This aerial view of Gerber Products Company, the largest business in Fremont for many decades shows the plant as it looked some time before the second world war. The founder, Dan Gerber, was a resident of Fremont and built his baby food company from a canning business owned by his father.
The image of the child in the upper left corner, known as the Gerber Baby, was used continuously on Gerber baby food products and other items. It is a portrait of the five month old Ann Turner Cook.
This postcard was used and is dated 8 July 1939.
Category: Postcards From Another Millennium
Postcards from various decades of the 20th century.
Main Street, Fremont, Michigan
This image is of one of the main streets in the town of Fremont, Michigan. The presence of the Fremont State Bank on the corner indicates this is a view down Main Street, as the historic building is still recorded as being at 2 Main Street.
This image is typical of a more informal style of postcard, where the conditions are not strictly controlled and individuals or vehicles are often in natural locations rather than posed or removed.
This card was used and is dated 14 July 1939.
Dam and Bridge, Homer Michigan
This image of Homer Dam seems deceptively modern, but the presence of the horse-drawn buggy indicates that it predates the wide use of automobiles in the area of Homer, Michigan. By clicking the image to access the full sized version, you can also clearly identify another wagon at the curve of the road in the left background.
The dam has long since ceased to be used as such, and the Kalamazoo River flows unimpeded beneath the roadway over the old dam gates.
This card was used and is dated 8 August 1914.
Logging Sled, Cadillac, Michigan
This image shows the prodigious amount of logs that would be loaded onto a two-horse sled for transport to the nearest mill. Presumably the additional weight of the lumbermen and driver did not add a meaningful amount to the effort required by the horses.
The men appear to be equipped with a typical tool of the era called a Peavey, a pointed variation of the cant hook.
The card was used and is dated 23 July 1909.
City Hall, Saginaw, Michigan
This is an image of the former city hall for the city of Saginaw, Michigan. It was built in 1891 after the merger of Saginaw and East Saginaw, and was on S. Washington Ave.
The building was destroyed by fire on April 9, 1935, and replaced by the current City Hall structure on the same site.
This card was used and is dated 29 October 1909. The card is in poor condition, with tears and folds. The corners are not original, and were cut by the recipient.
Rock Point, Presque Isle, Marquette, Michigan
This image shows the spot known as Rock Point in the foreground, and the Middle Island of the Presque Isle chain in the background. The island chain juts out from the shore at Marquette, Michigan and was developed as a park by Frederick Law Olmstead, who also designed Central Park in New York.
There is no description on the back of the card.
This card was used and sent from Marquette. The person addressing the card did not have the clearest handwriting, and it was mis-sent to Farwell, where it was re-cancelled and forwarded on to the town of Lowell. It is dated 24 July 1914.
Hackley Public Library, Muskegon, Michigan
This card has an image of the Hackley Public Library building as it looked at the turn of the 20th Century. The building is much larger than it appears from the photo, enclosing over 27,000 square feet of space. It is still in use as a library.
There is no description on the back. As was common in the early days of postcards, there is a message on the front, but not the back, which has only the address, stamp and cancellation.
This card is dated 4 September 1909.
Central Avenue, Belle Isle Park, Detroit, Michigan
This photo is a view down the long roadway on Belle Isle, an island in the middle of the Detroit River between the state of Michigan and Ontario, Canada. It’s design originates from the 1880s, but was not completed as designed.
Clicking on the image reveals that there are no automobiles visible, partly because it is very early in the automobile era, and partly because the island had no road access at that time. It is now connected with a bridge from the Michigan side, and is managed as a Michigan state park.
This card was used and is dated 20 August 1908.
Monument Park, Grand Rapids, Michigan
This image shows the well-known landmark in the downtown of Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is a memorial to the soldiers who took part in the American Civil War from the Grand Rapids area. The statue has been moved recently a small distance within the park, and now stands overlooking the junction of Fulton and Division Streets at the center of the city.
The monument is unusual as it was the first to include a built-in fountain, and also commemorates the activities of women during the Civil War.
This card was used and is dated 28 April 1914.
Alma Manufacturing, Alma, Michigan
This card shows a factory as it looked near the beginning of the 20th century. It is clearly labelled Alma Manufacturing, and was located in Alma Michigan. It apparently produced woodworking machinery, steam and gasoline engines during its history.
There is no description on the back of the card. This company was renamed in 1913 to Alma Motor Truck Company, so this image predates that event. This card was used, and is postmarked 14 April 1913.