Cigarettes, Cigars, Tobacco, Pipes

"Hirschl & Bendheim, 419 N. 4th St., St. Louis, Mo., sole agents, 'Missouri Meerschaum,' cob pipes. Manufactured only by H. Tibbe & Son., M'f'g Co. No. 3. No. 7. Patent. Will call about August 31st. Solomon Hirschl." A postal card addressed on the other side to: "Messrs. H. Stern Jr. & Bro., Milwaukee, Wisc." Postmarked: "St. Louis, Mo., Aug. 23, 1893." Solomon Hirschl sent this to announce his sales call in advance of his trip from St. Louis to Milwaukee. This type of "advance card" was typical--see the Cigar History Museum's Salesmen’s Advance Cards for some other interesting examples. A Wikipedia search reveals that the Missouri Meerschaum Company (formerly H. Tibbe & Son) is still in business today and is the "world's oldest and largest manufacturer of corncob pipes."

"William Bohlmann, dealer in cigars and tobacco, No. 3 Main Street, Yonkers, N.Y."

"Camp Geo. G. Meade, Middletown, Pa. ________ 1898. Horse Shoe Plug Tobacco is the best." Top portion of a letterhead or billhead sheet--with a flag illustration and an advertisement for Horse Shoe plug tobacco--that was evidently printed for use at Camp Meade in Middletown, Pa., during the military camp's existence between August 24 and November 17, 1898. The 45-star version of the United States flag as seen here was in use from 1896 to 1908 (see the Historical Progression of Designs section in Wikipedia's Flag of the United States entry). As Wikipedia explains, " Camp George G. Meade near Middletown, Pennsylvania was a camp established and subsequently abandoned by the U.S. Volunteers during the Spanish American War. . . . Camp Meade was established August 24, 1898, and soon thereafter was occupied by the Second Army Corps of about 22,000 men, under command of Maj. Gen. William M. Graham, which had been moved from Camp Alger in an attempt to outrun the typhoid fever epidemic. Camp Meade was visited by President William McKinley on August 27, 1898. . . . Camp Meade was abandoned about November 17, 1898."

"Benj. H. Brubaker, dealer and packer of Pennsylvania seed-leaf tobacco. East Petersburg, Lanc. Co., Pa."

"S. N. Mumma & Co., packers of and dealers in leaf tobacco, Landisville, Pa. Represented by ________."

"MacCoboy Snuff, manufactured by Albert Sweetser, Saugus, Mass. Warranted good. Caution. The purchaser will confer a great favor by crossing or destroying the label, when the keg or jar is empty. Weight ________. Tare ________. Nett ________." -------- This label doesn't appear to be as old as the text and illustration seem to indicate, and it probably dates to the 1930s or later.

"Dear Sir, I have sent you by express, prepaid, several sample boxes of my 15, 10, and 25 cent cigars. You will also find matches and a cutter in the package. Should they please you, just drop us a postal and we will send you more samples. Your obliging servant, A. Stogie, Cigar Maker. April 1st"

"Recording of your favorite Christmas carols as sung by your L&M T.V. Quartet. 33½. rpm, 200 plays." A cardboard picture disc. Whoever cut it out didn't follow the circle precisely. Even though the disc is a bit misshapen, it looks like it might still play. I'm not sure what television show the L&M T.V. Quartet appeared on, but they look like an enthusiastic group of fellows.

For a National Temperance Society pledge card that urges abstinence from alcohol and profanity as well as tobacco, see Touch Not, Taste Not, Handle Not . Anti-Cigarette Pledge For the sake of strength and purity, I promise, with the help of God, never to use tobacco in any form, and to help others to abstain from its use. Name: Bessie G. Gilstrap. Date: Apr. 22, 1916. "If sinners entire thee, consent thou not." Prov. 1:10. Missionary Volunteer Pledge Series, No. 8.

Compare this pledge card with a Lincoln-Lee Legion Pledge Card, 1903 , and an Anti-Cigarette Pledge, 1916 . "Touch not. Taste not. Handle not. Pledge. I hereby promise, by the help of God, to abstain from the use of all intoxicating liquors, including wine, beer, and cider, as a beverage; from the use of tobacco in any form, and from all profanity. National Temperance Society, 58 Reade Street, New York."

"5¢. PeaceTime. 5¢."

"Central Studios. 369P. With 'Pete,' Our Gang Dog, Steel Pier, Atlantic City." Our Gang was "a series of American comedy short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and their adventures" that first appeared in movie theaters as early as the 1920s. The films were later released on television beginning in the 1950s under the original Our Gang name or as The Little Rascals . Pete the Pup , also known as Pete the Dog With the Ring Around His Eye, was a fixture in the comedies, and he (or his successor, whose ring was painted on) posed with children for souvenir photos like this one at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in the 1930s. The boy in this photo, who doesn't seem to be enjoying his time with Pete, is the same kid who's playing with his toys in Sonny, Bunny, and Dummy and A Pedal Car for Christmas .

An in disguise / in costume photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. This may appear to be a Halloween-time scene at first glance, but this real photo postcard of women dressed in men's clothing was actually taken during the month of June, judging by the calendar on the wall behind them. Although the calendar is partially hidden behind the women, I believe it's a bank calendar ("The ----- National Bank"), and it's possible that the location printed on it is Liberal, Kansas. Since June 4 falls on a Friday as shown on the calendar, I'm guessing that the year is 1915 (other possibilities are 1909, 1920, and 1926). The square for Saturday, June 12, seems to be specially marked, so perhaps they're getting ready for a party or some other frivolity on that date. For an interesting comparison, take a look at the trick or treat photo-- Boys' Night Out --that I posted to the Vintage Photos Theme Park about this same time last year:

Printed on the back of this real photo postcard: "Post Card Souvenir from Riverview Exposition, Chicago. Foster & Coultry - Official Photographers." This photo was taken at Chicago's Riverview Park , which was an amusement park that operated from 1904 to 1967 and was known as Riverview Exposition Park for a few years early in the twentieth century (one source says that it was called Riverview Exposition between 1909 and 1913). Both of the men in the photo are holding cigars, and the man on left has some sort of dog figurine or toy attached to his lapel. The man on the right is holding something under his arm but I can't tell what it is.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of up a tree (person, creature, thing) . This photo, which was labeled as an "unknown cigar factory" when I bought it at an antique mall, shows sixteen men posing in front of a house. Seven of them are standing, two are seated on the wooden sidewalk that runs along the street, five are leaning against a fence, and two are perched up in a tree. Five of the men are wearing striped work aprons. Similar photos at the same stand at the antique mall were identified as cigar factories in Akron , Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, so it's possible that this photo was also taken in Akron. See a cropped version of the photo for a better view of the men in the tree and on the ground.

Sixteen men pose in front of a house that served as a cigar factory. Note the two fellows who are perched precariously in the tree. For more information, see the full version of this photo.