Cowson Farm

A farm photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

When I first noticed this real photo postcard in a dealer's booth at an antique mall in York County, Pennsylvania, it was obvious that the photo wasn't in very good shape (and it did require a bit of touch-up to make it presentable for posting here), but I found the farm scene to be quite interesting.

The sturdy stone house, windmill, large barn, and well-maintained outbuildings, along with the two dozen Holstein cows grazing in the pasture, make it evident that a prosperous farmer and his family lived here. The forebay--the overhang that extends from the front of the barn--and the corresponding banked entrance to the second level on the other side (it's not visible in the photo) identify this as a type of bank barn known as a Pennsylvania barn due to its popularity in the state during the nineteenth century.

Taking a closer look at the scene, I realized that a man--the farmer, perhaps?--and two boys and a girl--his children?--were also out standing in their field (the man is standing in front of the cows just right of center, the two boys are on the left, and the white dress of the girl is visible near the building on the right). Later, when I viewed the photo under magnification, I discovered that the little white and brown dots located between the cows are actually chickens.

As I debated whether to purchase the photo--its condition wasn't the best, and the price was a little more than I wanted to pay--I looked for any information on the postcard that might help identify the farm's location or maybe even the family. Unfortunately, there was nothing written on the back nor was the postcard sent through the mail, so there wasn't any postmark.

But then I saw the dealer's tag, which said "Cowson Farm." That clinched it! With some research and a little luck, I might be able to determine where the Cowsons lived (probably somewhere in Pennsylvania and maybe even in York County). If I could identify the farm, then perhaps I could even take a photo of its current condition to compare with this earlier one.

I took the real photo postcard to the main counter at the antique mall in order to pay for it. Since the cashier was removing the dealer's tag from the postcard, I wanted to be certain that I had noted the name of the farm correctly, and I asked to see the tag before she put it away.

The cashier took a glance at the tag and then told me, "Well, the only thing it says is 'Cows on Farm.'"

Doggonit! Even though I misread the tag and won't be tracking down any information on the Cowson family, I still have a decent photo of cows--and they're on a farm! 8-)