This image shows an example cabin and interiors of the facility known as Legion Lake Resort, Custer, South Dakota, within the boundaries of Custer State Park.
The description states:
LEGION LAKE RESORT
Boating – Fishing – Swimming – Western Riding. A delightful place to rest. A cool, invigorating, enjoyable place to spend a week or two, while you see the Hills. A state-owned resort, serving only the beset, including Buffalo and Elk steaks.
–Now known as Legion Lake Lodge, the resort is still there in much the same configuration as shown in the sample images above, but with extensive modernization and further construction of facilities.
This postcard likely dates from the 1950s.
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With this card I come to the end of my personal collection of postcards and similar souvenirs, dating from the beginning of the 20th century to the 1970s. In all, there have been over 1500 postcards displayed and described over the course of just more than 4 years.
I will take a brief hiatus from posting, no more than a couple of weeks, and choose the next topic of my pictorial historic journeys.
I hope these have proven to be occasionally interesting, edifying and informative.
Month: July 2017
Sundown Motor Court, Spearfish, South Dakota
This illustration shows an idealized view of the motel known as the Sundown Motor Court in Spearfish, South Dakota.
The description states:
SUNDOWN MOTOR COURTS
All new modern cabins – Some with cooking facilities – 26 units in all. Open year round. On highway 14 & 85 in Spearfish, South Dakota. Phone 28
–As one might imagine, a two digit phone number is indicative of a very small town with limited phone service at the time of this postcard. The city of Spearfish is located near the head of Spearfish Canyon, at the northern edge of the Black Hills National Forest.
This card was used and is dated 23 June 1954.
Badlands National Monument, South Dakota
This image shows the treeless and often barren ground as well as the naked rock formations of hills and mountains that make up large portions of Badlands National Monument in South Dakota.
The description states:
SCENE IN BAD LANDS NATIONAL MONUMENT, S. DAK.
These colorful desert mountains have been backgrounds to recent Hollywood Technicolor movie productions. Scene between Wall and Cedar Pass, S. Dak.
–The monument was upgraded to National Park status in 1978. These stark locations have been the site of not only the more predictable Western films, but also of science fiction films seeking an alien looking landscape.
This card was used and is dated 25 August 1954
Mountain ‘Needles’, South Dakota
This image shows eroded rock formations part of the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota.
The description states:
SENTINEL ROCKS, watchmen of the Forest, towering hundreds of feet in the air.
–These are directly visible to tourists via the road seen here winding through the formations.
This card likely dates from the 1950s.
Cathedral Spires, South Dakota
This image shows the eroded and exposed mountain peaks that have been given the appellation Cathedral Spires, located in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
The description states:
CATHEDRAL SPIRES ON NEEDLES DRIVE
BLACK HILLS, SOUTH DAKOTA
–These eroded formations are located within the Black Hills National Forest, which was established at the end of the 19th Century by William McKinley.
This card was used and is dated 10 August 1955.
Needles Highway, South Dakota
This image is of a small section of the Needles Highway in Custer State Park in South Dakota, featuring one of many tunnel sections carved from the massive rock formations along the highway.
The description on this card is unreadable due to damage on the card, some of which is visible in the upper section of the photo. The road is also known as South Dakota Highway 87.
This card likely dates from the 1950s.
Cattle Branding, New Mexico
This image shows a number of cowboys during a roundup with several holding one cow while another brands it with a long handled metal branding iron.
The description states simply:
N-34 — BRANDING CATTLE IN THE SOUTHWEST
–Such scenes are less common now with ear tagging of cattle which provides much more information for regulators as well as owners, along with doing no damage to the valuable hide.
The exact location is not known, but the card was printed in New Mexico, so it is presumed the photo was taken in that state.
This card was used and is dated 11 July 1953.
Pigtail Bridge, South Dakota
This image shows the well known Pigtail Bridge, located on Iron Mountain Road near the Mount Rushmore National Monument in South Dakota.
The description states:
Unique in design and construction, this pigtail bridge on the Iron Mountain Road enables the motorist to attain great altitude in a very short distance. IN the distance can be seen the faces of Mount Rushmore Memorial.
–A comparison of a more recent view of the bridge on the link above shows that the bridge and surrounding road are essentially unchanged. Moving from right to left the bridge curves towards the viewer in this perspective and then crosses under itself as it descends.
This card was used and is dated 26 June 1950.
Walking Trail, Cowell Redwoods, California
This image shows a portion of the interpretive trail built for visitors to walk and see a portion of the Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, near Santa Cruz, California.
The description states:
PATHWAY THROUGH THE REDWOODS
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park,
Santa Cruz County, California
Besides the stately redwoods, giant oak, laurel fir, sycamore and a variety of ferns and wild flowers thrive in this natural wonderland.
–The trail has a small guide brochure which features descriptions of important locales along the trail as marked by small sign posts, such as the one seen in the center background. These have since been replaced with more natural looking carved wooden markers.
This card was used and is dated 27 June 1955.
Redwoods and fencing along trail, California
This image shows part of a walking trail and the split-rail fence used to demarcate it to prevent hikers from damaging the root systems of the redwood trees.
The description states:
104 – CALIFORNIA REDWOODS
The redwoods, Sequoia Sempervirens, grow only along the Coast Range from Southern Oregon to Big Sur. The oldest of all living things, they often reach to a height of more than 300 feet and a diameter of 20 feet. For mile after mile the highway curves through the grace and beauty of magnificent groves of these monarchs of the forest.
–The trees have very shallow and wide root systems, which makes them particularly vulnerable to damage from large numbers of hikers or active vehicular traffic.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.