Mr. Ralph Webster lived in Billerica, a town in Middlesex County of north-central Massachusetts.
Billerica abuts the city of Lowell.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billerica,_Massachusetts
In November of 1913, Ralph received a Thanksgiving postcard from Louise Skinner.
The postcard was mailed from Rutland, a town of Worcester County that is the geographic center of Massachusetts.
The “Central Tree” marks the spot in Rutland.
Billerica is about 49 miles northeast of Rutland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutland,_Massachusetts
The face of the postcard shows an unusual drawing of a colorful turkey parading past a classical balustrade – the posts of the balustrade create the impression of a triptych.
There is an elaborate and lightly-embossed capital above the balustrade.
Below, one sees a garland and a symmetrical array of fruits.
The composition is very symmetrical – trees and planters are matched on the side “panels”.
Beneath the drawing is a verse expressing what seems to me to be basic Yankee rectitude:
“Learn to Live so that
When Harvest comes you may
Gather the Fruits of Labor
And welcome Thanksgiving Day”
On the reverse, Louise greets “Dear Ralph” and asks “where have you kept yourself all this time”.
It may be that Louise and Ralph are distantly related as Louise asks, “When will I see you at Aunt Bertha’s again (question mark).
In closing, Louise expresses her hope “that you will have a Happy Thanksgiving”.
For herself, Louise is “spending mine in the country”.
(It is not clear what Louise plans to do – whether visit friends from out of town or seek out a comfortable rural inn.)
Ralph preserved the postcard in good condition throughout his life.
Unfortunately, we also do not know how Ralph planned to spend his Thanksgiving – but we trust that he (and Louise) enjoyed the holiday.
One hopes that Ralph communicated more frequently with Louise, that he visited Aunt Bertha regularly, and that the two maintained a friendly postcard correspondence for many years.
