waxlike Blossoms

This vintage postcard from my grandparents' collection was manufactured by the Longshaw Card Company of Los Angeles, California. I don't know the exact publication date of this postcard, but I found it on ebay.com, and on that website it says the postcard is from the 1940s.

Transcription from back of postcard:

Oranges are 58% of California's total fruit crop. Between 35 and 40 million boxes are produced in this state every year. The Naval orange (seedless) is a native of California and is highly prized for its fine flavor.

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

The Salt Lake Temple ~ Salt Lake City, Utah

This is a 1933 genuine Curt Teich, C.T. Art-Colortone vintage postcard from my grandparents' collection.

Transcription from back of postcard:

The Salt Lake Temple was commenced in 1853 and completed in 1893 at a cost of approximately $4,000,000. It is 186½ feet long by 99 feet wide. The stone footing is 16 feet thick. The basement walls are 9 feet thick, and the upper walls 6 feet thick. The side walls are 107½ feet high. The east center tower is 210 feet high, surmounted by a hammered copper statue of Angel Moroni, 12½ feet high, gilded with pure gold leaf.

My grandparents and their family visited Utah on their way across the country in 1952. They had emigrated from Brazil and arrived in New York. After buying a car and some camping equipment, they set out on their journey across the country toward their final destination in Southern California.

My grandparents and their family joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints a couple of years before they immigrated to the United States. I'm sure that visiting Utah was a very special experience for them. There are several vintage postcards from Utah in their collection, as well as photos too.

During the week of Thanksgiving, my husband and I went to Utah to spend time with some of our children. While we were there, we took the opportunity to see the Christmas lights at Temple Square. The Salt Lake Temple (pictured in this postcard) is located at Temple Square. It is a magnificent and beautiful temple. Construction of this temple took 40 years to complete.

I thought I'd share a few pictures I took of the Christmas lights on Temple Square.







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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Home of Bing Crosby, Toluca Lake, North Hollywood, California

How fun is this vintage postcard!? I'm so glad my grandparents included it in their collection.

This linen postcard was manufactured by the Longshaw Card Co. of Los Angeles, California. Unfortunately, I don't know exactly when it was manufactured. According to the Postcard Collectors' Reference Guide by Postcardy.com, linen postcards were produced from 1933 until the early 1950s. So, this information at least gives us a rough estimate of when this postcard was produced.

The Los Angeles Times' website posted a photo gallery of this famous home. If you'd like to see these photos, click HERE.

Can you believe it's already December? Of course, that means Christmas is just around the corner. Yay! One of our family's favorite Christmas movies is White Christmas, which stars Bing Crosby. In this movie, Bing Crosby sings the Irving Berlin song "White Christmas."

And so, for your listening pleasure, please enjoy listening to this recording of Bing Crosby singing "White Christmas."

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Mulholland Memorial Fountain, Entrance to Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California

This is a 1940 C.T. Art-Colortone vintage postcard from my grandparents' collection. It was published by the Western Publishing & Novelty Co. of Los Angeles, California. The postcard shows the William Mulholland Memorial Fountain.

Transcription from back of postcard:

The William Mulholland Memorial Fountain is located at the junction of Los Feliz Boulevard and Riverside Drive at the entrance to Griffith Park. It was erected in commemoration of a life devoted to Civic Development, the building of the Los Angeles aqueduct, and his service with the Metropolitan District.

The blog, Big Orange Landmarks, has a blog post about the William Mulholland Memorial Fountain. There are several photos of this beautiful fountain in this blog post. If you'd like to check out the photos, click HERE.

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Praca Da Estacao – Rio Claro, Brazil

This vintage Wessel postcard shows Praca Da Estacao in Rio Claro, Sao Paulo, Brazil. If I'm not mistaken, Praca Da Estacao means Station Square in English.

This is a special postcard because my mom was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She, along with her family, immigrated to the United States in 1952. After the family arrived in New York, they bought a car and some camping equipment and traveled across the United States to California. Along the way, they took pictures and bought postcards. I've written about their immigration in my genealogy blog. If you're interested in their story, click HERE.

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© 2012 - 2013 Copyright by Jana Last, All Rights Reserved

General U. S. Grant's Bed Room in Grant's Home, Galena, Illinois

This genuine Curt Teich C.T. American Art vintage postcard from my grandparents' collection shows the bedroom of General U. S. Grant. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how old this postcard is. I'm not familiar enough with the Curt Teich postcard dating system to figure out what the 2320-C-N means. Those numbers and letters are located at the bottom right of the postcard.

With other Curt Teich vintage postcards in my grandparents' collection, I've been able to determine their dates by using the "Guide to Dating Curt Teich Postcards" on ebay.com. 

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Kitchen, General U. S. Grant Home ~ Galena, Illinois

This is a genuine Curt Teich "C.T. American Art" vintage postcard. It was published for Larey's in Galena, Illinois. The postcard shows the kitchen of the General U. S. Grant Home in Galena, Illinois.

My maternal grandparents and their family visited this historic home in 1952 on their way to Southern California. They emigrated from Brazil on July 7, 1952 and arrived in New York City on July 22, 1952. They bought a car and some camping equipment and traveled across the country toward their destination in Southern California. If you'd like to read about their immigration story, click HERE.

Transcription from back of postcard -

The kitchen in the General U. S. Grant home is furnished with typical furnishings of the 1865 period. The cook stove, the old iron type with warming oven, the iron kettles and earthenware are genuine antiques. The furniture is solid walnut. Bennington pitchers and English china dishes adorn the table and old fashioned cupboard.

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Palms and Flowers in a California Residential District

This is a 1931 C.T. Art-Colortone vintage postcard from my grandparents' collection. It was published by the Western Publishing & Novelty Co. of Los Angeles, California.

The postcard shows beautiful flowers and palm trees in a California residential area. Isn't it a beautiful scene? Unfortunately, the postcard doesn't specify exactly where in California this is. Does it look like Southern California? What do you think?

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Parlor, General U. S. Grant Home, Galena, Illinois

This is a genuine Curt Teich, "C.T. American Art" vintage postcard. It shows the parlor of the General U. S. Grant Home in Galena, Illinois.

Transcription from back of postcard:

The parlor in the General U. S. Grant home has the original horsehair covered walnut furniture that was in the home when given to the Grant family in 1865. The vases on the mantel are of Bohemian glass with miniature paintings, accurate in every detail, painted by a famous painter of that day. They were a gift to the General while on his world tour. This home is now a state memorial and open to the public daily. Admission free.

My grandparents, Debs and Willis Webster and their family, visited the General U. S. Grant home as they traveled across the United States from New York to California in 1952. There are several vintage postcards of this historic home in my grandparents' collection.

If you'd like to learn more about the historic General U. S. Grant Home, click HERE.

Thanks for stopping by!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Greetings from Hollywood California

This is a 1936 C.T. Art-Colortone vintage postcard which was published by the Western Publishing & Novelty Co. of Los Angeles, California.

My grandparents and their family emigrated from Brazil to the United States in 1952. They arrived in New York and traveled across the United States on their way to their final destination of Southern California. There are many vintage postcards from California in my grandparents' collection. The postcard I'm sharing with you today is one of them.

Hollywood is a popular tourist destination. After arriving in California, my grandparents and their family visited the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  Here's a picture of them at this famous tourist spot. My two uncles are the little boys in the photo and my Grandma Willis is to the left of them. Willis' mother is the woman in the foreground of the photo on the right.




I did a little bit of research online, and it appears that the younger of my two uncles (the one on the right) is standing on the handprint/footprint square for Diana Wynyard. And directly behind him is the square for Judy Garland. My other uncle is standing in between the squares for Mickey Rooney and Norma Shearer. Willis' mom is standing on the square for the Ritz Brothers.

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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Dining Room in Gen. U. S. Grant's Home, Galena, Illinois

This 1944 Genuine Curt Teich "C.T. American Art" vintage postcard is one of several postcards from my grandparents' collection showing the General U. S. Grant Home in Galena, Illinois.

As they traveled across the country from New York to California in 1952, my grandparents and their family visited this historic home.

If you'd like to learn more about the General U. S. Grant Home, click HERE.

Thanks for stopping by!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Library, General U. S. Grant's Home, Galena, Illinois

This is a vintage postcard by the E. C. Kropp Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It's part of my grandparents' vintage postcard collection.

The postcard shows the Library at the General U. S. Grant Home in Galena, Illinois. My maternal grandparents and their family stopped to visit this historic home as they traveled from New York to California in 1952 as part of their immigration to the United States from Brazil.

Transcription from back of postcard:

General Grant's home built in 1857 by Alexander Jackson, was presented to him by the citizens of Galena in 1865 and later presented to the city by his children in 1904 to be used as a Memorial. Here are found the original furniture, carpets, dishes and what-have-you used by Grant and his family while living in Galena.

If you'd like to learn more about the historic General U. S. Grant Home, click HERE.

Thanks for stopping by!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Home of General U. S. Grant ~ Galena, Illinois

This is a Curt Teich "C.T. American Art" vintage postcard. It is one of several postcards of the historic General U.S. Grant home in my grandparents' collection.

Transcription from back of postcard.

This home was built in 1857 by Alexander Jackson. Eight years later it was purchased by the City of Galena, furnished and presented to General U. S. Grant on his return from the Civil War. In 1904 the heirs of the Grant estate deeded it to the City as a memorial to their father. In 1932 it became a state memorial and is open to the public daily from 9 A. M. to 5 P. M. Admission Free.

My grandparents, Debs and Willis Webster and their family, visited this historic home as they traveled across the United States from New York to California in 1952. Below is a photo of the Webster family in front of the General U.S. Grant home.



Here's a zoomed in view of the sign in front of the home.



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© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Ocotillo In Bloom On The Desert

This vintage postcard was manufactured by the Longshaw Card Company of Los Angeles, California. I'm not sure what year this postcard was created. After doing research online, I've seen it dated sometime in the 1930s or the mid-20th century.

Transcription from back of postcard:

Ocotillo (candlewood), one of the oddest desert shrubs, is not a cactus despite its thorny "canes" which form the tall stems of this scarlet-tipped plant. The bark contains resin, gum and wax, and burns fiercely giving off intensely black smoke. The Cahuilla Indians eat both flowers and seeds.

Here is a photo of the Ocotillo plant.

Ocotillo Plant in Phoenix, Arizona
Wikipedia - No Copyright

This photo (below) shows a close-up of one of the Ocotillo flowers. See the bee hovering above it?

Ocotillo Flower
Wikimedia Commons
Photo by Jeff Dean

To learn more about this plant, click HERE.

Thanks for stopping by!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last