Alan Mays' photos with the keyword: feathers

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of booze and music . "Hamburg-St. Pauli. Zillertal bleibt Zillertal." ("Zillertal remains the Zillertal.") Partially visible on the wall in the background: "Schaug das'd in Schwung kimmst!" (According to one source, this translates as "I see you come to life" in the Bavarian dialect). This is a souvenir real photo postcard from the Zillertal, a Bavarian-style beer hall that was located in the notorious Reeperbahn area in the St. Pauli district of Hamburg , Germany. The man wearing a suit and holding a baton is a tourist pretending to be the conductor of the house band, whose lederhosen-clad members are surrounding him. Other souvenir photos typically show the band with groups of tourists holding mugs of beer. See the Zillertal, Hamburg section of the Reardon Smith Ships site for photos of the exterior and interior of the Zillertal along with two more souvenir pictures.

An on the water photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A curious photo of a boy and a dog in a rowboat out on the water. Both of them are looking toward the photographer, who's on the shore or in another boat. The boy is holding a fish in one hand and a fishing rod in the other, and he's wearing a headdress and other clothing in imitation of Native American garb (for a closer view, see a cropped version ). Along the far shore in the background is what looks like the silhouette of a swan, though it seems much too big to be a real bird. This is an unused real photo postcard with an AZO stamp box on the back that suggests that the photo may date to sometime between 1904 and 1918 (or perhaps later).

Although this postcard--with a postmark dated February 13, 1911--is intended to convey a patriotic sentiment, the idea of Cupid kneeling down and holding up what appears to be a still-steaming heart makes it feel too much like a sacrificial offering to me. To My Valentine To the banner above I surrender with glee, My heart and my love; Dearest Sweetheart for thee.

"Thanksgiving Greeting." A turkey seems to be hiding inside a hollowed-out pumpkin in this Thanksgiving postcard from the early twentieth century.

A Valentine's Day postcard dated 1909 on the front and postmarked Burlington, Vt., Feb. 13, 1911, on the back. Cupids play football with hearts, as we see here (above), but they also use them in bowling (below). And, of course, cupids need to maintain their stock of hearts, which may require sweeping, netting, weighing, and mending, as we can see in this selection of early twentieth-century postcards (below).

"The Manhattan, A. J. Meloney, prop. South Carolina Avenue, Atlantic City, N.J. Near the beach." The proprietor of the Manhattan Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, used an illustration of a Native American on his business card. See below for a selection of other late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century hotel business cards. For additional examples, see my Hotels and Motels album.

See the Kodak maiden, See the silly chap; He has lots of money So she has "a snap!" Published by A. S. Meeker, New York, in 1908, this comic postcard was part of an "'Embossed Comics' Series." Postmarked Lincoln, Nebraska, May 7, 1909, on the back.

"For state senator, 1888: John H. Landis, of Manor Township. Subject to Republican rules. 'A fraud in the count is the destruction of Republican government.'--James G. Blaine." John H. Landis, from Manor Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, used this card when he ran for state senator in 1888. He quoted James G. Blaine , a Republican party leader who was the unsuccessful presidential nominee in 1884. Blaine was nicknamed the "Plumed Knight," and it's likely that the feather, or "plume," on the card was a reference to Blaine. Interestingly, commentary on the front page of the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer , March 19, 1888 , specifically mentioned this card: "Candidate Landis got a good bit of cheap advertising as the prosecutor of the Indiantown and Sixth Ward election boards and the discussion of the cases has caused him to be known in every household of the county as the champion of a fair election and honest return. His campaign card bears on it a white plume and this extract from one of Blaine's speeches, 'A fraud in the count is the destruction of Republican government.'... If Landis gets the vote in this city his friends look for, he will pull through." Landis lost the election to the incumbent, State Senator Amos H. Mylin.

"This is to certify that Mrs. Mary Ritters is a full feathered charter member of the Ron Drake Bird Watching Society, WHP radio 580." A Bird Watching Society membership card issued to fans of the popular radio personality Ron Drake (a "drake" is also a bird, get it?), who was active on the air in Harrisburg, Pa., from the 1960s until his retirement in 1982. Sadly, Drake passed away in 2005 .

What means this shoe so very new? Why, "23" skidoo, skidoo! But if you'll be my Valentine, This shoe, my love, will not fit you. The "23 skidoo" fad--a joking way to tell someone to "scram" or "get lost"--was popular in the 1900s and 1910s. For an amazing compilation of information regarding the fad, see the 23 Skidoo Postcards Web site. Postmarked: Newark, N.J., Feb. 13, 1909. Sent to: Mr. Miles Tarbell, Groton, Tompkins County, New York. Message: Yours sincerely, Belle D.

"With freedom's soil beneath our feet, and freedom's banner streaming o'er us." (Lines from Joseph Rodman Drake's poem, "The American Flag.")

Printed on the back of this real photo postcard: "Modern Photo Studio, 451 Sixth Ave., N.Y. City."

Printed on back of this real photo postcard: "Myers Cope Co., 1521 & 1635 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, N.J." Handwritten on back: "Aunt Sara Gongaware."

Printed on back of this real photo postcard: "Atlantic City Souvenir. Myers Cope Co., 1635 & 1521 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, N.J."

"In closing the books of the old year we take great pleasure in voicing our appreciation for past favors. On your page we would inscribe these joyful words: health, happiness, and prosperity. Herr and Company, Lancaster, Pa. H & Co. Greetings. Credits for you: 52 weeks of health, happiness, and prosperity."