George Washington's Birthday Today!

It is back to the birthdays on this blog. February 22 is the day of birth (on the Gregorian Calendar as opposed to the Julian Calendar used at the time) for General and first U.S. President George Washington. This is not to be confused with the crummy, watered-down version of Washington's Birthday included with all of the other Presidents (aka President's Day). In any event, here is a very nice postcard from circa 1909 to 1912 celebrating the day!

Victorian Era Valentine's Day Cards

Today is February 14 ... Valentine's Day. I finally break the streak of historic birthdays that have filled my blogs so far. For those you who are not aware, "Saint" Valentine was actually "decanonized" in 1955 and 1969 since the Bishop's actions and martyrdom have never been authenticated. Pertaining to a Saint or not, the day is still celebrated worldwide with cards, candy, balloons and hearts as opposed to any particular religious observance in most circles. When I went to Egypt in 2006, I saw people on the street with Valentine's gift bags and the like. Unfortunately in 2008, Saudi Arabian authorities demanded shop owners remove all Valentine's Day items as well as all items colored red including wrapping paper and flowers. There is actually a black market for roses in that country. Black market, huh ... drugs, guns, illegally excavated antiquities and now roses. What next??? I hope all Valentine's Day revellers realize how well they have it.

Just this month, I procured some very nice scrap-type Valentine's Day cards - all nineteenth century and, therefore, all Victorian. These are the real deal. Almost all have been dated on the back by the original owners (Mamie Brown, Ethel Brown and someone named Lulu).

I wore my Valentine's Day Tie for this one!

1886 - True love indeed ... take note of the lil' guy with the arrow:

The inside - looks like it was made blank for a personal message, but someone pasted a note into it:

Close-up:

1889 - this apparently was made for ladies whose beaus were soldiers:

1893 - a loving couple:

The inside:

A delightful card dated 1894 (the text under the kid's head is "My Love's sweet Music Fill thy hearts with Peace and Joy"):

A very interesting and unique example from 1895 - a girl's head in a flower! Occasionally one does in fact encounter such bizarre yet charming artwork from this era. All in all, a lovely specimen of Victoriana:

As you can see from my repeated attempts, this was a difficult piece to photograph:

1895 - exquisite and intricate detail here:

Close-up:

Unfortunately some damage to the one cherub - his head is gone!

The inside:

1897 - this is from the time when the Mozart-style look and characters of the eighteenth century made a comeback:

The inside:

Last and certainly not least - behold ... the love, the passion and the devotion explicit in the craftsmanship ... the epitome of Victorian scrap right here:

The card is undated and almost certainly so due to the fact that the postmarked envelope is present! 1899!! Embossed cover - very well made:

I hope to feature more antique and otherwise historic holiday items as the weeks and months approach!

Abraham Lincoln's Birthday And Bicentennial

Today, there were many events, presentations and celebrations pertaining to former President Abraham Lincoln and the 200th anniversary of his birth. One very special point of note is how the Library Of Congress has decided to bring out a few items in honor of Lincoln's bicentennial that are usually kept hidden. For Abe's 200th birthday I felt motivated to post some Lincoln-related pieces of memorabilia that the public rarely, if ever, gets to see ... I dug into the vault and pulled out some fine items: postcards, first day covers, newspapers, campaign tokens, a fragment of his home, a note from a Veteran who claims to have met him and even a sample of his handwriting ... ALL ORIGINAL - no reproductions or forgeries here.

As far as I know, no one bothered to make a big deal for his 50th birthday because he was still alive. People did make a big deal for his 100th and 150th celebrations and the first few items of the evening are postcards and FDC's from these years:

A postcard likely from 1909 - the stamp placed over the flag is certainly from 1909:

This one is postmarked 1911, and it could very well have been produced two years prior:

The following two FDC's were made in honor of his Sesquicentennial ...

1959

Now for a few artifacts from the time when Abe was still living ...

A newspaper from October 4, 1860:

1860 Campaign ... check out one of the headlines - "The Whole City on Fire for Lincoln and Hamlin!"

December 12, 1863:

Lincoln's State Of The Union Address:

His name closing the speech and a reference to the Emancipation Proclamation:

Now for some actual Campaign Tokens ...

1860 ... THE RAIL SPLITTER OF THE WEST ... as you can see this depicts Lincoln without a beard. The hole was made so a supporter could wear the token on a string:

1864 ... Abe is "O.K."

Here is an autographed note dated 1911 by a Civil War Vet named W.D. Davis ... Davis claims that he shook Lincoln's hand!

A small brick fragment that was once part of his home:

Finally, a fragment from a letter written by Abraham Lincoln himself.  The entire document was once owned by renowned collector Henry E. Luhrs.  It was also housed in The Lincoln Library located in Shippensburg, PA.  Then, in February of 2006, it was auctioned off by Heritage Auction Galleries to someone who cut the document up in order to sell it as sample fragments so collectors could afford authentic Lincoln handwriting.  It is a concern that letters are being chopped up.  In any event, here is the word "were".

The library's authentication and transcription:

A photocopy of the entire letter:

The original clipping (placed on the bottom right) on top of the photocopy ... the word "were" is found on line five from the bottom:

I hope that all of you enjoyed this unique opportunity to view artifacts pertaining to, and, some, contemporaneous to, the time that Abraham Lincoln lived on this planet. I am YOUR Portal To The Past!

William Henry Harrison - Born On This Day In 1773

Four American Presidents were born in the month of February. Three of them (George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan) enjoy great popularity today while one of them is largely known only by name ... if that. William Henry Harrison, of the Whig Party, was born on February 9, 1773. There are plenty of books and websites should anyone wish to research Harrison so I will only list three facts about him: 1.) He is known for having the shortest stay in the White House, a mere thirty-two days, 2.) He is known for being the only Grandfather of a President (his Grandson was Benjamin Harrison) and 3.) He had the great misfortune of living to see six out of his nine children pass away.

By the way, although the U.S. Mint's website currently does not have a release date for the William Harrison One Dollar Coin, it will certainly be in bank vaults this month. One online source references a date of February 19, 2009.

Below are some artifacts pertaining to and relating to William Henry Harrison.

Here are four Presidential Campaign Tokens from his successful "Log Cabin" Campaign of 1840 (note his nickname Tippecanoe on one of them as well as the overall variations):

Obverse (two views)

Reverse (two views)

A letter from March 18, 1887, signed by his Grandson, Benjamin, that makes reference to William as "Grand-father".

Close-up of the text:

He did not wear a Wig ... he WAS a Whig! Happy Birthday to William Henry Harrison!!!