1920s, General Correspondence, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois, Transportation, White Border (1915–1930)

Postcard #1083: Zephyr Flour, Quincy, IL — Ray to Pearl, December 1920

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Front of postcard #1083: A sepia-toned real photo of a grocery store window display. The window is filled with sacks of "Zephyr Flour" stacked in

Transcription

Back — Received your letter last night had made all purchases Thursday. Do not get to work at all Saturday So nothing happened will be there either in a.m. or be on [illegible] about noon for [illegible] was well. He [?] is late and am tired so will go mail this and retire Ray

Back of postcard #1083

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: QUINCY, ILL., DEC 20 [illegible]
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: White Border (1915–1930)
  • Stamp: 1¢ (two stamps) — Two 1-cent stamps applied side-by-side.
  • Distance Traveled: ~40 miles

About This Card

This real photo postcard of a grocery store window display in Quincy, Illinois is a small window into the retail world of early-twentieth-century commerce. The window is filled with sacks and containers — flour, possibly grain, canned goods — arranged for display in a manner that valued quantity and variety over design. Ray sent this card from Quincy with a brief note. Quincy grocery stores in this period served a large regional market, and the window display reflects the practical character of commerce in a river city that still had deep agricultural connections to its hinterland.

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1900s, Architecture, Buildings & Architecture, General Correspondence, Golden Age, People & Portraits, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois, Transportation

Postcard #0070: Sepia-toned postcard showing the stone-built Public Library, Quincy, IL — Alley to Pearl, October 1908

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Front of postcard #0070: Sepia-toned postcard showing the stone-built Public Library in Quincy, Illinois. The architecture features a Richardsoni

Transcription

Front — ] A.E.T.

Back — ] Dear Pearl: Could not find any card of the telephone office but will send you one when they get some more in. Everything perfectly lovely here. how is [crossed out] is sister? Write sooner. Alley.

Back of postcard #0070

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: QUINCY, ILL., OCT 15 1908
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Stamp: 1¢
  • Distance Traveled: ~35 miles
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1900s, General Correspondence, Golden Age, Nature & Landscapes, Parks & Nature, Parks & Recreation, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois, Transportation

Postcard #0064: stone arch bridge over a stream in South Park, Quincy, IL — Dora C to Pearl, June 1908

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Front of postcard #0064: Color lithograph showing a stone arch bridge over a stream in South Park, Quincy, Illinois, with lush green trees on bot

Transcription

Back — Dora C. ] D. H. C.

Back of postcard #0064

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: Quincy, Ill., JUN 30 1908
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Publisher: The Heidbreder Pharmacies, Quincy, Illinois
  • Print Origin: Printed in Germany
  • Stamp: 1¢ — Canceled with a wavy US flag machine postmark.
  • Distance Traveled: ~40 miles

About This Card

South Park in Quincy runs along the bluffs above the Mississippi River, and the stone arch bridge shown on this card crossed one of its ravines. The park system was developed in the 1870s and 1880s when Quincy was prosperous enough to invest in civic amenities. Dora C. sent this card in June 1908 — early in Pearl’s correspondence years, when many of these cards were still finding their way from near and far.

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1900s, Buildings & Architecture, General Correspondence, Golden Age, People & Portraits, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois

Postcard #0063: stone Government Building in Quincy, Quincy, IL — Dove to Pearl, August 1907

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Front of postcard #0063: Black and white illustration of the stone Government Building in Quincy, Illinois, featuring prominent arched doorways o

Transcription

Front — Dove.

Back of postcard #0063

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: Quincy, ILL., AUG 23 1907
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Publisher: J. Murray Jordan, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Stamp: 1¢
  • Distance Traveled: ~35 miles

About This Card

The Government Building on Maine Street in Quincy — serving as both post office and federal courthouse — was completed in 1888 and represented one of the most substantial federal investments in the region. Quincy’s position on the Mississippi River had made it an important commercial center since the 1840s, but by 1907 the railroads had long since reorganized traffic patterns and the city’s relative importance had begun to decline.

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1900s, City & Street Scenes, General Correspondence, Golden Age, Nature & Landscapes, Parks & Nature, Parks & Recreation, Sent From: Unknown, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: No Specific Location, Transportation

Postcard #0062: Washington Park, Quincy — Allie to Pearl, August 1908

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Front of postcard #0062: A colorized postcard depicting Washington Park in downtown Quincy, Illinois, featuring a spacious green lawn shaded by m

Transcription

Back — We were good girls and went to S. S. this morning. The girl student from India is in our class. We have only two blocks to go to church. Saw Roy Coleman. Haven’t seen Wade. Allie.

Back of postcard #0062

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: QUINCY, NOT VISIBLE, AUG 31 1908
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Publisher: S. H. Knox & Co. / T. C. Co. (Curt Teich), Quincy, Illinois / Chicago, Illinois
  • Stamp: 1¢
  • Distance Traveled: ~35 miles

About This Card

Washington Park in downtown Quincy, Illinois is where the sixth Lincoln-Douglas debate was held on October 13, 1858. An estimated 12,000 people gathered to hear Abraham Lincoln and Senator Stephen Douglas argue over slavery and the future of the Union — the largest crowd of any of the seven debates. Illinois voters returned Douglas to the Senate that November, but Lincoln won the Republican nomination for president two years later. The park has marked the debate site ever since.

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1900s, Architecture, Buildings & Architecture, General Correspondence, Golden Age, People & Portraits, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois, Transportation

Postcard #0061: Quincy High School, Quincy, IL — M W to Pearl, November 1909

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Front of postcard #0061: Color postcard illustration depicting the exterior of Quincy High School, a large multi-story red brick building with a

Transcription

Back — M W

Back of postcard #0061

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: Quincy, Ill., NOV 17 09
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Publisher: Court House Pharmacy, Quincy, Illinois
  • Print Origin: Printed in Germany
  • Stamp: 1¢
  • Distance Traveled: ~35 miles
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1900s, Architecture, Buildings & Architecture, General Correspondence, Golden Age, Nature & Landscapes, Parks & Nature, Parks & Recreation, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois, Transportation

Postcard #0060: Highland Park, Quincy, IL — Ada to Pearl, September 1909

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Front of postcard #0060: Color postcard showing a scenic view of Highland Park in Quincy, Illinois. Lush green trees and grassy banks are reflect

Transcription

Back — 918 1/2 Bdwy, Quincy Ill Hello Noodles: you will be surprised to get this card but why shouldn’t you be. Just see who it is from. I kid you ought to be down here. I have been running all after noon. Well Dearie call me up some time, Ada,

Back of postcard #0060

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: Quincy, Ill., SEP 24 1909
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Publisher: S. H. KNOX & CO.
  • Print Origin: Printed in America
  • Stamp: 1¢
  • Distance Traveled: ~35 miles
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1900s, Architecture, Buildings & Architecture, General Correspondence, Golden Age, Sent From: Illinois, Sent To: Carthage, IL, Sights Collection, Subject: Illinois, Transportation

Postcard #0059: Emma Carrol, Quincy, IL — Emma C to Pearl, May 1909

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Front of postcard #0059: Colored photo-postcard showing the grand exterior of the Adams County Court House in Quincy, Illinois, featuring a large

Transcription

Front — ] Emma Carrol ] having lulu [?] time With [?] Love Emma C.

Back of postcard #0059

Postcard Information

  • Postmark: QUINCY, ILL., MAY 19 09
  • Sent To: Carthage IL
  • Era: Golden Age (1907–1915)
  • Publisher: C. U. Williams, Photœtte, Bloomington, Illinois
  • Stamp: 1¢
  • Distance Traveled: ~40 miles

About This Card

The Adams County Courthouse in Quincy, Illinois was completed in 1885 in a Romanesque Revival style, replacing an earlier structure. Quincy was one of the more significant cities on the upper Mississippi in the 19th century — large enough to host the sixth Lincoln-Douglas debate in October 1858, drawing an estimated crowd of twelve thousand people to Washington Park, a few blocks from the courthouse. Emma Carroll was writing from a city with a serious civic tradition, even if her note was brief.

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