This is a 1939 Curt Teich, "C.T. Art-Colortone" vintage postcard from my grandparents' collection. It was published by the Western Publishing & Novelty Company of Los Angeles, California. It shows the large cage at the Bird Park on Santa Catalina Island. Santa Catalina Island, often referred to as Catalina Island, or simply Catalina, is about 22 miles off the coast of Southern California. The Catalina Chamber of Commerce has an official website. If you’d like to check it out, here’s the link. According to an article in the The Catalina Islander, May 11, 2001, found online at Google News, the Bird Park was established in 1929 and covered eight acres of land. It had over 500 cages and housed over 8,000 rare and exotic birds. The Bird Park was a very popular attraction on Catalina Island for over thirty-five years. During World War II, the Park was scaled back and never regained it’s prewar vitality. It closed in 1966. Transcription from back of postcard:
In this giant cage, 110 feet in diameter, 90 feet in height, are several hundred rare and beautiful birds, collected from all over the world – African Crowned Crane, golden and silver Pheasants, Peacocks, Australian Swans, Mandarin Duck, Cockatoos, Macaws, and many other interesting birds.
This is a 1931 Curt Teich "C.T. Art-Colortone" vintage postcard published by the Western Publishing & Novelty Company of Los Angeles, California. It shows the Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena, California. The bridge was built in 1913 and turned 100 years old in December of 2013. To learn more about this historic bridge, and to see some amazing historic photos, including an "electric car" crossing the bridge in 1930, click on the link below. Colorado Street Bridge at 100: The Birth of a Pasadena Landmark
This is a picture postcard showing Avenida São João in São Paulo, Brasil. It was written to my mom. I've blurred the names of my mom and her cousin for privacy reasons. The postcard is dated September 29, but unfortunately, there isn't a year included in the date. I know it was written after July of 1952, because that's when my mom and her family emigrated from Brazil to the United States. I've written about their immigration story in my genealogy blog, Jana's Genealogy and Family History Blog. The family traveled by ship, arrived in New York, bought a car and some camping equipment, and traveled across the United States toward their final destination in Southern California. Along the way, they took pictures and bought postcards. If you'd like to read about their trip, click HERE. Transcription from back of postcard:
September, 29
Hi,
This picture is to help you to do not forget me, and within a few days I'll write you a very big letter. Hoping you are all right. I close it with love to all of you,
This vintage postcard was sent to my maternal grandfather, Debs Warren Webster. It's a "Plastichrome" color photo postcard showing a harbor on Long Island's North Shore. The photo was taken by Milt Price, Northport, N. Y., and was published by the Tomlin Art Company. The postmark/cancel date on this vintage postcard is March 27, 1953. Transcription from back of postcard:
Typed Description of Postcard Image:
PICTURESQUE LONG ISLAND WATERFRONT. Rowboats and yachts of all descriptions can be found in this sheltered deepwater harbor on Long Island's famous North Shore.
Handwritten Message:
My Dear Folks,
Very shortly will write you. Have never had such a busy winter. Have some snap shots to send & also a page, in newspaper, about Brazil to send that think you would enjoy. We are both well & rushing about daily. Our Long Island is growing very fast & so many people coming here to live & so many house (sic) being built.
Love to all,
Helen
Thought you folks would be here before now
Unfortunately, I'm not sure who Helen is or how she knew my maternal grandfather, Debs Warren Webster. In the summer of 1952, my grandfather, Debs, and his family emigrated from Brazil to the United States. The family arrived in New York, purchased a car and some camping equipment, and then traveled across the country toward their final destination in Southern California. Perhaps they stopped to visit Helen before they left for California.
I think it's interesting that Helen said, "Our Long Island is growing very fast…." According to an article in Wikipedia, the population of Long Island in 1950 was 5,237,918. In 2012, the population was listed as 7,686,912.
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.
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.
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."
