Alan Mays' photos with the keyword: snowballs

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of tree (in a studio photo) . Caption: "I'll Eat Oranges for You — You Throw Snow Balls for Me." This is a real photo postcard sent sometime after Thanksgiving in 1922 from "Aunt Orpha" in California to "Master George Myers" in Burbank, Ohio. Printed on the other side: "Orange Grove Souvenir. Novelty Studios, 520 S. Broadway & 414 W. 7th, Los Angeles, Cal." Handwritten message: "My dear George. This man is a male nurse. He was in training when I was. We had a turkey dinner [on] Thanksgiving. What did you have? Aunt Ella was with us and your Uncle Tom's niece. By-by. Your Aunt Orpha." The "eat oranges" / "throw snowballs" caption appeared on souvenir photo postcards like this one that tourists in sunny California could send to relatives enduring winter weather back home. For another example, see I'll Eat Oranges for You—You Throw Snowballs for Me .

A photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park monthly topic of snow (submit a photo on this topic each week in addition to—or instead of—a photo for the weekly topic) . Five fellows are flinging snow at each other in this real photo postcard. No date or location, unfortunately.

For more information, see the cropped version of this photo:

For more information, see the cropped version of this photo:

A photo of ice skating/skiing/sledging or any fun in the snow for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. This is a photo mounted on cardboard (see the full version below) with the handwritten caption, "On the Normal Campus." Written on the back of the photo are the names of these four young women (mouse over the image above for a close-up view ), who were obviously having fun in the snow as they posed with snowballs: To the left of tree, Catharine Shoup. To the right, and back, Jennie Moyer, Altoona, Pa. To the right, Kathryn Kleckner, Mifflinburg, Pa. In front, Lulu Patton, Warriors' Mark, Pa. I believe that they were studying to be teachers at one of the "normal schools" in Pennsylvania at the time the photo was taken, which was probably sometime in the late 1890s or early 1900s. A normal school , as Wikipedia explains, is simply "a school created to train high school graduates to be teachers." Today we'd typically call them teachers' colleges rather than normal schools. Given the women's names, the home locations for three of them, and the distinctive building with a tower or belfry in the background of the photo, I thought it would be an easy matter to determine what school they were attending when this photo was taken. But I haven't yet been able to place them at a specific school. After searching Find A Grave and other sources, however, I was able to find some information about two of them. Catharine H. Shoup (1883-1977), who's holding a snowball as she stands to the left of the tree in the photo, was a teacher and principal for many years at the Irving School, which I believe was an elementary school in Altoona, Pa. I also located an obituary for Lulu Rose Patton (1881-1932), who's pretending to fend off snowballs as she sits in front of the tree. The Daily News , Huntingdon, Pa., Thursday, August 4, 1932, p. 12, reported the following: ". . . Miss Lulu R. Patton, a missionary in Canton, China, under the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions, died on Tuesday night [August 2; other sources give the date as August 3]. . . . Miss Patton was visiting her brother, the Rev. Charles E. Patton, vice president of the Presbyterian board and located at Shanghai, China, at the time of her death. . . . Miss Patton went to China in 1908 as a missionary, coming home about every five years for a vacation. She was last home three years ago. She was identified with the Union Normal School in Canton." When I finally found this obituary and realized that Lulu Patton was a teacher at the Union Normal School in Canton, China, I thought surely that the photo must have been taken there. But then I discovered--alas!--that the city of Canton (now called Guangzhou ) is located in a humid subtropical region, where there is no snow for making snowballs.

"Happy New Year. Christmas cards and holiday goods. John F. Clarke, 104 Fulton St., N.Y." An interesting item of Victoriana despite its discoloration, this trade card served as an advertisement for John F. Clarke's business and provided a New Year greeting for his customers. In the curious illustration on the card, Father Time has dropped his scythe and hourglass. He's wearing sandals on his feet as he trudges away through the snow, and he's taking refuge behind a huge open book. Was he planning to "close the books" on the old year with the oversized ledger? Father Time is using the enormous tome to deflect the snowballs that an impetuous young schoolboy (apparently an older-than-usual representation of Baby New Year ) is hurling at him. The boy's snowball barrage is so relentless that Father Time has given up—he's departing the scene and yielding the New Year to the new kid on the block.

"I'll eat oranges for you—you throw snowballs for me." Embossed studio name and address: "Flag Studio, 25 E. Colo. St., Pasadena." See also a cropped version of this real photo postcard:

"I'll eat oranges for you—you throw snowballs for me." Embossed studio name and address: "Flag Studio, 25 E. Colo. St., Pasadena." Vacationing in sunny California during the winter? You could rub it in by sending a souvenir real photo postcard like this one to your friends and family in colder climes back home. Here's the full version of this real photo postcard:

"May joy be around you." A Victorian-era calling card with a winter theme for Christmas. See also a card for Harry Sprenkil that uses the same illustration.

"Harry Sprenkil. May joy be around you." A Victorian-era calling card with a winter theme for Christmas. See also a card for Horatio J. Brinkman that uses the same illustration.

"I pray thee accept my Christmas greeting." Or else I'll throw a snowball at you!