This is a view of the tunnel entrance on the US 441 highway as it traverses the Great Smoky Mountains through Sevier County, Tennessee.
The description states:
THE LOWER TUNNEL on the Transmountain Highway U.S. 441 through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. To the left may be seen the Chimney Tops which dominate the view for several miles along this highway. This is one of two tunnels on this highway which were built in order to avoid steep grades as the highway climbs to the top of the main range of the Great Smoky Mountains.
The picture is dated on the card as taken in 1955.
Tag: 1950s
Congregational Church, Midway, Georgia
This postcard depicts the antebellum church of Midway, GA. It is a Congregational Church building reconstructed in 1792 after the original structure was destroyed by British soldiers during the American Revolutionary War.
The description states:
MIDWAY
One of the oldest settlements in Georgia, famous for its old church of simple architecture containing a large slave gallery, high pulpit and plain pews. Across the highway is the graveyard shadowed by magnificent oaks.
— The postcard most likely dates from the late 1950’s, since this was the only time my family was living or visiting in Georgia. My father was stationed as a soldier at Fort Stewart near Savannah, and Midway is a few miles SSW of the city.
Mackinac Bridge Construction, Michigan
This 59 cent folio of postcard photos depicts the construction of the Mackinac Bridge across the straits of the same name in the mid-1950s. It was opened to traffic on 1 November 1957.
This folio was produced before the completion of the bridge in 1957, as evidenced by the absence of photos of the opening or vehicles on the bridge. Also, the Toll Gate and Administration building card is an artist’s rendition and not a photograph, since the structures were not complete either by the publication of this collection.
There is an ongoing controversy about the ‘longest bridge’, which is hinted at in the last illustration above. Some have championed the Bay Bridge spanning the distance between San Francisco and Oakland, CA. However, this is a multi-span bridge that ‘island hops’ along the way. The illustration above compares only single-span suspension bridges, but even in this comparison there is room for dispute. While the Big Mac, as it has come to be called, is longer from pier to pier, the Golden Gate is longer between towers. Both have since been surpassed on this measure by the Verrazano Narrows Bridge.
High Life Motel, Indian River, Michigan
This is a promotional postcard for the High Life Motel, Inc. It would appear there are not a lot of rooms or that the entire structure is not shown in this photo, since there are only two entry doors, two parked cars and the elevated center section, which presumably houses the office.
The motel was located in the northern central area of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, near the town of Indian River.
The description on the back reads:
High Life Motel, Inc.
The North’s most modern. Overnight – Shuffleboard – Miniature Golf – Picnic Grounds – Fishing – Artesian well – On U.S. 27 1/2 mile north of Indian River, Michigan.
The card is dated 1956, which is confirmed by the cars in the photo. US 27 has largely been abandoned or absorbed into state highways in the Michigan area.
North Park College and Theological Seminary, Illinois
This weekend features a postcard folio of the educational institution where my great uncle C A Jacokes taught as a Math professor most of his professional life. I don’t list his full name since he didn’t have one. He was named C A on his birth certificate and was always referred to by the family as C A.
This folio is dated 1960, which was just after North Park renamed itself as a College. in 1997 it was retitled again to North Park University, while remaining in its original location in the Chicago suburbs and its original function as the sole seminary for the Evangelical Covenant Church.
Mentioned in the descriptive text is North Park Academy, a high school program operated by the College. It was closed after graduation ceremonies in 1969.
Curiously, the captions on the portrait format photos are along the long edge intstead of the bottom of the photos, which would match the other photos in this collection. Presumably, the manual layout techniques of this era did not allow for the publisher to put captions on the short edges, something that would be trivial today.
These photos also show some interesting historical details of the technology and lifestyles of that time, particularly in the campus store, the language lab and the medical clinic.
The Lakehead – Kakabeka Falls, Ontario Canada
This folio presents images of the area around Kakabeka Falls, Ontario, which is just west of Thunder Bay, Ontario and a bit north of the eastern tip of Minnesota as it runs along Lake Superior.
The folio is unused and undated, but the indications from the few cars and clothing styles shown point to the 1950’s.
Winter Haven, Florida Folio Collection 1951
Today introduces the postcard folio type. This is a collection of images in a single postcard cover, intended to be sent as a complete package. As such it differs from the postcard package, which is an accordion folded collection of postcards meant (and marked) to be sent individually, though bought as one item.
This particular folio is of the Winter Garden, Florida area and environs. It was printed on a linen texture paper to give a more cloth look, a process created by Curt Teich and Co., Chicago IL.
This particular collection is copyright 1951, so the photos probably predate the copyright. Other pictures are of prominent civic buildings and landmarks, as well as the famous Cypress Gardens water skiing show.
Click on an image for the full frame.
Motel Tradewinds, Rapid City, South Dakota
Returning to the United States, here’s a card from one of the many hotels which dotted the 50’s landscape for the auto traveller. This one was wisely built at the intersection of two US highways: 14 and 16 in Rapid City, South Dakota, giving it an enviable location to entice weary travellers.
Careful viewing will discover the various rooms are named for European nations. In the upper shot the cabins are England, Greece and Poland, in the lower shot is Scotland in the background and Palestine in the left foreground along the road. In other versions available on the web this latter cabin appears to have been renamed Finland.
Captioned on the back
Motel Tradewinds, on US Highways 14 and 16, East Side of Rapid City, South Dakota – “At the sign of the Waving Man – Fifteen modern family units, individually heated, with or without cooking facilities. For reservations Phone F I llmore 2-7632. Your hosts Mr. and Mrs. Robert W. Beach
The postcard is used and postmarked August 30, 1956. A cursory search of the address online indicates the motel was demolished and replaced.
The Fish Market, Bergen, Norway
This is a colorful scene of the bustling Bergen fish market as it appeared in the mid-1950’s.
According to the postmark, this card was mailed from Oslo and is dated 11 July 1956.