let's get a treat

I would so love to go to this Soda Fountain in Portland. Unfortunately, it's long gone. I would like someone in Portland to make a sweet pretty place like this ( no more 50's style diners, please) where we can get green river sodas and malts with extra malt.

This soda fountain postcard was sent April 9th, 1914 to Mrs William Forest in Fairview, OR. It was sent by Lizzie and she started the note off with "Sisters".

Lizzie was taking care of some people who had the measles. The people with the measles lived at 1279 E Yamhill. The exact house number is not there. It could be gone or renumbered. There are some old houses in that neighborhood.

The Holland Restaurant is another lost restaurant I totally want to go. I see these postcards pretty regularly. The Holland was a pretty popular place from what I gather and I think there were more than one. The last one closed in 2001. It was in Vancouver.

The people behind the Holland are the same people who own the Burgerville Fast Food local chain. Which, by the way, is the best fast food ever. So, good, lots of quality, local foods and good vegetarian options.

Here's some good info about The Holland / Burgerville history:

In 1922, Jacob Propstra, a Dutch immigrant who had moved to the United States in 1912, and shortly thereafter took a job at the Old Imperial Creamery in Portland, founded the Holland Creamery in downtown Vancouver, Washington. The butter and egg business evolved into the Holland Butter and Ice Cream Co., and when Sunday visitors stopped by to sample the product, Propstra added cones. In 1928, the business moved to another nearby location. Propstra put in tables and chairs, and, in 1933, he began to offer cheese sandwiches at the newly expanded Holland Restaurant. The average per customer sale at the time added up to about 11 cents.

In 1935, shortly after the restaurant began to offer sandwiches, George Propstra, Jacob's son, who was three months short of completing a college business degree, joined his father in the family business. George Propstra had started out scooping ice cream, washing cans, and wrapping butter as a boy, along with his two brothers--all "part and parcel of being in one of those dairy families," as he described it in a 1982 Oregonian article.

In 1956, Jacob Propstra retired and George Propstra assumed control of the business and "realized that the butter, egg, and ice cream businesses were all to be dominated by big outfits. ... We finally saw the handwriting on the wall," he was quoted as saying in the Oregonian. "[A]t the time, we were a one-horse operation." However, there was room to grow in the restaurant business. "We had had a taste of the restaurant business and could see it was a small man's business. You could grow slowly and carefully, opening one restaurant at a time." In 1957, The Holland added a $30,000 bakery addition, located in the restaurant building; the bakery sold Danish and French pastries and all types of cakes. (info from here)

I could really go for a lime soda and a danish pastry.

parade

The Rose Festival is going on here in Portland. Not one for groups of 350,000 people, I prefer to watch the Starlight Parade and the Rose Parade on TV. But, I do like parades. Sometime I would like to go to a small town parade like the one here.

These pictures were taken July 22, 1979 during "Old Homesteaders Days" in Osborn, Montana. Each photo says this along with a short description on the back. I got these a couple years ago from a fellow Webfooter.

On the back: Marie and Frank Sinclair as Grand Marshalls

On the back: Dog holding on to mistresses back

before the eruption

Today is the anniversary of the Mt St Helen's eruption in 1980. I recently got a stash of Washington State memorabilia at the Webfooters auction and looked through it tonight for some Mt St Helen's related stuff. Sure enough, I found some things.

I have a number of photos from an aerial tour that a women took not too long before the mountain erupted. Judging by the photos I would guess they were taken around 1977-1980.

written on back: Mt Adams now directly behind St Helens.

written on back: more black smoke, we were six miles away

Below is some stationery from around 1930. It came in a set with other local mountains on other pages. The image is actually a linen type finish small postcard glued on the paper.

I wasn't living here when Mt St Helen's blew. I was about 14 and living in Southern California. I do remember it, though and all the footage.

I see Mt St Helens often from the Fremont bridge when I drive home from work. It isn't the perfect Mt Fuji of the America as they used to call it, but I like the weird shape of it.

professional

I love finding old Portland advertising postcards and ephemera. Here are two I got a while ago.

This postcard is advertising Dral Cleaners, which still exists in the same spot in the Sellwood neighborhood. I'll have to go visit sometime.

This other postcard ad is awesome. Ralph Vincent looks like quite the professional and serious photographer, don't you think? He looks like so many character actors, in fact he looks a lot like the guy who played the psychiatrist in Miracle on 34th Street.

The three month calender is curious. Was it his busy season? Also, why couldn't he take off his coat? His office in SW Portland is long gone.

Anyway, I like his style.

Maybe Ralph took the picture for the Dral Cleaners postcard.

the post postcard show report

The Webfooter's Postcard weekend is over and it was a great time. The Friday night auction was lots of fun and there were some amazing deals!

The weekend show was a good time. Lots of great stuff to look at and people to see. It was great to see some of my friends there for the first time. It was also a real pleasure to be able to have a nice long talk with Karolyn Grimes, about her life and her roles in the films "It's a Wonderful Life" and "The Bishops Wife". She was such a delight and it was so neat to be laughing with her and saying our favorite lines from "It's a Wonderful Life". I could quote that whole film, as I'm sure she could. She is such a doll and she looks so much like she did as a kid.

Another neat thing to see at the show was a club member's personal collection of vintage beauty products. She brought them and displayed them on three tables just so people could see them. Apparently, she keeps them all in her bathroom! I love vintage packaging.

I got some great photos and postcards and I'll share some of them in future posts.

In the meantime here is a Easter Postcard I got at the show. I like how it is dark and not the usual Easter pastels. Hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend!

Come Meet Karolyn Grimes, "Zuzu" from It's a Wonderful Life at The Webfooters Post Card Show this weekend

I can't believe I forgot to mention this is my earlier post, but perhaps it's best because it merits it's own entry. There will be a celebrity at The Webfooter's Postcard Show this weekend and I'm betting she was in one of your all time favorite films.

Pretty much everyone loves the film It's a Wonderful Life. Many of us may have even seen it more than any other film. One of the most memorable scenes is when George Bailey, who's at his wit's end, visits his daughter Zuzu who has a cold.



Karolyn Grimes is the woman who played Zuzu in this film and she appeared in many other films during her childhood. It's super exciting that she will be at The Webfooters Postcard Show and Sale this weekend. She'll have a table and will be selling and signing memorabilia. I really like this 8x10 image of the whole cast:


Karolyn was also in another great Christmas film, The Bishops Wife. This is a lovely film. And Cary Grant and Loretta Young are so wonderful in it.



So, come by The Webfooters Show this weekend and meet a woman who was a part of some of the most classic films made. You can learn more about Karolyn Grimes at her website.

The Portland Post Card Event of the Year! April 15-17

Hey Folks, It's time for The Webfooters annual Postcard Show and Sale. If you are in Portland or near you should really come to this event.

There is an auction Friday night. It starts rather early with the preview at 3:30, the dinner at 5 and the auction begins at 6:30. It takes a while to auction all the amazing stuff off, so we have to start early. You can even view some of the auction lots on The Webfooters site here.

Below are two of the auction lots.

You need to make reservations to attend the dinner, but not the auction. It's a really fun time with a small group of friendly people and there are great deals to be had! Plus, a part of the sales help The Webfooters put on the auction and show the next year.

Then Saturday and Sunday is the Show and Sale. Vendors from all over the country will be tabling there, selling all kinds of vintage postcards, photos, and antique papers, including things like magazines, comics, greeting cards, menus, pamphlets, matches, business papers...really a number of amazing thins. Look at these jumbo matchbooks I got a couple years ago. All in perfect condition. I actually got 5 all together.

The cost of the show is $2.00, but you can save your ticket and use it the next day as well. The show is at the Jackson Armory at 6225 NE Cornfoot Dr in Portland.

The heart of postcard and photo collecting is an interest in history, but so many many things intersect. You will be astonished at the diverse collections people will have - and how much your personal history is represented. If you like history and paper I hope you come by. There will be lots of Portlandcentric items as well. All the details are on The Webfooters website.