Mr. Rufus Frasier lived in Appleton, a city and county seat of Outagamie County in east-central Wisconsin.
Located on the Fox River, north of Lake Winnebago, Appleton was founded in the mid- 19th century and became a center of paper manufacturing.
To provide electric power to the paper industry, the nation’s first hydro-electric plant opened on the Fox River in 1882.
The next year, Appleton pioneered the use of an electric streetcar system.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appleton,_Wisconsin
In May of 1915, Rufus received a postcard from his mother.
The postcard was written in “Tia Juana”, the most populous city in the Mexican province of Baja California – located on the nation’s northwest Pacific coast.
The postcard reference, “Tia Juana” (literally, “Aunt Jane”), is now Tijuana – the formal name of the city since 1898.
The name of the city derives from the name of an early ranch in the area, but there is no agreement about the meaning.
“Tia Juana” remained the name of the river and of a small enclave of US citizens until 1916.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tijuana
Because Tia Juana shares a border with the Californian city of San Diego, the city has been a busy center of cross-border trade and tourism for any years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego
+ + + + + +
The face of the postcard is a photograph of “Street Scene” in “Tia Juana, Mexico”.
In the foreground, signs for “Jorge’s Big Curio Store” appear in English.
Other shops extend into the background.
A wide roadway accommodates two autos and a pair of horses.
Overhead, three Mexican flags flutter in the breeze.
We might assume that Mother purchased the postcard at a shop similar to the ones in the photograph.
Published by Eno & Matteson of San Diego, the postcard was printed in the US. A large green logo for the “San Diego Exposition” is visible near the publisher’s name.
+ + + + + +
On the reverse, Mother carefully notes the date and her location – which is the only confirmation we have that the postcard was mailed in 1915.
The postage stamp is missing, which (with other damage) largely obliterated the postmark.
Mother begins her message without a greeting: “We took in the San Diego Fair today” and added “a trip to Old Mexico”.
I suspect that Rufus is an adult son, as Mother does not close with any affectionate expression – signing only, “Your Mother”.
Nevertheless, Rufus preserved the postcard in good condition throughout his life.
One hopes that Mother enjoyed the excursion into Mexico and that she sent more postcards from the trip.
